By today’s standards, if you’re on time, you’re already late, so it’s no surprise that decision-making has accelerated across almost all aspects of business. Everyone is looking for new ways to do things better or faster, but spoiler alert: AI and automation aren’t always the answer. This is particularly true of people-driven functions, where if you don’t have the right people, the business doesn’t move forward.

Even so, there are ways to meet in the middle and shave valuable time off existing steps in the process—without turning to ChatGPT.

Consider hiring, for instance. Recruiters have long been promised that technology will streamline administrative tasks such as outreach and scheduling, allowing them to focus on strategic advising and time with candidates. While this transformation has yet to materialize fully, recent research suggests that generative AI could replace 39% of recruiting activities in the next three years.

Whether this happens or not, technology will still play a crucial role in hiring better and faster in the coming years. To imagine how that might happen, let’s consider how technology supports a very specific aspect of recruiting: identifying the “short listers.”  

Short listers are the candidates most likely to succeed within an organization, those expected to make the greatest impact. Of course, there are several ways to do this, but efficiency at this stage starts with getting to know candidates on a cellular level—quickly.

EXPERIENCE CHECK

Everyone has a story to tell about a bad hiring experience, but more often than not, these come from the candidate’s perspective (though recruiters have tales to tell, too!). Ghosting, bizarre interview questions, elaborate spec projects, the list goes on and on.

As part of better, faster hiring, recruiters and hiring managers need to work together to gut-check the process from the start. Remember, fragmented technologies lead to fragmented experiences. Instead, look for comprehensive solutions that account for various aspects of the talent acquisition experience—not just a one-and-done.

FAST FORWARD

In recent years, some companies have eliminated traditional hiring criteria like resumes in favor of new tactics. Scotiabank did this in 2020 for applicants entering the workforce, asking them to complete an assessment instead. As a result, the company’s hiring managers started to look beyond credentials to evaluate candidates on factors like personality, social intelligence, and problem-solving ability. By editing the existing process, Scotiabank not only changed its strategy, but also managed to evolve its workforce at the same time, advancing short listers in the first step.

FOCUS ON INSIGHTS

While hiring isn’t often talked about as a science, most organizations employ a specific methodology. Whether that involves principles of industrial and organizational psychology or not, predicting potential performance and fit is possible. Likewise, bringing quantifiable data into the recruiting process earlier on can help hiring teams expedite decision-making with a previously unseen level of confidence. This also supports longer-term initiatives by knitting talent acquisition and talent management together from the start.

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