How to Find a Balance Between AI and Humans in Recruitment

How to Find a Balance Between AI and Humans in Recruitment There is a growing trend: to remove the human element from the recruiting process through a complete reliance on technology. Of course, technology has its immense merits in recruitment today. The ease, speed, and effectiveness it brings have grown candidate sourcing and hiring over the decades. However, in the age of a speed-addicted, tech-demanding generation, where recruiters are more inclined to crunch numbers and spam candidates, the human aspect of recruiting is steadily fading out. Unsurprisingly, this idea has seemingly become the lynchpin of the sales pitch for more than a few HR technology companies, a never-ending stream of dialogue surrounding the benefits of removing the human element from recruiting, interviewing, hiring, onboarding, and training. The list goes on and on. With this emerging trend that seems to be resonating well within the recruiting industry, it is time for a rethink. In theory, the concept makes sense: reduce manual time spent on low-value processes and increase time and attention on the strategic. Using technology is also helping reduce bias in recruiting. For example, tools we have at our disposal can de-bias job postings and that’s the right thing to do. But speed should be the main criteria that technology tools offer to a recruiter. This point has been used by a growing number of vendors to sell the notion that technology (and eventual dehumanization) is the only way to make a valid decision in recruitment. Here are three points these vendors need to consider:  They misunderstand the demands of todays workforce We use new tech to become more in touch with present-day job seekers and new hires. Of course, tech-savviness is a must-have for any recruiter today. But the problem is that there is something experts proposing the elimination of the human element in favor of speed fail to get. They fail to understand the most basic needs and desires of the millennials and, arguably, those of candidates in general. While it is true that the emerging workforce is very reliant on social media and instant communications, with many preferring electronic communication over face-to-face, the concept of removing the human element seems to be looking only at the instant and completely ignoring the communication. With all these advances in recruitment AI, tools and tech, we are tempted to focus only on speed and neglect candidate experience. We forget that real communication is the benchmark of quality candidate experience. Imagine the frustration a candidate would experience repeatedly getting the same spammed messages from a recruiter with the same message sent to another ten recruiters before because they are using the same software that generates templates for every candidate. Why would anyone want to dehumanize the recruiting process and candidate experience? Yes, todays candidates want an instant response, but remember they expect communication to be a two-way thing. Regardless of the medium being used, there is always dialogue. There is back-and-forth with a living, breathing human. That human may not be sitting across the table from them, but it would be a huge mistake to assume that any candidate would prefer instant one-size-fits-all generic email in lieu of customized responses. At the very least, your automated responses should be written with the recruiters tone of voice and company brand in mind with human strategizing in the content. Yes, the A.I. and chatbots will bring benefits to our lives, but so far the technology is still new and not perfect by any means. Communication with Chatbot (just an example) Bot: Welcome, I am Alex, chatbot of company Acme. How can I help you? Me: Can you give me the name of the recruiter responsible for the Hiring Manager role at SF? Bot: I am sorry, I don’t understand. Can you rephrase your question? Me: Can you give me the contact details for the recruitment team at your company? Bot: I am sorry, I don’t understand. Can you rephrase your question? Me: Can you tell me what the company’s EVP is? Bot: I am sorry, I don’t understand. Can you rephrase your question? Not the right candidate experience that I was looking for.    They forget that emotional intelligence is still of the utmost importance One stressful aspect for recruiters in the hiring process is planning the interview. In a positive light, there are a number of great tools out there that are fantastic for arming recruiters with additional information and insight as they are walking into an interview. These tools range in function from providing poignant (legally vetted) interview questions to helping understand what specific body language means. The A.I. behind is able to evaluate candidates and prepare a report for the recruiter. However, what these technologies should not do is to solely dictate who does or does not get a job without human appraisal. Solely entrusting a computer as the ultimate decision authority on a candidates ability to perform their job ignores the fact that, to date, there is no software in the world that can reliably measure, judge or understand human emotional intelligence. Maybe you are going to tell me that recruiters will never only trust the decision of some program. But, in reality, many people believe fake news, just because they are too lazy to double-check facts. Attempting to utilize currently existing technology in this function would be a vast waste of resources and offer no guaranteed results. The solutions we use today must provide guidance on the interview process and act as what they areâ€"a tool for screening to help guide effective hiring decisions.    They still carry a false illusion of speed Nowadays, recruiters, even well-meaning ones, get a bad name. It has reached a point where speed is more important than the accuracy and hard work. Spammy inmails and a lack of respect for job seekers and candidates has become the order of the day. Accompanied with the diseases of ineffective following up and biases like ageism, job seekers form negative opinions of the recruitment process. But we cant totally blame the recruiters here. When they move too fast, they make mistakes. They know that being the first to approach a candidate and present an offer is important. Being the second will not count as a hire in their KPIs. Many new tools were bought just to support the illusion of speed. In reality, they could quickly find the candidate, schedule the interview, but in many cases the hiring manager will say to the recruiter the magical sentence, “Good candidate, but I would like to see one more.” Speed is important, but sometimes it does not go hand in hand with a good candidate experience. Even with all the technology that recruiters have at their disposal they still treat candidates poorly. They do nothing more than run a resume through a software program looking for the right keywords matching the requirements of their open roles. And what surprises me is that, with all the cool ATS that companies are using, they are unable to send every candidate that applied a rejection email after they close the role. Tools are only as good as the people who are using them. A call for change I know that it looks like I am against A.I., but the opposite is true. I am big A.I. fan, I also built few chatbots. I just want to point out that we are focusing our attention on that technology with the hope that it will solve our problems. But people are missing the point that these tools are only there to help us, not to fix all problems that a company has. The best A.I. or chatbot on the planet will not fix toxic company culture. Of course, we use cutting-edge tools to streamline our recruiting processes, greatly easing those complex legal/compliance issues. Additionally, technology will be of immense help in attracting great candidates and narrow down the applicant pool to the candidate with the best job fit. But if you are planning to create a bias-free recruiting process, the tools can only help you to solve one part of the equation. The second part, which is more important, is to create a culture that encourages leaders and hiring managers to recognize their own unconscious biases and foster an inclusive environment. Most importantly, we should not forget the importance of basic human interaction and emotional intelligence. And as we continue to incorporate more innovative technologies to enhance human interactions and candidate experience, lets keep in mind that its a delicate balance to achieve. About the author: Jan Tegze is the author of Full Stack Recruiter and results-oriented Talent Acquisition Leader with extensive experience in full life cycle recruiting, and broad knowledge in international recruiting, sourcing, recruitment branding, marketing, and proactive innovative sourcing techniques.  

