We’ve been reading about new AI technology, specifically about generative AI (GenAI) tools like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Microsoft’s Bing chat and Google’s Bard AI assistant, for a while now. There’s also a resurgence of “robots will take our jobs” (and let me say quickly here, robots are not going to replace humans in the near future). There are some problematic areas in AI, but there are many more ways to think about using AI as a tool to help us be more productive and to automate tasks that many of us in HR and recruiting spend a lot of time on. 

Who Is Using Generative AI?

Generative AI is increasingly being used in HR and recruiting by various organizations and HR technology companies. In a February 2023 survey from ResumeBuilder, business leaders said their companies have a variety of uses for ChatGPT. Of companies that currently use ChatGPT, 66% use it for writing code, while 58% use it for copywriting/content creation, 57% for customer support, and 52% for creating summaries of meetings or documents. The majority of companies also use ChatGPT to facilitate hiring; 77% say it helps them write job descriptions, 66% draft interview requisitions, and 65% respond to applicants.

Related: How Artificial Intelligence is Changing Human Resources

Indeed’s September 2023 AI at Work Report gives us an in-depth look at how GenAI will impact jobs and the skills needed to perform them. The research finds that all U.S. jobs on Indeed  – from truck driver to software engineer – have skills that can be done or augmented by GenAI. However, only 1 in 5 (19.8%) of jobs on Indeed are considered “highly” exposed to GenAI, showing that while this technology can learn to do tasks within a specific job, GenAI is unlikely to fully replace many jobs. 

Recently, Indeed introduced its AI Job Description Generator to help employers automatically and instantly create high-quality, effective job descriptions for jobs they post directly on Indeed. 

Generative AI’s Role in HR & Recruitment

The rise of generative AI models is revolutionizing various sectors, including human resources and recruitment. These smart tools can automate repetitive tasks, enabling HR professionals to focus more on strategic work.

Nearly one in four organizations reported using automation or AI to support HR-related activities, including recruitment and hiring, according to a 2022 survey by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). And according to Gartner research, 76% of HR leaders believe that if their organization does not adopt and implement AI solutions, such as generative AI, in the next 12 to 24 months, they will be lagging in organizational success compared to those that do.

Streamlining Recruitment Processes with Generative AI

In the recruitment realm, generative AI comes as a boon for efficiency. It helps create job descriptions or advertisements based on specific input parameters such as skills needed and job role. This innovative approach takes into account nuances like industry-specific jargon while ensuring inclusivity and appeal to a wide variety of applicants.

Beyond just creating content, these large language models help sift through vast amounts of applicant data quickly. They identify patterns in applications that correlate with successful hires from past experiences – making shortlisting candidates an easier task than ever before.

Enhancing Productivity in HR with Generative AI

Moving beyond recruitment processes alone, generative AI has potential benefits for all aspects of human resources management. For instance, it can generate personalized training material or assist in answering questions employees might have about company policies.

The use of GenAI within HR doesn’t stop there though. From generating emails reminding staff about upcoming events to compiling comprehensive reports on employee performance using collected data – it’s clear that this technology has plenty to offer when used responsibly.

All these improvements are not only saving time but also leading towards better decision-making capabilities within organizations; ultimately resulting in enhanced productivity across the board.

Examples of How Generative AI is Being Applied in HR and Recruitment

Resume Screening and Matching: Generative AI can assist in parsing and analyzing resumes, extracting relevant information, and matching candidates to job openings based on skills, qualifications, and experience. Companies like Impress offer AI-powered resume screening solutions.

Chatbots for Candidate Engagement: Chatbots powered by generative AI are used for automating candidate engagement, answering common questions, scheduling interviews, and providing a more interactive application experience. Examples include Paradox, MeBeBot, and XOR.

Job Description Generation: AI can generate job descriptions that are inclusive, free from bias, and optimized for search engines. This helps attract a diverse pool of candidates. Textio is one of the companies specializing in this area.

Interview and Assessment Automation: Generative AI can help create customized interview questions and assessments based on job requirements. It can also analyze candidate responses to assess their fit for the role. Vervoe is an example of a platform that offers AI-powered assessments.

Employee Feedback and Surveys: AI-driven natural language processing (NLP) can analyze employee feedback and survey responses to identify trends, sentiment, and areas of concern within the organization. Companies like Glint use AI for this purpose.

