AI in Recruitment: Streamlining Talent Acquisition

Over the past few months, professional platforms and communities seem to have been talking only about AI. We've seen arguments ranging from "why do we need recruiters when their job can be done by artificial intelligence" to "nothing can replace the human element in processes." However, after testing dozens of interesting AI-based tools and assisting colleagues with their integration, I've had the opportunity to see firsthand that ignoring these innovations is not advisable. It's better to understand how they can be useful to us as soon as possible.

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I started exploring this topic with the simplest and most popular tool - ChatGPT, which offers almost unlimited capabilities when provided with the right prompts. The first and most important lesson: request to write in English and start with something like "Act like a Senior Recruiter…". Writing an engaging summary about a candidate for a client, analyzing a lengthy and detailed CV, or editing a job description - there's a whole range of tasks that can be attempted to be automated. Especially when words don't come together after a busy day and attention is scattered - ChatGPT is a good solution.

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The next tool I discovered at one of the PeopleFirstClub workshops was Clay. A team of enthusiasts from the USA created a product that is extremely rich in functionality and can be a great solution for recruiters, salespeople, and any other professionals. Its main function is to gather information from all available sources and organize it. Additionally, it has convenient integration with many CRM systems and other software. I started using it specifically for sourcing. For example, if we're looking for an IT specialist and using GitHub for this purpose, we can select the relevant repository and paste the link into your Clay table. And within a minute, you'll have a list of candidates who contributed their code there, and even more - their contact information and LinkedIn profiles. Although it cannot filter by countries or level of expertise, when the search hits a dead end, it's a great alternative.

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When it comes to more conventional searches, I use Clay in conjunction with LinkedIn. I select which specific information I need to extract from the candidate's LinkedIn profile and also use separate fields from ChatGPT by providing a specific prompt. In my case, I ask to use all available candidate information transferred by Clay from LinkedIn to the table and write a brief message offering the job in a very friendly and personalized tone. Then, I simply insert the link to the required profile, and within a minute, I have a truly working message that can resonate with the candidate. In this way, we only glance over the profile superficially, but all the details about the experience are searched by Clay, and based on that, it even writes the message. Most often, they are already very well written and just need to be copied, but I still use them as a great "base" and add to the message myself. Thus, Clay saves your time well, but also can improve the process of finding specialists. However, there are limits and certain restrictions on the amount of functionality usage, but for a start and trial, the trial version will be sufficient.

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Another excellent tool that helps save time when writing hundreds of messages a day is Magic.AI. The main functionality lies in writing your most commonly used message templates and encoding them in a way that's convenient for you. For example, when I type ".rej," I instantly get a template rejection message, which I modify further as needed. So instead of a lengthy search for a template or writing a message from scratch, I just need to type a few characters. The tool has a convenient extension where you can quickly edit the necessary template or create a new one. And you truly understand the value of using the right tool when Magic.AI, after using your preset template through its own "code," shows how much time you would have spent if you had written such a message yourself. When my statistics reached 1 hour or more of saved time per day from writing, I understood that MagicAI is here to stay. Additionally, this tool also incorporates AI specifically for writing messages. You just need to choose the tone of the message and describe in one sentence what you want to convey. As a result, you get a professionally written letter that you can use as you like just by using a specific key combination.

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Continuing the topic of emails, my favorite tool at one point became the browser extension "Ghostwrite: ChatGPT Email Assistant." I heard about it at a workshop on AI for product managers, but it turned out to be perfect for recruiting activities. Thanks to Ghostwrite, which appears immediately in the Gmail (or Outlook) window after installation, you can generate AI responses to emails almost instantly. The extension reads the context of your correspondence excellently and can suggest a response based on it. I usually use it for more basic thank-you messages or minor clarifications. Or you can briefly specify which email needs to be generated, and based on the previous context and your request, Ghostwrite will also write a fairly professional email. And of course, you can separately choose the tone in which it should be written. Among other useful features, the extension also works great for creating templates and checking for grammatical or spelling mistakes. Ghostwrite has become an indispensable tool for me almost from the first day. Extremely pleasant user experience, simple and intuitive functionality, and most importantly - it accomplishes its task 100%.

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Now there are already dozens of other great browser extensions that perform similar tasks, such as ChatGPT Writer, GMPlus, and Compose AI. It all depends on your needs and requirements. However, using Ghostwrite for several months, I can confidently say that this is the tool that, when dealing with hundreds of emails a day, will help you distribute resources more efficiently and prioritize.

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The focus of my AI implementation in recruiting processes is somehow focused on communication or search, which are the basis of daily tasks and at the same time constant actions. But it's important to choose AI tools only according to your work style, covering the needs that you consider can be automated in your task list.

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Will AI eventually replace recruiters? Quite possible, especially considering the emergence of a product like Talently.ai, which already provides automation of screenings and technical interviews using generative AI. But will it positively impact candidates' experience? Understanding soft skills, analyzing experience more analytically, and simply positively influencing the company's brand through communication - these and other tasks may not always be accomplished solely through algorithms. So now is the perfect time to understand which processes are worth automating with AI or other tools, and which processes are unique and require your recruiter involvement the most.