Facebook Ads A Less Obtrusive Way of Sharing Your Product [INFOGRAPHIC] - Classy Career Girl

Facebook Ads A Less Obtrusive Way of Sharing Your Product [INFOGRAPHIC] Advertising is not a particularly elegant art form. The problem is that by definition, adverts need to be obtrusive, to force their way into a potential customer’s attention â€" as well as the attention of countless other viewers who really couldn’t care less about the product being sold. This is all changing with Facebook Ads. With the ability to closely target a super-specific demographic and slip your ad into their daily feed, the only barrier to graceful advertising is your own craft. Facebook actually makes it easy for you to create your ad â€" you need just some photos or video, and a couple of lines of text â€" so if you can come up with an image that will attract the hungry eyes of your dream Facebook user, your ad will not look out of place on their home page. Facebook Ads: A Less Obtrusive Way of Sharing Your Product [INFOGRAPHIC] When you have your photo/video and text lined up, you can create the whole thing within your personal Facebook account (you link the ad to your product’s Official Page during the process). Click the little arrow at the top right of Facebook’s main page, and select Create Ads to be taken to the ad center. [RELATED: 10 Ways To Improve Your Online Brand] Here you can choose from a range of simple options, specifying your location, currency, and language before you narrow down your demographic. Compile a list of comparable brands that your ideal customer may already have shown an interest in on Facebook. The advertising engine makes sure that only people interested in similar products will see your ad.  Upload your imagery and your copy, select your budget range, and you’re ready to publish. Facebook Ads put business owners in complete control of their campaigns. It is easy to add character and personality to your ad and to introduce it to like-minded people â€" who you will hopefully inspire to click through to your webpage and consider your goods. To get started, try working through this 5-step infographic from Headway Capital.

Do Glasses Help in a Job Interview

Do Glasses Help in a Job Interview Remember the Will Grace episode where Will said “Wearing glasses is the intellectual equivalent of stuffing a sock in your pants.” to Jack? While the quote is fantastic, it begs the question: can glasses make you look smarter? Can it help you in a job interview? People used to wear glasses because they HAD to they needed vision correction. Now, people don eyeglasses as a fashion accessory because they WANT to. The stigma of looking “dorky” seemed to end somewhere around 2005 when geek chic started becoming “trendy”. According to “the Telegraph” a British newspaper, nearly one-third of British adults believe wearing eyeglasses makes you look more professional and a whopping 43 percent believe it makes you look more intelligent. Looks can be deceiving and wearing eyeglasses may make you look smarter but we all know that that deception can only last so long. So, when you’re interviewing for a new position, is it wise to wear a pair of frames to get more respect? According to Cary Cooper, Professor of Organizational Psychology and Health at Lancaster University, “It is not surprising that businesses want to employ intelligent staff but the idea that intelligent people wear glasses is an old stereotype that has not gone away.It comes from the belief that you develop bad eyesight by reading a lot and that reading makes you more intelligent.” A study conducted by the British College of Optometrists found that a polished appearance may help more than wearing prescription glasses but it’s pretty safe to say that there’s confidence found in wearing eyeglasses and the confident look is what may help win over a potential employer. If you’re a believer that glasses make you look smarter but you don’t necessarily need a prescription, you may want to head online.Order glasses from a reputable site that also sells prescription eyewear. You want to look your best during your interview because confidence is key so if glasses make you feel more confident go for it! There’s no doubt that glasses are becoming more fashionable but the stereotype seems to be fading. This article was sponsored by GlassesUSA.com.