Predictive Analytics for Employee Retention: AI can predict which employees are at risk of leaving the company based on historical data and various factors. This allows HR teams to take proactive measures. Workforce analytics platforms like Visier incorporate predictive AI.

Diversity and Inclusion: AI can help organizations track and improve diversity and inclusion efforts by analyzing HR data and identifying potential areas of bias in hiring and promotion. Companies like TalVista offer AI solutions in this space.

Skills Assessment and Gap Analysis: Generative AI can assess employees’ skills, identify skill gaps, and recommend personalized training and development plans. Pymetrics is an example of a platform that uses AI for skills assessment. Reejig is another that uses ethical AI for career pathing and upskilling.

Candidate Sourcing and Talent Pipelining: AI-powered tools can identify and engage passive candidates, building a pipeline of potential talent for future openings. Hiretual is one such platform.

Personalized Learning and Development: AI can recommend personalized learning resources and development plans for employees based on their career goals and skill gaps. Degreed is a platform that uses AI for personalized learning.

These are just a few examples, and the use of generative AI in HR and recruiting continues to evolve as technology advances. Many organizations are exploring AI solutions to streamline HR processes, improve candidate experiences, and make more data-driven decisions in talent management.

Real-World Examples of How HR & Recruiting Teams Can Use GenAI

Generative AI can assist HR and recruiting teams by providing helpful prompts for various tasks. Writing prompts for Gen AI is a learned skill, and you can get really good at it over time. Once you do, definitely add “generative AI prompt master” to your skills on LinkedIn.

Here are some examples of prompts that can be used by HR and recruiters:

Job Description Writing:

• “Generate a job description for a software engineer with expertise in [specific technology or skill].”
• “Create an inclusive job posting for a [job title] position.”

Candidate Engagement:

• “Compose a follow-up email to schedule an interview with a candidate.”
• “Generate an automated response to acknowledge a job application.”

Interview Question Creation:

• “Create interview questions for a [job title] position to assess [specific skill].”
• “Generate behavioral interview questions for evaluating teamwork.”

Diversity and Inclusion:

• “Draft a statement promoting diversity and inclusion for a job posting.”
• “Suggest strategies to improve diversity in our hiring process.”

Employee Feedback Analysis:

• “Analyze employee survey responses to identify common themes or concerns.”
• “Generate a summary of positive feedback from recent employee reviews.”

Candidate Sourcing:

• “Find potential candidates with experience in [industry] on professional networking sites.”
• “Create a list of passive candidates for a [job title] role in [location].”

Onboarding Assistance:

• “Generate a checklist for new employee onboarding.”
• “Compose a welcome email to send to new hires before their first day.”

Employee Recognition:

• “Generate a message for recognizing an employee’s outstanding performance.”
• “Compose a congratulatory note for an employee’s work anniversary.”

Employee Well-being:

• “Suggest ideas for promoting employee wellness in the workplace.”
• “Create a communication plan for mental health awareness initiatives.”

HR Policy Drafting:

• “Draft a company policy on remote work guidelines.”
• “Generate an anti-harassment policy statement for the employee handbook.”

Performance Review Assistance:

• “Provide sample performance review phrases for communication skills.”
• “Generate a performance improvement plan for an underperforming employee.”

Compliance Monitoring:

• “Create a checklist to ensure compliance with [specific labor law or regulation].”
• “Generate a report on HR compliance measures for the past quarter.”

These prompts can serve as starting points for HR and recruiting teams to use generative AI tools effectively. They can help streamline tasks, improve communication, and enhance various aspects of HR and talent management.

A Final Note: Why Generative AI Policies Are Important to HR

I think the most important thing to understand about AI is that it has its flaws, but they can be cross-checked and moderated by actual humans. Having a generative AI policy for your workplace is a great start (and a good way to ensure that confidential and proprietary information about your company isn’t put out into the world by accident). As you work with your HR tech vendors, it’s important to understand how they use AI and how it is applied to your use cases specifically. If your ATS uses artificial intelligence to scan human faces – in video assessments of candidates, for example – how do you know that what it scans for is not excluding protected classes? We must be able to answer these questions in order to harness the technology available to make us more productive and make our jobs easier. 

I cover a lot about AI tech and recruiting in Chapter 11 (Artificial Intelligence and Other New Recruiting Technology) of my book, Digitizing Talent: Creative Strategies for the Digital Recruiting Age (SHRM; 2023)