In the third quarter of 2021 alone, companies spent $22.7 billion on HR technology advancements - five times as much compared to Q2. But what exactly do these improvements and innovations mean for recruitment?

Cielo’s Elaine Orler, Senior Vice President – Technology Consulting, and Matt Jones, Vice President – Global Business Services, joined Larry Basinait, Vice President of Market Research at SharedXpertise, to preview HRO Today’s Q3 HR Technology Report in a recent podcast.

The research comes at a time when companies across regions are struggling to fill open positions. With many candidates shuffling to new roles or leaving the workforce altogether, experts believe today’s challenging talent market is here for the foreseeable future.

“I’ve been doing this for around 20 years, and I’ve really never seen a market like this in all regions and all segments at the same time. As a TA or HR professional nowadays, the challenge is to win your unfair share because there is not a fair share out there of talent that we need,” said Jones.

The advancements in technology can deliver immense value to both recruiters and candidates. Here are three improvements and innovations in HR technology that will help companies enhance the recruitment process to find the talent they need:

  1. Simplifying and streamlining the hiring process
    Not long ago, companies assumed that if someone was interested enough in the job, they would jump through all the application hoops. But that is not the case in today’s candidate-driven market, where companies must make the point of entry simple and as seamless as possible to capture a candidate’s attention.

    Today’s speed of market requires TA teams to have greater discipline in how they move candidates through the sub-cycles of the recruiting process. Technology can help by quickly putting top candidates in front of hiring managers, improving communication speed, and meeting candidate experience expectations.

  2. Providing an interactive experience
    Conversational AI can help TA teams reach and engage with more candidates at the top of the funnel. Virtual assistants allow applicants to get their recruitment questions answered, schedule interviews, and learn more about the company. TA leaders across all lines of recruiting – not just high volume – are seeing the value proposition of this technology.

    “The speed and agility that happens with these virtual assistants allow for the organization to work through that kind of relationship with the candidates in a way that candidates desire, while also achieving the company's goals of getting the information they need to make quality decisions quickly,” said Orler.

  3. Embracing mobile-device communication
    Smartphone use in the United States, United Kingdom and much of Western Europe is nearly universal. Mobile-based communication, such as text messaging, WhatsApp and WeChat, can accelerate the hiring process significantly.


    Jones has seen results which show that it takes less than 20 minutes to schedule an interview if a company is leveraging an SMS- or WhatsApp-based approach versus more than 24 hours using traditional outreach like email. And it makes sense – many people have their phones with them throughout the day.

As HR technology continues to advance, it is important to remember that choosing a new career or role remains a deeply emotional and human experience. Ultimately, companies with the right balance of people, process and technology will win their unfair share of talent.

From market planning and candidate generation to technology adoption and data analytics, we can help you get the most from every aspect of your talent acquisition strategy.


RELATED POSTS