Avoid Being the Neighbour from Hell at Uni

Avoid Being the Neighbour from Hell at Uni When you’ve moved out of halls after your first year at university you’ll be sure to look back at it with a curious mixture of nostalgia and utter relief. If you’re lucky, halls can provide a pre-packaged group of friends that will provide a much-needed support network when you’ve come back from a bad seminar or got a lower mark in an essay than you’d hoped. However, being thrust together with a group of equally clueless and nervous strangers makes for a very intense environment. Make sure you follow these simple rules so you don’t become a nightmare housemate: Keep it Down There’s a time and a place to be blaring out dubstep/practicing your clarinet/singing along to the latest episode of Glee. You would have thought it would be obvious that 3.30am is not this time. However, in first year especially, people often get caught up in the flurry of late nights and parties and completely forget any notions of time. Remember that your flatmates will have very different schedules so just because you don’t have to get up at 8am doesn’t mean that your neighbour doesn’t. [ALSO READ: Food Shopping On A Budget As A Student] Be Respectful Chances are that your flatmates will be an eclectic bunch of different personalities, backgrounds and viewpoints. Revel in the opportunity to meet people so different from those back home. However, always remember to respect your flatmates’  different views. If you have conservative neighbours, it’s probably best not to bring back a group of moshers from a night out for a drug and debauchery-fuelled after party (although we clearly wouldn’t suggest you do this anyway). You don’t want to make anyone feel uncomfortable in their own home. Similarly, it’s polite to ask people beforehand whether they mind someone staying over for a few days. Clinger boyfriends/girlfriends need not apply. Don’t Be Messy People have very different ideas of what is an acceptable level of filth. When you’re living in your own place, you very quickly come to realise why your mum got so angry when you left dirty plates in your room all those years ago. Whilst establishing cleaning rules might seem a little dull and parent-y, it will save a lot of resentment building up over the long term. [ALSO READ:  6 Top Tips for Minimising Your Student Debt Whilst Still at University] Thou Shalt not Steal So we all know that being a student isn’t going to be the most flush time of our lives (hopefully!). However, this is no excuse for nicking other people’s food. A little milk for tea is fine but happily munching on their lovingly prepared packed lunch for the next day isn’t so acceptable. In addition, don’t be stingy with buying communal things like washing up liquid. After all, a couple of pounds is hardly going to make a huge dent in your bank account and no one wants to get a reputation for being a scrooge. Don’t Be a Stranger There always seems to be the token ghost flatmate who you never see. The only sign of life from inside their room is an occasional chortle along to an episode of Futurama . Don’t be this housemate. You don’t have to be best buds with your halls neighbours but it makes the experience a lot more pleasant for everyone if you make a bit of an effort. Just saying ‘hey’ and asking people how their day has been if you bump into them in the kitchen makes a huge difference to the overall environment of the accommodation.

Resume Writer - How to Find One in Denver

Resume Writer - How to Find One in DenverFinding a resume writer in Denver can be hard. If you have ever tried to find one in person, you know that they are pretty scarce. That's because most large employers have the habit of only hiring through the internet. That means they would rather you hire your own resume writer than have to worry about bringing in someone who does not know the area, or who might be getting paid by the hour.The problem is that some people are using the word 'resume' in Denver without any particular name. That means you end up getting a generic job offer or a Denver resume that is not the type of work experience you would really need to get that job. If you are looking for a resume writer in Denver, you may want to make sure you get an exact name.There are a few ways to find a resume writer in Denver. The easiest and probably the fastest way is to use the services of a professional service. The only problem with that is that they will charge you for their servi ces. Unless you have the money to pay for them, you may be better off looking elsewhere.The next option is to do it yourself. You may find that this is the best way to go.Just as important as the research you will be doing will be your writing skills. The reason this is important is because there are a lot of pitfalls when you are doing your own writing. While you may not have the same level of education, you should still be able to create the resume you need to provide the employer with what they need.Since hiring a resume writer is usually only an issue in the Denver area, you will want to make sure you find one in Denver to write your resume. They may be better than any local service, but they are also usuallymore expensive. That is because you have to pay for their time and expertise.If you are looking for a resume writer in Denver and do not want to do it yourself, you should find a company that offers the same service as you need. That way you can get exactly what you need in one place. You don't want to have to look all over town to find someone, since you know that they will have the skills you need.You can find a resume writer in Denver by visiting the official Colorado job board. When you register for a job, you will be provided with links to other job boards and websites. Try one out and see if it has a service you like best, since the business can charge you for that service.

