Will Hunsinger is CEO of Riviera Partners, a leading global executive search firm specializing in tech, product management and design.
There is much noise about artificial intelligence (AI) and the impact it will have on humans and the future of our employment. Alarmist headlines and sensational news stories lead us to believe that AI will operate without human input, leaving a dystopian future that looks like HBO’s “Westworld.” It’s hard not to be fearful.
Yet much of that fear is unwarranted, especially with respect to the future of employment. AI in hiring is a solid example of how innovative tech can dramatically enhance human efforts, not replace them.
AI’s Uses In Hiring
Tapping AI for hiring means leveraging a platform built on years of hiring data input by humans, effectively codifying collective wisdom, potentially in the millions of interactions. Combine this human-derived information with a solid artificial intelligence/machine learning platform that scores and predicts the best candidate for a company’s specific needs, and you have a powerhouse that can quickly analyze and compare vast amounts of applicant data, enabling recruiters and hiring managers to identify suitable candidates more accurately and efficiently.
The key here is that AI offers recruiters and hiring managers a way to minimize hiring risk while better predicting success—but the only way to deliver top talent is to tap people’s knowledge while using AI to enhance and expedite a search.
The Role Humans Play
AI can excel at data-driven tasks, but recruiters and hiring teams must journey down the path of firsthand connection and interviews to assess emotional intelligence, interest in the company, cultural fit, innovative thinking on specific company charters and other qualitative aspects that are key to a successful, long-term hire.
While an AI-based hiring management platform can offer valuable insights into why a candidate is a suitable fit, it’s only as good as the data and knowledge shared by those connecting with the candidates.
Here are four ways the combination of AI and people-powered hiring benefits the industry.
• Efficiency: AI can create efficiencies by leveraging years of data, such as candidate job history and performance or market insights, to automate administrative tasks. The data within the platform is at everyone’s fingertips, allowing all those who use it to be efficient and to focus their horsepower on identifying, accessing, evaluating and delivering the right outcomes.
• Intelligence: Data is codified into the platform, making hirers and recruiters smarter through collective experience, shared wisdom and accumulated insights from decades of searches. With the ability to analyze large datasets, AI can provide insights into hiring trends, company and candidate preferences and performance metrics. This intel informs strategic decisions, making the hiring process more effective.
• Insight: A good AI platform is only as solid as the robust data derived from the people behind each hirer or recruiter. With this, a machine learning platform can distill insights and develop the story behind the profile, using AI to flesh out the narrative on why or why not to select specific candidates. Hence, no spammy outreach, given one knows the candidate’s history and career path and how they have performed to date.
• Transparency: Even if a recruiter or firm is involved, a solid AI-enabled platform will facilitate transparency and interaction between candidates and companies, reducing hiring pain points and boosting confidence in the quality of candidates.
Potential Challenges Of AI In Hiring To Consider
As with any technology or advancement in society, there are always potential risks, challenges and limitations. In the case of AI and hiring, context is critical. With systems that are not well developed, context and interpretations can be off.
It’s important that the data being tapped is of high quality and “clean”—this includes the data’s source. Is it trusted?
Let’s not forget the potential for machine bias, as well as the risk of violating regulations. These regulations include NYC’s law governing AI-based automated employment decision tools, GDPR compliance requirements in Europe and Congress’s deliberation on the Algorithmic Accountability Act.
Data privacy and security will always be a factor with any technological solution. As AI grows, so will the need to ensure that information is kept secure. No solution is perfect, and AI is no exception.
When man and machine come together, it’s a powerful combination that minimizes hiring risk while more accurately predicting success. It can lead to better identification, qualification and delivery of top talent, supplementing people’s skills to drive better outcomes. But without those skills, machines alone will miss the mark. Look at it like AI powered by people.
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