Unleashing the Power of Generative AI: Enhancing Recruitment and Hiring Efforts

There has been a lot of buzz about generative AI tools like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Microsoft’s Bing chat and Google’s Bard AI assistant. The number of employers using generative AI is skyrocketing: 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). 

Here, we’re going to talk about the practical uses of generative AI tools (and they are tools; they are not yet sentient and yes, we agree that technology can be scary). This is for everyone who is wondering: “what are generative AI tools, how can they be used (for good), and how can they support what we’re already doing in recruiting and hiring to make our jobs easier?” 

What is Generative AI?

Generative AI, short for generative artificial intelligence, refers to a subset of artificial intelligence that focuses on creating new, original content rather than solely analyzing and processing existing data. It involves using algorithms and machine learning techniques to generate new data or outputs that mimic or resemble human-created content. In simple terms, generative AI is a type of technology that can create new things on its own.

It's an exciting technology that opens up new possibilities for creativity and innovation. However, it's important to use generative AI responsibly and make sure it aligns with ethical guidelines, as it can have implications for things like privacy, fairness, and bias. So, if you’re considering using AI for recruiting, SHRM has a resource on How to Create the Best ChatGPT Policies to ensure your employees are proceeding with caution.

Practical Uses of Generative AI to Make Hiring and Recruiting Easier

From applicant tracking systems and resume screening software to pre-employment assessment tools and video interviewing platforms, AI tools can enhance efficiency, improve candidate experience, and make data-driven decisions to build a strong and diverse workforce. 

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 57% use it 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 questions, and 65% respond to applicants.

It’s important to understand that these new AI tools are exactly that: tools. The output is only as good as the input. This means that training might be necessary to understand not only what to ask a generative AI tool for, but also how to ask the question, or prompt. Understanding prompts, crafting them, training your team how to use them – these will all be important in the coming years. 

Here, we’ll review just one use case for generative AI: writing job postings and descriptions.  

Job posting generation. By analyzing existing descriptions and leveraging natural language processing algorithms, these tools generate compelling and inclusive job postings that attract a diverse pool of candidates. This saves time and effort, ensuring that your job descriptions are accurate, engaging, and appealing to a wide range of talent.

Example: Recruiters and hiring managers can use generative AI to write the first draft of a job post, then update the draft to their company, role, and values. The learning curve here is how to ask, what to ask, and the understanding that what the tool generates is imperfect by nature and will need to be audited by a human being. 

Simply asking “write a job posting for a customer service representative” will give you some really generic copy about a CSR role – and it doesn’t know your actual hiring manager’s requirements for the role or the salary range. You’ll want to feed as much (non-proprietary) information as possible to get back something that you can work with. 

Some examples of prompts that recruiting teams can use with generative AI to write job postings:

• "Write a job posting for a customer service representative position with an emphasis on excellent communication skills, empathy, and the ability to handle challenging customer interactions with a starting hourly rate of $20."
• "Generate a job posting for a front-end sales associate position that showcases strong interpersonal skills, a customer-centric approach, and a proven ability to meet and exceed sales targets with a starting hourly rate of $20."

These prompts can help kickstart the generative AI's ability to generate job postings tailored to specific roles, highlighting the key skills, qualifications, and attributes desired for each position.

It’s pretty useful, and you can see for yourself by copy-pasting one of these into a generative AI tool. What you get back is a very basic draft that eliminates that thing that happens sometimes when you sit down to write a job posting and stare at a blank document for 30 minutes.

Of course, you’ll want to add a little razzle-dazzle to emphasize your unique brand voice, but this can at least get you past the blank stare phase of the job writing process.

Other quick use cases for generative AI: Creating SEO-optimized job descriptions for your career site that can increase your organic engagement, develop interview questions for a specific role by feeding the job description and an ask for interview questions, and creating a candidate outreach email sequence to re-engage a segment of candidates.

Incorporating generative AI tools into your recruitment process can unlock new levels of productivity and significantly enhance the candidate experience. From automated job description generation to AI-powered resume screening, virtual interview assistants, personalized recommendations, and candidate engagement chatbots, these tools offer unparalleled efficiency and effectiveness. By embracing generative AI, you can save time, streamline processes, attract top talent, and create a memorable and positive candidate journey. 

Hey there, we’re Talentcare. We’re not afraid of robots and we are really good at recruiting and making hiring easier. Drop us a line or slide into our DMs.