Using Automated Recruiting to Improve the Hiring Process

Long gone are the days when actual recruiters are reading resumes, line by line. Instead, automated recruiting is taking over the initial screening of applicants, if not most of the recruiting process.

When done by a recruiter, resume screening can take up to 23 hours just for one hire and most of the applicants end up being grossly unqualified. Consequently, large companies have turned to automated recruiting to save time and money, allowing recruiters to attend to other company business.

Some companies receive hundreds of thousands of resumes every year. There is no possible way for a person to review every single one of these. These companies need to be proactive in quickly narrowing down the number of resumes that get forwarded to hiring managers for interview consideration. Automated recruiting streamlines this process.

Automated Recruiting Process

Each company knows the skill sets and types of candidates that they are seeking to fill a position and list those requirements in the job posting. So, what happens in automation once a candidate submits their resume for consideration? Automated recruiting  begins automatically filtering resumes and applicants. The automated recruiter instantaneously scans the submitted resume for necessary skill-set keywords the company is targeting as important. If it is for a management position, keywords could include “strong communication,” “leader,” “decision-maker,” etc.

Each company can set the filter to their specific search perimeters. Once the company sets this filter, the automated recruiter will only forward resumes that include most of the keywords. The resumes that make it through the first round of automation, get forwarded to the hiring manager for further consideration at that time.

Gaps in Automated Recruiting

While automated recruiting is growing, job seekers still prefer to interact with another person during the job application process. In fact, an American Staffing Association (ASA) study revealed that 77 percent of job applicants preferred human contact.

Furthermore, automation can’t possibly tell you everything about a candidate. There are some skills that recruiters believe automation filters will never adequately distinguish, including:

• Leadership and management
• Negotiation
• Creative writing and Communication

That is why a combination of automated recruiters and human recruiters is the recipe for success when filling an open position.

Automated Recruiting Methodologies

There are several tasks you can easily automate in the recruiting process. The top activities recruiters want to see automated include interview scheduling and sourcing candidates, as well as background and reference checks.

Easily automated recruiting tasks include:  

Schedule interviews—Let your interviewees schedule or reschedule interviews themselves. Interview scheduling software can give candidates available time slots and lets them pick which one works best for them. It’ll free up your recruiters for other tasks.

Video interviews—Automating video interviews can help you reach a wider pool of qualified candidate. If they are currently working or have a busy schedule, being able to record answers to questions on their own time gives them far more flexibility. You can give them questions that they can answer at their convenience. You can watch and re-watch their answers later.

Email automation—Have automatic emails that go out to acknowledge you’ve received resumes and provide additional updates during the process. You can even use artificial intelligence to customize the emails to each individual to ensure that quality candidates feel valued.