Every job has its lifespan. No matter how nice your current office is, how much you love your coworkers, or how good benefits package you enjoy, there comes the times when you just have to change it. Sometimes, because you want to, sometimes because you’ve been made to.
Sooner or later we all find ourselves searching for a new job. In 90’s it could have been you buying a newspaper with job ads, or sending the paper version of your CV to potential employers. Then with
What about now? What would you do?
For the start, you could tap into your network. You know people, who know people, who need people, right? I bet your first move would be updating your LinkedIn profile! Rightfully so. It’s probably the biggest business network site nowadays. LinkedIn is a standard, just as job boards or paper CV’s were in the past. And if you are not on it, where have you been?
The future of recruitment.
We live in an era, where automation becomes so common that we don’t even think about it. Our homes are packed with artificial intelligence. We have automatic lights, vacuum cleaners or even fridge which automatically re-orders your favorite food, as soon as it runs low. Smart speakers market has grown so quickly, that there are nearly 120 million smart speakers in U.S. homes, according to the latest smart audio report from NPR and Edison Research.
Surely, this transition must mean some changes in the way companies find and recruit new employees. Virtual assistants such as Alexa and Google Home are a
Do you want a job at McDonald’s? Just ask Alexa.
Just recently McDonald’s announced that potential employees can now start their job application via Alexa. All you need to do is ask: “Alexa, help me get a job at McDonald’s”. That will kick off your recruitment process. Alexa will be able to ask you simple questions, like the country you are interested to work in, to funnel down the job offers suited for you.
This is quite an innovative way of using Alexa which creates a real point of differentiation against the competition. McDonald’s is really leading the way here. With the smart speaker market constantly growing, it’s just a matter of time before others will join. Perhaps that’s the future of recruitment.
Artificial Intelligence vs. traditional recruiting.
Whereas McDonald’s might be leading the way with Alexa recruitment, the truth is, that employers have been using robotics to speed up the recruitment process for some time already. Automation here can free up lots of time, especially at the initial stage. Additionally, many human biases are removed when the process is automated.
Artificial intelligence programs can now perform initial interviews and match your skills with positions most relevant to you. Those programs are known to be used in the biggest tech companies from Silicon Valley, Apple included.
Many companies are starting to realize how deeply biased the traditional process of finding the right employe is. Recruiters tend to choose the same type of people, from the same sources. AI-powered recruitment tools can help to overcome the biases and speed up the process.
Virtual Reality in recruitement.
Companies are starting to use smart speakers, like Alexa for recruiting, as well as AI programs to help with screening candidates. There is one more, that needs to be mention here – Virtual Reality.
VR recruitment could be a fancy new way to attract potential candidates. The gamified recruitment process was already tried in 2017 by Jaguar. With their attempt to search for software engineers, they’ve created the skill-based recruiting game. As a candidate, you can now play an engaging game with code-breaking elements, and you are immediately tested on your curiosity, perseverance, and problem-solving skills.
If engineering isn’t your forte, perhaps you might want to try yourself at some hospitality roles at Marriot. Some time ago they’ve released a facebook game so that you could try to manage ‘the heart of the house’ as they call it – the kitchen. Could this be the future of recruitment? Imagine trying yourself at different job roles, by playing games, before you even decide to apply.
Another quite common way of using the VR was already tested by many companies at events and job fairs. You can now get the feeling of what a train conductor for Deutsche Bahn does by just putting on VR glasses. If you fancy other career opportunities, why don’t you try driving a tank for the British Army or US Navy? If it’s the location you curious about, many companies now offer the opportunity to virtually visit their headquarters.
Is it the end of recruiters as we know it?
With the technology revolution that the world is going through, everything is changing. Some of the jobs might soon seize to exist. Other positions might drastically change in scope. Like everything, the job market and recruitement strategies need to evolve to survive.
Artificial Intelligence, virtual reality, smart speakers and virtual assistants are not just tools for the geeky IT companies in Silicon Valley. To attract a new generation of workers, everyone needs to start reshaping their strategy. Top companies are not only about innovative products but also about innovative processes within. Recruitmentment and talent management must therefore also evolve to reflect the companies’ spirit and attract the right people.
Conclusion
If you find yourself at the crossroad of your life again, trying to find a job that suits you best, don’t worry. This could be the most interesting time of your life. Enjoy the opportunities technology gives you, look around, try and test. You want to take your time to find a position that suits you best.
Update your LinkedIn profile. Don’t be fearful, when during the first rounds of
Use the technology to your advantage. Are you feeling a bit rusty when it comes to interviewing questions? The Alexa skill called Interview Prep might help. It has tons of example questions that you could practice with.
And if nothing else works, I’m sure Alexa will help you to get a job at McDonald’s. Just ask her.
What does the hiring process look like in your workplace? Let us know.
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