Do you ever wonder who sets the trends? Who actually decides that a given solution is so good that everyone starts rushing to implement it? In the recruiting technology space, it’s not just technology providers like SmartRecruiters leading the charge; trendsetters include solution providers and recruitment process outsourcing firms that help develop multiple companies’ recruiting processes.

For our latest ebook, Recruiting Technology Trends 2024: Future-Proof Strategies for Winning Tomorrow’s Talent, we spoke with several experts to gather insights into the winning solutions their clients are using today. Here are a few of the expert takes from three of the five trends covered in the ebook.

Companies take a cautious approach to AI

AI is the topic on everyone’s mind this year. While ChatGPT has revolutionized the creation of candidate communications, not as many companies use it in talent acquisition as you might think. AMS, a leading global provider of talent acquisition services, including outsourcing, advisory, and digital, published a survey on talent leaders’ attitudes towards AI. 

• 70% of talent leaders are already embracing AI for simple tasks, but only 20% use it for talent acquisition.

The cautious approach is for good reason; AI brings up many ethical implications, and the AMS survey showed that nearly half of talent leaders do not feel prepared for forthcoming AI regulations.

Luke Kohlreisser, Head of Technology & Analytics Advisory Delivery at AMS, offers this advice in Recruiting Technology Trends 2024:

Leaders should embrace a mindset of curiosity and vigilance in the face of rapidly evolving AI tools. It’s crucial to be methodical in evaluation, focusing on specific problem statements to determine if AI can truly drive desired outcomes. The key is not to acquire AI tools merely for the sake of technological advancement but to ensure each tool serves a clearly defined purpose and genuinely enhances the recruitment process.

Check out the ebook for our complete take on differentiating automation from AI so you can improve efficiency while staying compliant.

The human experience takes center stage

Interacting with bots can remind us of what it means to be human. With many processes ripe for automation and AI-driven interactions, it’s important that the hiring process conveys the human essence of the job. 

Helping companies design processes to highlight those “moments that matter” for candidates is just one of the many tasks of TQSolutions, a strategic consulting and people solutions firm based in Australia. Alastair Schirmer, General Manager, Technology & Innovation at TQSolutions, says,

There are so many opportunities to create efficiency and immediate interactions for candidates by using AI and automation. However, they need to get enough human interaction to get a feel for the working environment.

Alastair recommends taking an experience design approach to talent acquisition, and Recruiting Technology Trends 2024 outlines it for you.

Automation paves a path to greater efficiency

If you’re not already automating processes, AI might not be the next best step. SmartRecruiters’ in-house expert, Chief Product Officer Rebecca Carr, says

Automation is one of the fastest ways to create amazing candidate and hiring manager experiences. Adding simple rules to your hiring process will ensure that your recruiting teams are consistently engaging their core stakeholders without any additional overhead, ultimately giving you the ability to see faster, more consistent results. 

Our research for the ebook uncovered The State of Work, an eye-opening study from Slack.

• 62% of global executives say that automations help their companies achieve more with less time and fewer resources.
• Globally, workers are saving an average of 3.6 hours every week through automations.

Reducing the manual work of recruiters and specialists is still top of mind for many organizations and automated workflows can save teams countless hours of time.

Technology you can implement today

Trends shouldn’t feel like a pie-in-the-sky utopia; they should be actual solutions you can implement today. Another on-the-ground expert we interviewed for the ebook is Adam Reynolds, Head of Talent at Frasers Group, a prominent UK-based retailer. 

In the case study, “The Goldilocks Zone: How Frasers Group Automated High-Volume Hiring at a Human Pace with AI,” you’ll learn from Adam just what Frasers did to automate more than a million applications a year for 30,000 hires. He says, 

There is a sweet spot between automation of communication and being systematic and robotic. People want to feel like they’ve been spoken to by a human and taken into consideration.

To get further insight into these trends and more, download Recruiting Technology Trends 2024: Future-Proof Strategies for Winning Tomorrow’s Talent today!