How AI Shapes the Hiring Process
Written by Robbie Kerr, The Externals Group
Keywords are now as important as résumés in getting hired.
You may not realise it, but artificial intelligence is already in the hiring process. If you don’t understand how it works, you could be missing out on the right candidates or the right job.
A lot of ATS (Applicant Tracking Systems) have built-in AI filters that screen through résumés for keywords. Without the right keywords, your résumé won’t even be seen by the system, no matter how strong it is. I have seen quite a bit of uproar about this, but the reality is, this isn’t new in hiring. Recruiters and talent acquisition often use keyword searches when looking for candidates initially through various job boards and LinkedIn, so it has always been the case that if you don’t have them, you won’t be seen.
Keywords matter because while you may have a perfect résumé with a lot of information on it, if it doesn’t contain the word ‘roofing’ it won’t be found by the people looking for it as this is the most common keyword to look for in the roofing industry. The main difference now is that AI is here to stay, and it now handles much of the initial screening work. I think this has become more popular over the years as an overwhelming number of résumés come through for one job, particularly remote jobs and speaking from my own experience, the majority are not relevant.
We have had on multiple occasions sandwich makers applying for senior operations positions in large construction companies and people just don’t have the time to look through every single résumé and to read them in full. Keyword highlighters help recruiters identify relevance quickly. With AI doing this work, résumés without the right terms are often discarded immediately.
What should you do?
Use it to your advantage. Don’t make things up to get past the AI as a human is going to see this at the next step and you will very quickly get a reputation for yourself. What you can do is make sure you have all the relevant keywords in your résumé. There is an abundance of information available through AI tools, recruiters, industry professionals, and networking platforms like LinkedIn. Keep a clean format; while the nice fancy layouts are pleasing on the eye, the eye isn’t the first thing to see them anymore and an AI might not pick up what you’re writing so a nice simple, clean and well laid out résumé is what I would recommend.
Some keyword examples for an Estimator in Commercial Roofing. Make sure you include words such as roofing, estimator, estimating, commercial roofing, roofing systems like TPO, PVC, and metal, along with software like EDGE and Bluebeam. This will be enough to get seen and stand out. Sentences like ‘work well in a team’ don’t get noticed because everyone has it. If you are struggling to decide what keywords to use, review job ads and job descriptions or company websites and mirror what’s in there.
What about the companies?
This goes both ways, especially for hiring managers writing job descriptions. AI is filtering to candidate emails what jobs they might think are relevant and if your job ad or job description doesn’t line up with the right keywords, it’s not getting noticed. Using the example above for a résumé would apply the same to the job advert. A poorly written job description runs the risk of low visibility and it will become much harder for the right candidates to find your job. Too much jargon can also hurt visibility. For example, writing ‘building envelope professional’ instead of ‘roofing estimator’ may prevent an AI from matching your job with the right candidates.
This isn’t all doom and gloom. The positive effects AI has had in the process far outweigh the need for keywords. In many cases, AI has helped speed up certain stages of the hiring process by reducing the time spent reviewing irrelevant résumés. There is a human element that is still an important step that shouldn’t be missed. People can look beyond the keywords and assess things differently to find a potential cultural fit or transferable skills that an AI would miss. The key takeaway is balance. Candidates must use the right keywords to get seen, while companies should still review with human eyes instead of relying entirely on AI. If the software does the heavy lifting and filters out people without the basic keywords, e.g. roofing and estimator, then the résumés that come through can get a lot more time on them.
AI isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. The ones who adapt first will be the most successful.
To find out how The Externals Group can help with the search for your next appointment, contact Reece on reece@theexternalsgroup.com or call 07729 093137.
