'In machines we trust' but is ChatGPT-recruitment foolproof?

Should we trust in the machines to select the best candidate for the job and are the tools better than the recruiter's human touch?
HR Grapevine
HR Grapevine | Executive Grapevine International Ltd
'In machines we trust' but is ChatGPT-recruitment foolproof?
ChatGPT powered recruitment is on the rise

I look at some of our best loved CEOs and CPOs in businesses today, would they have survived ChatGPT powered recruitment, potentially being ‘knocked out’ early on in the process for some spurious AI-reason? It’s a question that is bothersome because we increasingly rely upon the ‘machines’ to know best, but should we?

The latest update from OpenAI with ChatGPT-4o has been launched. How can recruiters screen candidates accurately as more people start to use generative AI to write CVs and applications and prepare for interviews with numbers suggesting that ChatGPT users are more likely to get more frequent interview requests than those who don’t use the tool. What are the risks of people professing expertise they don't have, and using AI tools to effectively cheat the system, or is it masking the skills of good but nervous candidates? These are all pertinent questions for businesses that are faced with how to use a tool that is still being developed and for many is a ‘like it’ or ‘loathe it’ issue that is smattered with grey lines and deep questions.

According to Gartner, 70% of HRs plan to invest in AI hiring tools in the next two years – showing that wherever you sit on the issue it is a trend in recruitment that is sticking.

How is ChatGPT used in recruitment?

For recruiters many of the ChatGPT’s use cases revolve around content creation. For example, instantly creating and optimising job descriptions, outreach messages to potential recruits and automated responses on each touch point of the recruitment journey. This saves recruiters a huge amount of time as it drastically cuts down administration. It also arguably improves the customer experience as communication becomes much more seamless. One of the biggest pain points for candidates is simply not knowing the status of their application and we’ve all been there waiting and ruminating, while quietly seething that no-one has taken the time to even put out a rudimentary holding message - these things can and do impact employer brand.

Iffi Wahla, CEO and Co-Founder of global talent network Edge says, “In house, recruiters are also using generative AI to tailor interview questions and create assessments. AI more generally is being used to screen CVs and benchmark interviews.”

Interviews can be developed to be cheat proof by looking at irregularities during the interview process, ensuring that applicants are assessed impartially – that’s a win for stripping out unconscious bias but comes peppered with questions.

Wahla says, “Outside of content creation, gen AI is also being used to help search for candidates. Recruiters can use it to find all the job titles relevant to the role and create Boolean strings to optimise and broaden their hunt for the right people to fill roles. Recruitment professionals are also able to better understand the roles they are looking for by using ChatGPT to do the hard yards of researching what each role entails.”

Is it only for bigger businesses?

But what if you are a burgeoning business, starting out on that long walk to success? Is this type of recruitment either going to land you the best of the best or leave you wanting?

“The beauty of gen AI in its current form is that it is open to every business - no matter their size. However, doing gen AI well does require some training, as the more you know about it the better equipped you are to spot errors and optimise your results. Luckily, a lot of this search engineering training is free online,” says Wahla.

Recruiters can use it to find all the job titles relevant to the role and create Boolean strings to optimise and broaden their hunt for the right people to fill roles. Recruitment professionals are also able to better understand the roles they are looking for by using ChatGPT to do the hard yards of researching what each role entails

Iffi Wahla | CEO and Co-Founder, Edge

He warns, however, that it is worth remembering that gen AI is far from infallible and that recruiters still need to sense check the content that is produced. In that regard, bigger businesses still hold an advantage because they have more resources to devote to this process.

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