How to improve the candidate experience with AI and automation

A recent study shows that 49% of job seekers have declined an offer because of a poor candidate experience. To successfully recruit high-quality candidates as employees, recruiters and HR teams must leave a positive impression on the candidates. 

The meteoric rise of automation and Artificial Intelligence (AI) in talent management presents a massive opportunity for recruiters to keep candidate experience cutting edge. Keep reading to learn how to improve the candidate experience with AI and automation.        

The benefits of automation and AI in recruiting

Implementing automation and AI in recruiting can bring you numerous advantages as soon as you implement them. Below are some of the upsides.

1. Efficiency: AI and automation streamline the recruiting process by automatically powering repetitive tasks. By handling tasks such as resume screening and pre-hire assessments, the systems free up time for HR teams to attend to more pressing concerns. This leads to faster response times and a more efficient hiring process. Automation also provides candidates with timely updates, providing an engaging candidate experience.   
2. Greater reach: AI and automation open recruiters to a broader talent pool by allowing them to automatically screen all of the candidates who apply, rather than the amount the recruiter has time for. AI-powered tools also boost accessibility. The right tools provide a more accommodating experience for disabled candidates, instantly improving diversity and inclusion in recruitment.  
3. Reduced bias: AI isn’t prone to the human prejudices that can impede fairness in the recruitment process. It focuses strictly on candidates’ skills and qualifications; this leaves no room for unconscious bias to plague the initial screening and selection stage.   
4. Enhanced personalization: AI can help match the right candidates and potential positions. After scanning candidates’ profiles for their skills and preferences, technology like Cangrade’s can identify talent for recruiters and suggest relevant and matching job opportunities specific to the candidate’s skills. Automation also adds a human touch to the recruiting process by facilitating personalized communication at scale.  
5. Data-based insights: Automation and AI in recruiting provide analytics on the hiring processes that employers can leverage to optimize their practices. This technology can also collect feedback from candidates on their experience and how to improve the candidate experience.   

The advantages of AI and automation in hiring help HR teams stay competitive, make informed decisions, and leave a good impression on their candidates. So, how can you use it at your organization?      

4 ways to improve the candidate experience with AI and automation 

Using automation and AI in recruiting is clearly beneficial for all the parties involved. Here are 4 different ways to use AI and automation to create a better experience for both candidates and recruiters. 

1. Communication

AI and automation can scale clear and easy communication during recruiting to improve the candidate experience and streamline recruiting operations. Hiring automation can send immediate email responses to acknowledge receipt of a candidate’s application, set clear expectations of the next possible steps, and update candidates on whether they’ve been selected for interviews or whether the position has been filled. This keeps candidates informed throughout the process. 

Automation can also help recruiters optimize their recruitment processes by enabling the collection of real-time candidate feedback after each stage of the hiring process. This demonstrates thoughtfulness on the part of the recruiting organization as it shows that the candidates’ opinions matter.     

2. Personalization

With AI and automation, HR teams can effectively personalize the recruitment process to give candidates a more personal experience without recruiter intervention.

One way this can be achieved is through customized interaction. AI technology can use candidate information to craft personalized messages. Using the candidates’ details and customizing the messages to their peculiar interests shows that the organization is attentive to their needs. Automated campaigns then ensure that the messages get to candidates at the right time.

AI also powers dynamic application forms which adapt to candidates’ responses, making sure that each candidate gets relevant questions and fields. This can kick the personalization of the recruitment process up a notch.

Recruiters also enjoy a more personalized experience with AI. After analyzing various candidate profiles, their skills, and preferences, it can match the ideal candidates to potential positions, saving recruiters time and energy. Making the recruiters’ job much easier.        

3. Interview scheduling and candidate assessment 

Automated recruitment software and AI-powered tools can be used to schedule interviews with candidates. The tools can check the calendars of all the candidates and interviewers to determine the availability of each party and even send reminders to streamline the hiring process.

What’s more, these systems can also streamline candidate screening. Automated candidate screening assesses the skills and qualifications of each candidate to determine if they’ll be a good fit for the organization. After this assessment, the technology can highlight the top candidates to recruiters. Additionally, they can score candidates on multiple open positions, not just the role to which they applied.

AI-powered tools can even conduct skills assessments through simulations and other practical challenges. By scheduling interviews and assessing candidates, automation and AI improve the candidate experience and simplify the work for the HR professionals involved.   

4. Using chatbots 

Implementing chatbots can exponentially boost the candidate experience during recruiting.  Thanks to their round-the-clock availability, chatbots can provide valuable support to candidates by responding to their queries. Chatbots can offer guidance on the required documents, how to fill out application forms, and how to navigate the application process.

Chatbots also guarantee engagement for the candidates. Their human-like interplay makes the application process more user-friendly. Additionally, they can send reminders to candidates about any important steps, documents, or upcoming stages in the application process, like interviews.

To hold your own in today’s labor market, making a good impression on your candidates is an absolute necessity. Utilize these tips on how to improve the candidate experience with AI and automation for success now and in the future.

Find out how to build the best team with Cangrade’s ethical AI.