The job market is an ever changing and dynamic market. You may have noticed yourself that applying for a job has changed course over the last couple of years. Old fashioned interviews are no longer the standard way to go and technology has made its way into the job application process. Although developments may have been sped up by the current Covid-19 pandemic new trends have been up and coming for a longer time.
The biggest impact in efficiency of job applications and interviews has come from Artificial Intelligence (AI). AI has digitalized the recruitment process for small and large corporations even more. Nowadays, it does occur that motivational letters and resumes are screened by an AI robot. This leads to candidates having to carefully examine what to put in their letters or resumes. Another, for now less impactful, implication of AI in the recruitment process are Chatbots. Chatbots are basically virtual assistants that take over tasks at for example a customer service department. Chatbots enables customers to be in contact with a company for 24/7. In the recruitment process a chatbot might be used to orientate certain candidates that applied for a job. Simple questions about salary or company culture could be discussed and a recruiter can pick up personal contact with the candidates that suit the company best.
There is certainly a long way to go before AI is able to take over recruitment process but it might in the end do so. It is true that by hiring people using an AI system or chatbot there is less of a personal touch. Also, it might be harder to select candidates that might fit the companies culture better than others which could lead to problems down the road. However, hiring people through AI systems or chatbots can also create advantages. There is a lot of fuss about ethnic profiling in recruitment in the current job market and people claim they are rejected the chance of job because of their descent. Two other factors are being judged based on gender or appearance. When using an AI system or chatbot to recruit new employees these prejudices do not play any role. So in the end the usage of AI systems or chatbots could turn out to create a more objective, bias free and transparent recruitment process.
Reference
Emerce. (n.d.). De toekomst van solliciteren: opvallende trends en ontwikkelingen. [online] Available at: https://www.emerce.nl/achtergrond/toekomst-solliciteren-opvallende-trends-ontwikkelingen.