Hiring the right talent is a huge challenge for HR managers and professionals. While on the one hand there is the perennial problem of unemployment or underemployment, on the other end of the spectrum there is the problem of identifying the right candidates for the right job.
Hence modern day HR managers, employment agencies and recruitment consultants are turning to technology to overcome this problem.
Today it is quite common in HR parlances to talk about AI or artificial intelligence. It is nothing but an intelligent machine which has the requirement rationale power and flexibility to perceive the environment and take necessary action to successfully meet some specified goal.
There is no doubt that it is a branch of computer science which makes use of machine learning algorithms. It has the capability of mimicking certain cognitive functions. Therefore in many areas they are able to behave like normal human beings. Hence AI is now being in many innovative ways for recruiting the best talent.
We will look at 7 different ways by which AI can be made good use of when it comes to recruiting.
- Screening of Candidates
It is now possible to engage a candidate in the initial screening activity using AI methods. Many companies are using AI tools and chat-box where common candidate questions are asked. The answers are analyzed by HR professionals. This helps them to find out the various attributes of the candidate. It is an efficient and time tested method when it comes to the initial screening of candidates.
- Engagement of Candidates
One of the biggest problems with interview process is that almost fifty percent of candidates may not be having any communication or engagement from the employers once they have applied for a specific requirement or vacancy. It is here that the role of artificial intelligence may have a big role to play. This goes much beyond sending automated mails or replies. The best feature is that these messages can be personalized and can be real time and be different for different candidates.
- Re-Engage your candidates
In most cases record of candidates gets lost or they are not used after they send in their applications for a specific role. Once a job requirement is met or closed the records often are put in cold storage. With the help of AI it is now possible to selective re-engage groups of candidates to find out whether they would be interested in a position after lapse of a particular period of time. Through such opportunity artificial intelligence could also be used to update the records of the candidates and make it real time and contemporary. It is quite likely that during the time lag the candidate could have had addition to experience, qualification and they may also have handed new responsibilities.
- Customised training and development
There is no doubt that employees can be more productive if they are offered customised trainings and their skills are upgraded on a regular basis. These requirements cannot be provided by the bosses and team leaders. In such cases choosing artificial intelligence could help find a solution. It could understand the needs and requirements of employees and come out with a well-designed and progressive career enhancement program which is relevant to the needs and requirements of each and every employee.
- Post-Offer Acceptance
Quite often the candidates who are chosen for a job need to go through a notice period with their existing employer. It has been seen that many times the selected candidates may start looking elsewhere if they do not receive regular communication from their new employers. In such situations it has been found that going in for artificial intelligence could make a big difference. It could keep the conversation going with the selected candidates. It has been found that such regular conversations could increase the chance of acceptance rates and reduce the risk of the selected candidates going astray and joining some other organizations. It is well known that selecting a candidate involves lot of time, effort and money and no organization would like to allow everything to go waste.
- Orientation programs of Newly Hired Candidates
Orienting a newly appointed employee is extremely important. It involves acquainting the new employee to get used to the culture of the company. It also calls for familiarizing with processes and policies of the company. Employers would not like to waste the productive time of their existing employees in such tasks.
Hence many of them have started making intelligent and good use of artificial intelligence to ensure that the orientation of the new employees takes place in the right way. There are a number of common questions which the new employees might be having.
Using AI it is now possible to ensure that the new entrants not only get answers to all these questions but also remember what has been taught to them. There is no doubt that learning reinforcement and information is the key to improved employee productivity and this can be ensured with the help of a well-focused and well thought out artificial intelligence orientation processes and procedures.
- Improving Employee Relations and Engagement
There are hardly any employees who are free from questions and doubts. While some questions are routine and easy to understand and reply, there are other complex questions. Simple questions could relate to vacation allowances and details pertinent to benefit coverage, FMLA and other such things. Complex questions could require deeper analysis and might also require intervention of the HR manager. The use of artificial intelligence is becoming quite common and it could be in the form of chats, virtual meeting rooms, emails and other such modes.
These are just a few examples where artificial intelligence is being used on a regular basis. While there could be many situations where manual intervention and human touch is the best way forward, when it comes to handling routine and mundane requirements, the role of artificial intelligence is becoming extremely important.
In large organizations where hiring and interviews keep happening almost on a daily basis and where the requirements of people is quite high, use of this technology certainly speeds up things and makes the entire process of HR management professional and highly efficient.
