As technology advances, businesses are increasingly involving more complex technical elements in the recruitment process - and not just to filter CVs. For a long time now, video interviews have been standard practice in many firms looking to recruit a large cohort of graduates annually. From an employer perspective, making at least part of the application process digital means it is less time consuming for recruiters, and more accurate when it comes to assessing large amounts of candidate data.
Increasingly, there is focus on finding different creative ways of recruiting students and graduates. The launch of application processes involving gamification and even Artificial Intelligence (AI) are changing the way we recruit even more.
Unilever is one company who have recently utilised the power of AI. The first round of their application process sees candidates playing a series of neuroscience games in place of psychometric tests. If successful at this stage, candidates are then invited to undertake a video interview. Once submitted, AI analyses their answers for notable keywords, body language and intonation. Unilever reported that applications doubled within the first ninety days and offers made in the final round of recruitment (an insight-style day) increased from 63% to 80%.* This suggests great overall success for this method of recruitment.
However, when Milkround [1]asked over 5,700 students and graduates what their ideal recruitment process would involve, an overwhelming majority said they favour the traditional application process. 84% desire a CV and cover letter style application; 80% would like a face to face interview within the process. In comparison, gamification was selected by just 17% of our respondents.
Furthermore, of those respondents who had taken part in a video interview, 44% found this element made them more nervous, due to the time constraints imposed throughout. 36% found video interviews impersonal; 35% said they would have preferred a face to face interview.
Despite these negatives, 26% find video interviews helpful as it enables them to complete this element of the application in their own time - but only 15% found it less nerve-wracking than a face to face interview.
When it comes to psychometric testing, 45% found themselves attempting to predict the answers employers wanted to hear, rather than being true to their own opinions. 27% think psychometric tests are positive, as they are a useful method to determine company culture, in addition to focusing more on candidate personality, rather than their previous experience.
Milkround's research suggests that despite the hurry towards technological advancements that speed up recruitment processes, candidates themselves continue to desire human interaction. Few are interested in unnecessary complexities - if the application process is well-executed, simplicity is valued by candidates overall.
Milkround's complete student and graduate Candidate Compass report 2018 will be published in June.
*Source:
http://uk.businessinsider.com/unilever-artificial-intelligence-hiring-process-2017-6 [2]