How to use the Business Journal to put your job search in high speed

How to use the Business Journal to put your job search in high speed How to use the Business Journal to put your job search in high speed Previously Ive written about how to use the Business Journals to set goals, find hiring managers, and identify multiple target companies in your area. If you havent invested in your local Business Journal or dont spend time reading it, youre missing out. If you do have an online or print subscription to your local Business Journal, you can maximize the value of your investment by using it to get your next career move in motion or learn how to network better. Lets get straight to the career move actions you can take right away! And the specific features of the Business Journals that will help you along the way. Research before applying If you are searching for a job today, stop those random acts of application right now! No more papering the planet with résumés and applications. Pause and do your homework. Careful and thorough research will make your application stand out and increase your chances to win an interview. For each position you are considering, spend plenty of time doing these three things: Search your local Business Journal site for articles about the target company, such as recent stories, key executive moves, new construction, mergers and acquisitions and awards they may have won. Dont stop with your target company, do the same for their competition. Go to the companys website and read it all, not just the main pages. Use Bing or Google to do a web search and read speeches and presentations, financial filings of public companies, press releases and any other documents referencing your target company. Research the division, product line, or group within the company that you are applying to. Use this information to identify the skills and experiences that you want to highlight in your cover letter or call out in your résumé. Do no wait until the night before the interview to do your research. From the beginning of your job search, todays competitive era requires the highest degree of knowledge about your target company. Your research will strengthen the content in your cover letter, the details you include in your résumé and the way you network. Get out and network Its great that you have your LinkedIn profile at 100 percent and you are connecting with business peers online. However, there is no doubt that the highest quality relationships are built by meeting face to face. And if your next career move is important to you, then you need to build quality two-way relationships fast. This is no time for excuses! Dont find yourself using any of these top three excuses for not networking face-to-face: I dont have time. I am an introvert. I dont know where to go. We can solve the last one right here! Your local Business Journal is the place to go for all things career related, including calendars of networking opportunities. Not only does each Business Journal host many of their own events, they publish a calendar of other business events in their area. And you can read about local associations, industry trade groups, and clubs that host their own networking events, too.

Job Leads and Links - Did You Network Today - CareerAlley

Job Leads and Links - Did You Network Today - CareerAlley We may receive compensation when you click on links to products from our partners. Network, Network, Network the three most important words in job search. According to Payscale.com (How Many Jobs Are Found Through Networking, Really?), upwards of 85% of people who land new jobs find the jobs through networking. Although you will see various percentages published all over the Internet, all of them indicate that you should be spending more than 50% of your job search time leveraging your friends, former classmates, family and former coworkers. Following area few links to get you started on yournetworking game plan. 4 Ways to Polish Your LinkedIn ProfileObviously, your most valuable tool should be LinkedIn. And, while you should not spend too much time on any one job search resources (see The Four Legs of Job Search), LinkedIn is worth the time. Your Networking Plan (list): Networking is by far, your second most important job search tool (the first being your resume). Networks allow you to establish relationships with people in your industry in different companies and locations. The more people you know, the more likely it is that you will find out about potential job opportunities. Even if calling people (or writing people) is not your strong point (or maybe you dont feel comfortable doing it) you can still become a networking pro. Your Network action plans should look something like this: Step 1 Review and update your profile on your Network (LinkedIn should be one of your primary network sites). Step 2 Review your network. Add people you know who can help with your search and reconnect with those already in your network. Step 3 Make a lost of those connections: who are working at a company where you would like to work, who have connections and can help you find opportunities or who are experienced and can offer career and job search advice. Career Services This link leads to Montclair State Universitys Center for Career Services. It does not matter whether or not you are (or have) attended Montclair State, you can still review their career site. This particular link provides a list of Internet resources for your jobs search. Many of these have been listed here, but many have not. Definitely worth a look. Unemployed? Your New Job: Find a Job! Some articles to help when you are unemployed. I Lost my Job, Now What? Losing your job is incredibly stressful. Our job partly defines who we are and the means by which we live. The stages of emotional change caused by job loss are very similar to the stages of grief when losing a loved one. Networking Support Groups Ive mentioned several times in many posts what a great resource The Riley Guide is and this link regarding Networking is a great example. The article provides a vast number of networking groups, many of which should help in your pursuit of a job. Networking Make Business Contacts This list, provided by the Washington Post, provides a list of Networking groups. There is also a link to the left-hand side of the page which lists top jobs posted on the Washington Posts website. There were 34 top job opportunities listed when I checked the site. We are always eager to hear from our readers. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions or suggestions regarding CareerAlley content. Good luck in your search,Joey Google+