Well I started some shit on LinkedIn recently. 🙂
AI in Recruiting is such a hot topic. Some folks think that AI should do it all and recruiters are completely unnecessary. Weirdly, some of those same people get all salty about us using technologies to do our jobs more efficiently.
(I swear the Venn diagram of people who know nothing about recruiting and complain the most about recruiting is a damn circle).
Back in my day we had to put ads in newspapers, fliers on cars and call random strangers and ask if they want new jobs. It was total chaos. I remember checking the news for “business updates” and names of people getting promoted or moving to new companies. Then, the internet happened.
Suddenly we had access to information like never before! Once LinkedIn really picked up speed people (and their work history) was RIGHT THERE for us to read all about. Wild!
Fast forward several more years, technology continues to evolve and now we have AI, ML, decision trees, automation (to an extent) – it’s wild out there! But how is this stuff ACTUALLY IMPLEMENTED?
For me, it’s about SEARCH.
There are many great AI sourcing tools out there, but a personal favorite of mine is HireEZ. I’ve used it for years at several companies, and it really is a recruiter’s best friend!
Note – this is a completely separate process from reviewing incoming applicants. Completely. Different. Process.
HireEZ (or any other AI search tool) is a 3rd party app that MAY integrate with an ATS. Big question mark there, as it does depend on the configuration and what security allows. I have always used it as a stand alone tool for outbound recruiting. I have two specific processes I follow when starting a search:
Labor Market Insights
Before starting a search I will upload the job description into HireEZ and run some analytics. The tool will parse my job description, separating the title, industry, must haves and nice to haves, and make suggestions on other keywords or drop downs I may want to consider. Once I have made all my adjustments, I can pull labor market data including how many available prospects there are, rough estimates of compensation, even geographic hotspots for the kind of talent I’m seeking. If I get too few results, that can be an indicator that our requirements are too stringent and we should rework the JD.
Sourcing
I LOVE the AI sourcing feature in HireEZ. I can use a job description (a described above), write a boolean string, or simply select my criteria to start a search. Once I’m ready, the tool will recommend some calibration profiles based on what I’ve asked for. I can give a thumbs up or down along with feedback to help the tool “learn” what I really want. Then I can set up recurring searches that will continue to add more prospects to my search project. Set it and forget it!
But what about bias?
Like any other system, the bias is in the user. It’s up to ME to make the right choices when filtering and selecting search criteria. I am in complete control of WHAT I’m searching for and just as importantly how I engage with people I find.
Ok, you found people – now what?
Again it’s important to reiterate these are NOT RESUMES. HireEZ (and tools like it) pull publicly available data, turn it into a profile, and presents it to people like me who are searching. That’s it. NOT a resume (unless you’ve got on uploaded on your social profiles). Merely data that has been aggregated from Al Gore’s internet. Once we have enough info to decide we want to learn more, we can also leverage these tools for contact info and make super targeted outreach to convince you to talk to us.
NOW we can talk about specific roles, applying to positions, and getting you into the ATS for further consideration, interviews, and hopefully offers.
More in this week’s video HERE.
