Hiring GlossaryWhat are AI recruiting tools?
What are AI recruiting tools?
What exactly do we mean when we talk about artificial intelligence (AI) in recruiting? Here’s a simple definition from Mona Khalil, former Head of Data Science at Greenhouse: “AI is an automated system that performs a task you’d typically expect some human intelligence to perform.” Some forms of AI, like machine learning, have already been around for quite some time, while others, like generative AI, are relatively new (but have already made a big impact on our day-to-day work).
It can be hard to keep up with the pace of innovation – it seems like dozens of new AI recruiting tools appear on the market every week. But it’s safe to say that AI tools can enhance efficiency in almost every step of the recruiting process. Here are just a few examples of how recruiters are using AI tools today.
- Writing job descriptions and interview questions
At the top of the funnel, many recruiters and hiring managers get stuck staring at the blank page. AI recruiting tools can generate job descriptions, scorecards and interview questions, giving you a solid first draft so you don’t have to start from scratch.
- Sourcing and surfacing candidates
AI sourcing tools can help talent acquisition (TA) professionals source candidates who have the skills and background they’re looking for. Instead of conducting lengthy searches themselves, TA pros can simply provide a job description or list of desired skills to the tool, and it will return relevant results in a fraction of the time. Some of these tools can also automate and personalise outreach with AI-generated emails to kick off the conversation with candidates who appear to be a good match. These tools can also track candidate engagement and automate follow-ups to keep the conversation going.
- Filtering candidates
You can cut through the noise and filter candidates with AI recruiting tools like smart searches (available within Greenhouse Recruiting). This makes it easier to narrow down candidates in a transparent, explainable and compliant way using objective information like the suggested keywords based on the public job descriptions. Ariana Moon, Greenhouse’s Vice President of Talent Planning & Acquisition, said, “This is a game-changer because there are so many inbound applications right now.”
And filtering capabilities aren’t just helpful for new candidates – if you have talent pools of past candidates you’d like to tap into, AI tools like Talent Rediscovery help you find potential candidates from within your own database.
- Anonymising resumes (to limit bias during screening)
CV anonymisation is an AI-based recruiting tool that redacts personally identifiable information, such as first and last name, gender and candidate photo. Using a tool with this feature reduces the likelihood that you’ll be influenced by unconscious bias and gently nudges you to focus on candidates’ skills instead.
- Generating interview insights and summaries
AI tools can make your hiring process more structured and efficient by transcribing interviews, transforming messy interview notes into organised, easy-to-read candidate evaluations or generating scorecard summaries that distil the nuances and extract key insights from all the feedback.
“While AI recruitment software has undoubtedly revolutionised the hiring landscape, it’s essential to remember that even the most advanced AI solutions can’t guarantee a flawless interview experience,” wrote HR Consultant Steve Goldberg. In other words, humans should still be at the heart of your recruiting process and hiring decisions.
Here at Greenhouse, we’re bringing AI into your workflow in a way that actually works for you. Take a deeper dive into our AI recruiting tools here.
Benefits of using AI recruiting tools
Why should TA teams use AI recruiting tools? Probably the most compelling benefit is the fact that these tools can boost your efficiency and save you time. This is especially critical for those TA professionals who are being asked to do more with less in a shorter time frame (in other words, everyone!).
For example, consider how much time it takes you to review a CV to check if a candidate has the basic qualifications they need for a role. Multiply that by several hundred (or thousand) and it adds up quickly. But having a tool that can do some of that work for you – like automatically rejecting and notifying candidates that don’t meet your basic requirements – can easily save you dozens of hours every week. And that’s just one use case!
AI can do more than help you move faster – it can actually make your hiring more strategic and equitable. You may already be familiar with the concept of bias and how it can unintentionally impact our hiring decisions. AI tools like CV anonymisation remove biographical details like candidates’ names and gender so you can focus on their skills instead.
Other AI recruiting tools, like interview and scorecard summaries, can pull the most important details so hiring managers get a quick overview of how different candidates performed and make decisions accordingly.
Finally, many hiring managers now expect all candidates to have AI skills. “You want savvy people who know how to do better and work smarter,” said Kyle Lagunas, Head of Strategy & Principal Analyst at Aptitude Research. Kyle shared an anecdote from an experienced executive recruiter who said that using AI tools is now a core competency, and she wouldn’t consider hiring someone who didn’t know how to use them. So if you’re serious about pursuing a career in recruiting, you’ll want to gain experience using these tools sooner rather than later.
How AI recruiting tools enhance candidate experience
If you’ve ever applied to a job and not heard back, you’re far from alone. In fact, 52% of job seekers said they’ve been ghosted by employers. But the good news is that AI recruiting tools can help. When TA professionals use recruiting tools with features like auto-advance and auto-reject, they can ensure that every candidate gets a response within a reasonable time frame.
In cases where you’re doing high-volume hiring and need to quickly select candidates based on their location or availability, AI tools like chatbots can allow candidates to answer objective questions whenever it’s convenient for them rather than waiting weeks to schedule a call. This real-time communication and feedback also ensures everyone gets a response and no one is left wondering about the status of their application.
For recruiters who are proactively sourcing candidates, AI tools with personalisation tokens can create messaging that feels relevant and customised to each candidate, increasing the chances they’ll want to engage.
And when you use AI tools to transcribe and take notes during interviews, hiring teams can be more present with candidates, creating an experience where they feel seen and heard.
Key features to look for in AI recruiting tools
When selecting your AI recruiting tools, what considerations should you keep top of mind? Here are a few points to consider:
- Compliance with data collection regulations
If AI is handling sensitive decisions, make sure humans are in the loop because GDPR doesn’t love robots calling all the shots. Regular audits of your AI models and a few human reviewers can keep things fair.
Look for recruiting software with built-in GDPR features that take the stress out of compliance. And if this is a new topic for you, you can read up on AI and compliant hiring here.
- Integration capabilities with existing HR systems
The major benefits of using AI recruiting tools – faster and more efficient hiring processes – get lost if you have to enter the same information across multiple systems. So make sure any tool you’re considering can integrate with your existing HR systems, like your HRIS and ATS.
- Data analytics and reporting functions
Data is what powers AI tools, so you want to be able to tap into that data to generate insights and prove the return on your investment. For example, Greenhouse will soon show you exactly how much AI you’ve used, how much time you’ve saved and the insights AI has generated for you.
The future of AI in recruitment
While we’ve offered an overview of AI technology at the time of writing this article, the truth is that this landscape is changing so fast that new technology has likely popped up before you’ve even finished reading it. So what should you know about the (not-so-distant) future of AI in recruitment?
In a discussion about the future of AI recruiting technology with Greenhouse President Jon Stross, Kyle Lagunas, Head of Strategy & Principal Analyst at Aptitude Research, described one of the biggest changes in the way TA teams choose technology: “It’s important for TA leads to understand what the innovation roadmap looks like for their current vendors. Before, we would buy software that we could configure to our needs and best practices. Now we are actually looking to our vendors to bring us AI best practice.” In other words, you don’t necessarily have to be responsible for keeping up to date on all the latest advancements – you can partner with innovative vendors who will do this for you.
Jon Stross agreed with Kyle, saying, “The level of partnership we need to be prepared for and leaning into is greater than it has ever been before.” Jon has already observed a change in the way customers are approaching conversations with vendors. The savviest customers aren’t just asking to see the product roadmap for the next quarter or two – they’re asking vendors what their vision is for the next few years. You can take a similar approach to make sure you’re choosing AI recruiting vendors that are aligned with your own company’s vision for the future.
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