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«IN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS WE WILL SEE GEN AI INTEGRATED INTO EVERY ASPECT OF OUR DAILY LIVES»

15 minutes

22.11.2023

The AI revolution is in full swing. And there is also a lot of potential for the use of this new technology in the field of recruitment. You can read more about this in our blog post on "AI in recruiting". 

But how is the Adecco Group preparing for the AI revolution and in which areas is AI already being used in recruitment? Where are the opportunities and risks of this new technology, which is currently conquering every area of life? We answer these and other questions in the latest interview with Greg Shewmaker, The Adecco Group SVP Global Operations.

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Greg Shewmaker, Group SVP Global Operations is responsible at the Adecco Group for ensuring that the topic is given sufficient scope and that guidelines and framework conditions for its use are developed.

Is the Adecco Group already using AI in the recruitment process?

Yes. Specifically for Generative AI (Gen AI) we have examples of a CV creator developed in France, which is now available globally. Career Assistant has next generation conversational agent integrations using OpenAI, and there are multiple Job Description generators being piloted in different countries.

What is planned in terms of AI in the recruitment within The Adecco Group?

I think there are two ways to think about AI integration across the Group. The first way are the examples listed above. This includes tactical productivity improvements such as CV and Job Description generators, automated interview questions/preparation, customer service chatbots, and email and calendar management.

The other way to think about AI integration is more strategically. This includes the Career Platform we are building with Microsoft, which is a global talent marketplace built on top of an AI platform. Another example could be the training and launching of our own AI model using the vast global data we have today.

We want to push on both fronts, tactical solutions that provide immediate value to our recruiters and our candidates/associates, and new innovations that set us apart from our competitors.

In which areas of recruiting do you see the greatest potential for the use of AI?

There are two areas I see the greatest potential.

The first is automation of highly administrative, time-consuming tasks. Imagine having your own virtual assistant that can post on job boards, screen CVs, schedule meetings, send follow-up messages. This is already possible and something we will make widely available so our recruiters can do more of what they love to do best – talking to candidates and clients.

The second area AI will bring real value to our business is in better candidate matching. With the Career Platform work we are collaborating on with Microsoft, we are testing how hard and soft skills, cultural fit, and personal motivations all lead to a higher likelihood of success in a new position. Gen AI is helping us do this with a fraction of the data it would have required to attempt this just one year ago.

What are the risks of using AI in recruiting?

For certain decisions, AI still requires human oversight and common sense. AI is an exciting and promising technology, but it is exactly one-year old and still needs more time to mature and become more accurate. Sometimes, AI misses the point and makes suggestions that are inaccurate or irrelevant. In the near-term, Gen AI should be used for simple time-consuming tasks and for helping categorize decisions that a person can still make or at least approve.

To what extent can AI decisions in recruiting complement or replace human decisions?

AI can automate email and calendar management. It can post on job boards, monitor these postings, and change approaches based on responses. AI can collect and sort through CVs, make initial assessments of candidates, and schedule interviews. AI can suggest initial interview questions, ask these questions, and even ask next order questions based on a person’s answers.

But, what AI cannot do today is determine if someone is going to succeed in a specific job, or at a specific company. This still requires an expert that understands a client’s expectations and needs.

What data protection and ethical considerations should be taken into account when using AI in recruiting?

Gen AI is moving so fast, and the landscape changes each week. The Adecco Group is working to update our usage standards and guidelines and will re-publish these by the end of November. These standards will include guidance around data privacy, intellectual property, IT security, and responsible AI principles like model transparency, unbiased outcomes, partner selection. AI safety and responsible use is a top priority of our Board of Directors, and we have a dedicated Ethical AI Committee that independently sets and enforces these standards and guidelines.

Do you have any recommendations or advice for companies thinking about using AI in recruiting?

In the next five years we will see Gen AI integrated into every aspect of our daily lives, just like the Internet is today. But today it is a still a developing technology that everyone is still learning and figuring out what it can do. Our approach is to treat these new AI capabilities as very serious, by ‘getting our house in order’, which means getting our data ready, upskilling our people, developing a new technology roadmap, and creating our first Group AI strategy. In addition, we are trying a lot of tactical use cases to test and learn, we are partnering with technology companies that are far more knowledgeable in AI, and we are listening to, and learning from, our clients that are also exploring the possibilities of AI. While every company must have their own AI strategy, the one thing I can recommend is to no wait until the AI landscape becomes clearer, or less risky. Start now, or risk falling behind.