Artificial intelligence in hiring is the buzzy industry phrase that’s more than just buzz—it’s a trend that is here to stay. But with concepts that are new (to some), there frequently come common misconceptions and fears around what the future of hiring may look like.
Here’s a breakdown of fact versus fiction, debunking some of the common myths about A.I. in hiring.
Myth 1: A.I. uses face-scanning technology, judging me on behaviors and attributes I cannot control.
The truth is that most hiring technologies don’t use facial recognition. Video assessments only evaluate your language—specifically how you can talk about your experiences and past actions pertaining to competencies that are critical to the particular role you are pursuing.
It’s important to understand that technology can be used to more holistically evaluate candidates. A.I. technology helps a recruiter make decisions by automatically analyzing a candidate’s response. By measuring the key competencies, like team orientation or adaptability, hiring managers can gain a better picture of how the candidate can perform their job and how a company’s values align with theirs.
Technology works to make hiring fairer for everyone. Assessments help teams back their decisions with data and ensure all candidates are evaluated the same.
Myth 2: A.I. decides who gets the job.
This is another idea that carries with it a lot of misconception. Hiring technologies exist to provide decision support for teams—the tech doesn’t make the decision. Although A.I. may play an important role in evaluating candidates, humans make the final hiring decision. Algorithms are built to bolster human decision-making in a structured and consistent way that combats human biases.
No smart decision is made based on a single data point. The best hiring decisions are made when humans and A.I. work together. A.I. is not a replacement for human decision-making, and no decision should be made on a single technical assessment.
Myth 3: A.I. replaces a face-to-face interview.
By automating more hiring processes, teams can spend less time stressing over manual processes like scheduling and rescheduling interviews and start moving top candidates through faster.
However, there is a belief that A.I.-assisted recorded interviews are actually replacing face-to-face interviews, making the process seem impersonal. In actuality, these interviews are occurring early in the hiring funnel and are intended to replace time-consuming phone screens and resume reviews. The goal is to move top candidates to the next round of face-to-face interviews quicker.
Myth 4: A.I. will eliminate recruiters.
A lot of the fear around A.I. centers on a concern that A.I. will eliminate jobs. That might be true, but A.I. could also create jobs. While the World Economic Forum predicted in 2020 that A.I. will replace 85 million jobs globally by A.I. by 2025, it also pointed out that A.I. could potentially create 97 million new ones.
This puts an additional focus on hiring for skills and agility. The role of the recruiter is certainly changing as technology permeates the hiring space, but A.I. has also made hiring more efficient for the people making decisions. With new tools in place, recruiters can spend their time on evaluating top candidates instead of mundane tasks like scheduling interviews.
Lindsey Zuloaga is the chief data scientist at HireVue, managing a team that builds and validates machine learning algorithms to predict job-related outcomes.