AI recruitment brings flexibility to hiring

Using AI could not only help to lift the burden of recruitment, but also help to identify candidates that might otherwise be overlooked and help support team retention.

That was the message from this morning’s HOSPA webinar, Recruitment In The Age of AI, hosted by HOSPA CEO Jane Pendlebury and featuring Paul Watson, VP & Hospitality Specialist at Sona.

Watson identified the key issue at the centre of the sector’s recruitment problems: “There’s a mismatch between the time managers have and the volume of applications”.

He added: “We don’t think AI is going to take people’s jobs, we think it’s going to come in and remove a burden. You need to appreciate where in the recruitment process AI can help; great chefs are hired to deliver great hospitality, not sit on a computer and AI can help sift all those CVs. It doesn’t replace every component of the recruitment process, but if you have 400 applications for a single job role, how do you get to the best calibre of applicant?”

Watson also pointed to the benefits for the applicant. He said: “AI can also speed up the feedback process for a candidate, who may be applying for 10 different roles.

“Candidates don’t mind an element of AI if it means they are going to get engagement and help. We live in an age of immediacy; people applying for a role expect a response that day. It can also be more flexible; they might be applying for a role when actually there is another that they are more suited to and that’s where it can be more useful.

“If, as a candidate, I know that I’m being correctly fitted for the role and I know what stage of the process I am in and that, for example, I can choose an interview slot, I retain some control over that process rather than being beholden to the recruiter.”

Watson drew attention to the importance of ensuring the correct AI components were in place for the process. He said: “An applicant might not have the required experience but there might be other activities in their CV which contribute towards the type of person that they are. There is a lot of credence to being part of a sports team, part of a team activity; there is a good match there that could better the experience required for that role.

“The key thing with AI is that it’s not just a case of setting the sliders, it’s the learning process and the feedback loop that keeps making it better.”

Retention, another difficult area for the sector, also showed potential to benefit from AI assistance. Watson said: “Eighty-five per cent of people have pulled out of a recruitment process and there are lots of drop-off points, but it’s the hiring point where there is a huge risk. If they’re a great candidate, when they go back to their employer and tell them they’re leaving, they will make an effort to keep them.

“It’s important to work from day one to retain that candidate. If you can develop your team members, they are going to be your next leaders. If you’re looking to hire, make sure you’re looking across your existing team and AI can help you identify possible candidates.”

Watson emphasised that there was still an important role for the human touch in recruitment, concluding: “So much of the team member’s personality comes out in the face-to-face conversation. Typically to talk about elements such as pay, which can be a little binary.

“There is so much more to internal promotion; if you’re a quiet person and you’re reluctant to talk to your manager about a promotion, this is where looking at a combination of data points can help you see what you might have missed in the busyness of the operation and this is where the AI piece comes in.”