How AI supports your applicant tracking software

November 22, 2021

 

iCIMS Staff

5 min read

Many of us rely on AI for restaurant, retail, and real estate recommendations. But artificial intelligence isn’t just for consumer benefit. You can embrace the power of AI for recruiting too.

“Before AI, there simply was no way to fully consider every candidate to determine relevant experience, perceived fit, or background. Instead, we were forced to cut down the talent pool to a size that could realistically be evaluated, and we did so by using primarily non-predictive and often biased information depicted on a resume,” according to Human Resource Executive.

Thanks to the ability of artificial intelligence, organizations can process and analyze an amazing amount of data to drive their recruiting efforts. This represents a substantial shift in how modern recruiting works.

Traditional HR tools of yesterday were built as rigid tools for administration. Today, there is nothing traditional about how organizations need to attract, engage, hire, and advance talent. The movement in the labor market and the need for hiring teams to constantly adapt to new needs from within and demands from candidates require adaptive solutions.

Recruiting software that includes AI can help organizations move beyond traditional recruiting methods and out innovate their competition. Recruiting teams need to understand the benefits and how the technology works to confidently transform hiring with AI.

Let’s start by taking a look at how AI works within an applicant tracking system

AI supports your ATS and recruiting efforts by:

• Making hiring recommendations based on data
• Enabling recruiting teams to source and vet candidates more thoroughly, without additional headcount
• Using chatbots to start a conversation that kicks off the candidate experience
• Allowing recruiters the time to build human-to-human connections when they matter most

Learn more about AI recruiting software. Download our guide: Transform recruitment with AI.

Chatbots work to collect information and use AI that powers the ATS

While your recruiting team gets much-deserved rest, AI can work behind the scenes 24/7 to help you attract talent. Instead of a recruiter needing to answer every call and sort through questions from multiple job seekers, an AI-powered chatbot can start gathering information as soon as a potential applicant lands on your website.

Thanks to the data available, a chatbot can also help recruiters notify interested job seekers of open positions, schedule interviews, and screen candidates. Chatbots can also assist you in identifying those who aren’t qualified or don’t fit the job description, so you’re not wasting their time – or yours.

AI recruiting software scans candidate profiles for matching info

Even before someone submits an application, a career site with AI can recommend open jobs to candidates based on their input. Once an application is submitted, the AI can review and make shortlists of top candidates based on what’s in their resume.

Simply put, when applicant tracking software uses AI, there’s a reduced need for recruiters to pick up the phone, get a recommendation, or sift through resume data on their own. With intelligent talent matching, AI helps recruiters find a fantastic fit for open jobs.

The algorithm reviews relevant qualifications and pulls out potential matches to help recruiters fill open positions. And like an informed friend, a chatbot can recommend jobs to candidates by matching resume data to career site openings that align with candidates’ qualifications, skills, and career interests.

Data can lessen implicit bias influence

We may not want to admit it, but personal biases are everywhere. In talent acquisition, unconscious bias typically refers to forming an opinion about a candidate on first impressions or demographic information rather than skills. These unconscious prejudices show up in many forms, including “trusting the gut” about a candidate’s qualifications. Bias also shows up regarding gender, affinity with the majority, and even beauty.

When left unaddressed, hiring decisions made on these unconscious biases can impact entire careers. An ATS that uses AI can help you reduce human bias to safeguard equitable opportunities. It’s an important mechanism to put in place to support your diversity efforts. Of course, AI algorithms should be designed and tested for fairness. You want compliant technologies that promote diversity, equity, and inclusion within your talent pool.

AI empowers humans to do what we do best

It’s not all about the bots. Recruiters and hiring managers are still making the decisions about who to hire. An AI-powered ATS can’t make that decision for you.  But it does allow you to make the most out of human interactions when they matter the most.

AI serves as a very savvy sidekick for recruiters.

Because AI handles the heavy lifting in the ATS, recruiters can:

• Stay on top of administrative tasks that enable the most current view of hiring options
• Take time to fully engage and build relationships with candidates
• Support mangers around interviews and hiring decisions
• Rely on AI to respond with engaging messages that establish a positive candidate experience

Historically, hiring managers have relied on their gut instincts about candidates. Those gut-based decisions are only so reliable. Insights from Aptitude Research indicate that “improving decision making” is one of the top benefits an ATS provides. With soft skill talent assessment results and leading candidate profiles to consider applicants against, hiring managers can use data collected in the ATS to better understand who is the most qualified hire.

There’s no doubt that artificial intelligence has become a foundational element of today’s applicant tracking systems. As the approach to applicant tracking software continues to evolve, be sure that your ATS not only uses the best AI practices but also supports ethical and responsible recruiting.

———————–

Ready to learn more about AI recruiting software?

Download our guide Transform recruitment with AI by clicking here.