Importance Of The Human Factor In Automation

Applying for a job through mobile and digital devices is becoming the norm today. The information must be accessible with a few clicks, or candidates will abandon the job search. But it’s not just about making information available: intelligent technologies are becoming active partners in recruiting processes. Hence the importance of talent and the human factor in a growing automation process.

For example, bots can answer questions about the organisation, submit specific content, or even select available candidates based on predetermined parameters. In this way, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is becoming part of the communication between the recruiter and the candidate. However, finding the balance between automation, talent, and the human factor is critical.

Highlight Talent And The Human Factor In Selection Processes

First of all, automation in recruitment processes offers many advantages. So many that no company should miss out on the opportunity to go digital as soon as possible.

Automation facilitates the automatic pre-selection of candidates in the face of a considerable amount of responses and information. Without further selecting between LinkedIn profiles, it allows us to bring some order to the jungle of data we have. It can help us read and interpret resumes and databases.

But what automation cannot do, at least not yet, is to interpret each applicant’s personal or emotional aspects. Talent management and the human factor play a vital role in the recruitment process. Therefore, its importance should not be underestimated.

The Weight Of Personal Instinct

In practice, the candidate who meets all the hard skills often does not end up with the job. A person’s emotional and social fitness continues to carry more weight. Does a candidate’s personality fit well with the team he will be part of? Is the candidate creative enough to solve complex problems? Does the candidate have the right communication skills to inspire as a leader?

About two-thirds of the decision to hire someone is based on gut feelings. And that makes sense because strict criteria like education, experience, and skills can be developed if someone doesn’t meet those requirements. But if someone doesn’t fit well with the company culture or doesn’t have the creativity and adaptability necessary for the role, no development effort will make them work.

The Importance Of The Human Factor

Although it is perfectly possible to select candidates based solely on strict criteria, this is not without risks. Candidates may be missed in a slightly different pool than those defined by the search parameters. This will create tunnel vision, making the selection process ineffective.

Talent management and the human factor continue to be defined as abstract factors such as «entrepreneurship», «creativity», «empathy», or «adaptability». Factors that a robot cannot yet recognize or evaluate. And that shows the importance of human interaction in the recruiting process.

Of course, there are cases where the selection of candidates based solely on strict criteria is perfectly adequate. For example, a choice based on simple parameters will significantly contribute to hiring unskilled labour, which only requires availability. But as soon as profiles that require cooperation tasks in a social environment are needed, things become more complicated and individual interpretation is indispensable.

Cheaper Processes, More Expensive Solutions

Automation makes a valuable contribution to streamlining communications, as long as they are standard messages. In addition, automation must be implemented in HR for the initial screening in the selection processes. In these cases, the boy serves as a kind of advanced browser or search agent, making it easy to glean meaningful insights from the proliferation of databases.

But there will always be a second part of the recruiting process that will depend on the personal interpretation of the recruiter and the company staff. Standard performances are no longer sufficient when the job’s content and the candidate’s personality are essential. If you outsource this step to a machine, you will get all sorts of weird situations, like an analytical profile performing the functions of a salesperson.

Given similar events, the number of project proposals available does not matter. No customer will want to do business in that situation. The general rule of thumb is: the more distant the recruit is from the candidate, the less suited they will be for the position. Automation may have made recruitment processes cheaper, but the consequences will be much more expensive in the long run. Unless, of course, the importance of talent and the human factor is not lost sight of.

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