Sponsored by Radancy
Have you been swept up in the Generative AI whirlwind? Although it was unleashed less than 18 months ago, the buzz has been deafening. Now, I imagine nearly every business or HR leader must be involved with Gen AI, at least at some level.
But what’s the rush? Well, this is not your typical technology revolution. And I’m not the only person who thinks so.
The Rapid Evolution of Generative AI
Staggering statistics underscore how GAI is already redefining the nature of work. For example, McKinsey estimates that AI solutions could enable automation of 60-70% of business activities by 2030. And HR leaders say organizational success is at stake. In fact, 76% believe their companies will fall behind competitors if they don’t adopt GAI and related solutions within 12-24 months. Breathtaking.
Clearly, time is of the essence. But are we moving faster than we should? On one hand, speed is an advantage. On the other hand, being too hasty could open the door to costly pitfalls. Consider this: Although 96% of businesses support some sort of AI regulation, only 2% have operationalized responsible AI within their own organization.
With GAI transforming work this quickly, proactive employers can expect to achieve powerful productivity gains. But, as with other disruptive technologies, GAI is raising serious concerns we can’t afford to ignore. For example, what are the pros and cons of generative AI in recruiting? Let’s take a closer look…
A Framework for Generative AI in Recruiting
GAI may be relatively new, but it’s clearly here to stay. That’s why it’s important for employers to understand how this technology is changing HR ecosystems, and prepare for its impact on recruitment and hiring processes.
Recently, human capability expert, Dave Ulrich, wrote an excellent article that maps GAI’s potential to add value across four key human capital domains — talent, leadership, organization capability, and HR. In the talent domain, he suggests multiple applications for Generative AI in recruiting and talent acquisition:
APPLICATIONS
- Define target skills for specific roles and individuals
- Identify relevant sources to find high-quality candidates
- Match candidates with job profiles
- Develop pipeline analytics with suggested interventions, job descriptions, recruiting administrative steps, and initial screening
- Reduce time-to-hire cycle time, build talent marketplace to improve internal mobility
- Validate skills and certifications
- Improve candidate experience through personalized interactions and onboarding information/interactions
These applications seem promising. But what implications should organizations consider now, and going forward?
Pros and Cons of Generative AI in Recruiting: A Second Look
Last May, I discussed this topic with #WorkTrends podcast guest, Todd Maycunich, SVP of Radancy Labs. Todd is the ideal source for this conversation, because he leads Radancy’s global insights team, which leverages primary and secondary data to understand trends that are shaping the future of talent acquisition.
Although the AI landscape has continued to change since our chat, I think you’ll agree that Todd’s perspectives remain highly relevant as we look to the future…
HIGHLIGHTS:
Behind the Rise of Generative AI
Why is interest in GAI so massive now?
ChatGPT was released to the public on November 30, 2022. It wasn’t the first conversational user experience that demonstrated the ability to reason — but it was the most popular by far. In fact, it reached 100 million users faster than any other application.
These tools are capturing the imagination. People are suddenly having experiences they haven’t had with conversational bots. And they wonder if this is the start of the next computing paradigm shift. So I understand the hype.
The Downside of Generative AI in Recruiting
What are some risks of using these tools in HR, particularly in recruitment?
When new technology emerges, so do new problems. That’s especially true when the pace of technology moves as quickly as AI is today.
I’m not sure what we’ll be talking about in three months, much less three years. But after studying and using this technology in the context of hiring for 6 months, here’s one of my concerns:
We’re using AI now in many ways to generate content. And that content is training the AI that will generate content in the future.
I think this poses more risks than opportunities. It creates a homogenization effect, so it’s harder to stand out. This can have a negative impact on brands, among other things.
Avoiding AI-Induced “Sameness”
The risk isn’t limited to recruiting. It touches everything, yes?
There’s a lot of energy focused now on putting guardrails in place. Most companies are already thinking about how to protect their brand and their voice when AI helps generate content.
The good news is that this is top-of-mind now. And companies like ours are integrating it safely into the talent acquisition process, rather than being a bit fast and loose.
Implications for the Hiring Process
Can this tech make candidates seem indistinguishable by obscuring certain traits or attributes?
Yes, this is fascinating. Will it make a hiring manager’s job easier, or harder? I’m torn.
For example, what happens when a candidate uses AI-based writing suggestion tools to communicate with an employer, instead of directly researching the company, the job, or even the hiring manager? Will it make suboptimal candidates seem optimal?
This is a good example of how these tools can make it difficult to see people as individuals…
Obscuring Hiring Transparency
That scares me because we need to hire people in 3D. We need transparency in candidates, hiring managers, and employer brands…
Yes. What happens when this technology extends broadly to cover letters, resumes, assessments, and even remote interviews? It can lead to technological anonymity, where tech obscures certain characteristics of people, and that creates all sorts of challenges.
The first thing that comes to mind is bias. You could argue that it can accelerate de-biasing. But I think the biggest concern is that it could perpetuate unconscious biases.
Addressing Authenticity
If GAI is really just offering recycled points-of-view, how can we ensure employer brand authenticity?
Essentially all content is under threat. I saw some academic research recently that said within a few years, as much as 90% of all the content on the internet will be synthetic.
And generative AI is being heralded for its ability to be creative. It’s exciting. But when this content is published to the internet it becomes data that will train future large-language models, like the one ChatGPT uses.
So it’s possible that highly imaginative brands whose essence comes through not just in what they write, but in how they write it — those brands could regress if they trade authenticity for speed and agility. That’s worrisome…
Preparing for the Future
So how should talent acquisition teams proceed with Generative AI in recruiting?
First, I think the positives outweigh the negatives, particularly in the short term. This is an important opportunity, but we must stop and remember what matters and the jobs to be done.
So I would say remain outcome-oriented when thinking about potential applications of generative AI. And I think the most immediate impact on recruiting and hiring will come from the technological anonymity we discussed.
We’ll need better screening and selection tools — or maybe entirely new ways of doing that — to truly separate candidates, so they won’t seem indistinguishable from one another…
EDITOR’S NOTE: For more guidance about how to make the most of generative AI in recruiting, listen to this full podcast episode. Also, for more #WorkTrends insights, check our growing collection of episodes at Apple or Spotify and subscribe!
