The outcome of this tech-focused study, conducted among 425 senior HR and legal professionals across 25 countries throughout Europe and North America, is published in “The Word 2020: Forces for Change”. This year’s report unpacks the rising demand for flexible working, talent shortage, the effect of innovative technologies and other forces inflicting change on the way we work.
The top challenge for HR is finding and keeping talent
Most of the respondents (73%) reveal that HR’s priority for finding and keeping talent is once more the top challenge. “There has been a significant shift in priorities for legal and human resources managers over the past year: while last year’s findings were all about preparing for digital, this year’s results reveal to which extent HR has reservations about it at a practical level. In other words, which barriers are they facing in real-life recruitment and talent development scenarios,” says Chris Engels, Chairman of Ius Laboris.
The tech-focused research reveals HR could be massively affected by technology, especially in three areas:
- Optimization of recruitment (25%)
- Management of remote workforce (17%)
- Workplace productivity (16%)
97% think technology makes a difference in HR, only 37% of the organizations actually implement an HR technology strategy
When it comes down to the optimization of recruitment, technology can help a process that in some cases boils down to human chemistry. There are different tools that can optimize the process, such as including more accurate traits-based solutions, predictive analytics and tools that assess cultural fit and the ability to work with others as well as facial recognition software that claims to unlock an individual’s “risk” to a business.
However, the survey also showed that there is a big gap between vision and reality: only 8% of the respondents say that they are using AI or machine learning in recruitment. The main reason for this is that many firms experience a lack of budget, 42% of the respondents said that this is the most significant barrier.
Only 8% of the respondents say that they are using AI or machine learning in recruitment.
The main reason for this is that many firms experience a lack of budget, 42% of the respondents said that this is the most significant barrier.
Technology definitely has the potential to transform the recruitment process and overhauling the way businesses interact with their (future) employees. Despite the enthusiasm of HR professionals in the potential of technology – 97% of respondents think technology will make a difference in HR –, only 37% of the organizations have implemented an HR technology strategy. Therefore, businesses are being held back from fully unlocking its potential.
HR professionals recognize the benefits of using technology in the recruitment process
In public discussions, fairness is often held up as a potential benefit for using technology in the recruitment process. However, when respondents of the Ius Laboris research were asked to name the greatest benefits of recruitment technology, fairness scored surprisingly low (6%).
According to them, technology reflects the biases of those who created it, so does recruitment technology, and the more complex AI becomes, the harder it is for humans to know how a decision has been made. Even though HR professionals distrust the technology, 22% said they did use it anyway, regardless of whether it risks bias.
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According to HR professionals, the biggest benefit of using recruitment technology is that it can offer efficiency. Companies claim that the candidate experience can be improved by, for example, using AI-powered chatbots, so job seekers can ask more questions in advance. Secondly, algorithms can be used to review CVs and speed up to process to make sure that candidates hear back quickly. Thirdly, software can be used to analyze the language used, tone and facial expressions of the candidates, and benchmark this with previous successful candidates.
“Whether technology provides a basic level of filtering of applications or more sophisticated algorithms, it is vital that HR professionals will get on board with technology innovations. The workplace has undergone fundamental change over the past years, and the sands are still shifting. Within our organization, we are continuously looking at the latest innovations and trends in the sector and remain at the forefront of change to support both employers and employees in these times of change and new dynamics, driven by technology”, according to Chris Engels, Chairman of Ius Laboris.
