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CNN
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Applying for a new job? A human resources representative or hiring manager may not be the first to review your resume. Instead, it might be an AI-powered tool.
With some job postings attracting hundreds or thousands of applications, companies are increasingly using AI to sort through applicants before they reach a human recruiter. According to data from jobseeker resource site Resume Genius, 48% of hiring managers report using AI to screen resumes and applications, and the AI recruitment sector is expected to experience a compound annual growth rate of 6.1% between 2023 and 2030, according to the Society for Human Resources Management.
While companies have long been using applicant tracking systems (ATS) to parse resumes for skills and keywords, AI has the potential to further automate the process by “reading” resumes and applications to find suitable candidates.
But can that make it more difficult to guarantee a resume gets seen by a human? Experts say AI can benefit both recruiters and candidates by allowing applications to be “seen” in their entirety by the algorithm, reducing reliance on keyword-scanning methods that may penalize candidates for omitting specific words from their resumes.
The practice of including keywords from a job posting in a resume isn’t new. For example, an applicant may put the coding languages Python or C++ on their resume for software engineering jobs that require those skills, ideally improving their chances of being picked up by automated systems.
But new AI tools can understand the content of a resume, meaning they can help spot candidates even if their resumes don’t mention certain words, said Madeline Laurano, chief analyst at Aptitude Research, an HR advisory firm.
“The AI providers take a skills-based approach,” said Laurano. “They’re saying, ‘We’re not using keywords on a resume. We want to be able to create more of a holistic picture and a full view of the individual, so we’re inferring skills.’”
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The system can then provide hiring managers with a list of relevant candidates and rank them, which Laurano says benefits both hirers and recruiters by helping them save time.
The idea that automated tools just toss away resumes is a misconception, Nathan Soto, a career expert at Resume Genius, told CNN. Soto added that “most HR representatives or hiring managers say they still look at the resumes.” But hiring managers often need the help because they’re flooded with applications, some of which may be AI-generated.
“They have no choice but to use AI to sort through that stuff,” Soto said. “The sheer number of applications that they’re getting has been rising.”
Still, it’s important to remember the basics: Make sure the skills outlined on your resume match the job posting, and avoid complex visuals such as charts, columns or unusual fonts.
“Unfortunately, the more boring it looks to the human eye, that’s what the ATS craves,” said Soto.
Beyond using AI to read resumes, recruiting firms are using the technology to simplify the hiring process.
Last year, human resources software provider Workday acquired AI hiring tool developer HiredScore, and Indeed released a Smart Sourcing tool that can find candidates and draft outreach messages.
LinkedIn took that idea one step further in October when it introduced an AI agent for handling mundane HR tasks such as screening applications. Hiring managers tell the agent, called Hiring Assistant, the type of candidate they’re seeking, and LinkedIn’s AI helper provides a list of top contenders sourced from applicants or the network’s profiles. A recruiter can even point the assistant to a current employee and ask it to find similar candidates.
The tool can also chat with applicants during off hours, although the human recruiter can enter the chat if needed.
“One of the real challenges about being a recruiter today is that a lot of the job has to be done in (the) evenings and (at) night,” Hari Srinivasan, vice president of product at LinkedIn, told CNN.
The candidate will always know when they are chatting with a bot, Srinivasan said.
But it’s not just recruiters; LinkedIn hopes to make the process easier for job seekers, too. LinkedIn is working on a tool that would allow job hunters to type in a description of their desired role rather than searching for a specific job title. One example, according to Srinivasan, could include a search like: “Find me a job where I can work on a mission to go to space,” and the system would display relevant results.
The company is currently testing this tool with LinkedIn Premium subscribers.
“All of a sudden the amount of opportunities you have starts opening up,” he said.
Another AI feature, Job Match, tells jobseekers whether their experience aligns with a certain role, which Srinivasan said can help them find the most relevant positions rather than mass-applying to posts.
A spokesperson for LinkedIn said Hiring Assistant is currently being used by a few hundred LinkedIn Recruiter customers and will be rolled out more broadly this fall.
But as advanced as AI may be, it’s still prone to bias. Research from the University of Washington, for example, found that three large language models (LLMs) used in hiring more frequently favored resumes submitted by people with white-associated names than Black-associated names.
AI also sometimes outputs false information, known as “hallucinating,” so it could potentially misunderstand an applicant’s resume and provide incorrect information to a recruiter.
It’s also important for candidates to consent to their data being processed by AI, Laurano added.
While AI tools like Hiring Assistant can help eliminate “friction” in the hiring process, finding the right hire will always require a human touch.
“AI should not be making a decision on hiring,” Laurano said. “At the end of the day, a human needs to make a decision.”
