4 Tips on Thriving in an AI World

I have been reading a book about the well-known and not-so-well-known American generals from our many wars. The book rates these generals on their effectiveness, skill, teamwork, and ability to deal with constantly changing conditions.

What distinguished the great generals from the ordinary or poor ones was partially their communication skills and their use of intelligence to anticipate enemy action. But perhaps most of all, it was their originality – their willingness to improvise and buck conventions when necessary.

The great generals were examples of what Jeff Bezos, the outgoing CEO and founder of Amazon, in a final letter to employees, says,

“We all know that distinctiveness – originality – is valuable. We are all taught to ‘be yourself.’ What I’m really asking you to do is to embrace and be realistic about how much energy it takes to maintain that distinctiveness.

The world wants you to be typical – in a thousand ways, it pulls at you. Don’t let it happen.”

Everything from marketing to sourcing and assessment has been augmented or automated. Over the next few months, even more will be augmented. Your current skills will be less and less valuable as Ai becomes proficient – and it will. You will find naysayers and those who refuse to use the new tools. You will face hurdles and limitations from your legal department and many HR leaders.

But the demand for candidates will not decrease. Both hiring managers and candidates will expect better service, faster responses, and more thoughtful and honest answers. This will require good communication and influence skills and the ability to provide a human touch.

You will also face some big questions. Questions that require thoughtful discourse and open discussion. Should you tell candidates you are using AI? What level of transparency is ethical? Should there be rules or laws governing what can and cannot be posted? Do candidates care whether or not they are interviewed in person or by a chatbot? And does it make any difference? Should AI be governed by ethical rules or voluntary standards? How do we respond to new laws and regulations? Can we influence those laws and regulations?

You will add value by thinking deeply about issues like these and developing your position on the use of technology. You must be brave enough to use it even without explicit permission when it adds value or helps you make better decisions.

Many new tools are imperfect, but that does not mean they should not be used. It means we need to be vigilant in using them and work around their faults.

And remember, hiring managers don’t care about any of this – they just want good people fast.

The recruitment leaders who thrive will find a way to be distinctive, to move forward, and not just desperately try not to sink.

1. Take Action. Don’t waste time trying to fix what will never be fixed. Tweaking and fussing around with outmoded ways of thinking and with recruiters unwilling to make changes will get you nothing. One of the other characteristics of the great generals was their willingness to remove any subordinate who could not or would not take action, adapt, and focus on moving forward. Push hard for change even when it is uncomfortable for you.

2. Reduce bureaucracy- Employ technology. Make sure that the recruiting process is clearly understood by all the parties involved. Clearly define roles and responsibilities. Automate or eliminate every process step that does not add value. Use the power of ChatGPT and AI to find and engage better candidates. Work with hiring managers and data to align their expectations with market realities.

3. Measure what you do. Gather competitive intelligence, collect and analyze internal data, and look for bottlenecks or areas for improvement. Establish metrics that tell you something – not just the useless, backward-looking administrative metrics recruiters usually collect and report. Focus on speed and candidate and manager satisfaction.

4. Use an evolutionary approach. Take things one step at a time. Don’t expect recruiters to change overnight, but create incentives that encourage forward thinking and remove anyone who cannot or is unwilling to change. Make people want to use the new approaches because they are faster, better, or cheaper. Set a single top-level goal – give hiring managers what they want and need – good talent as quickly as possible.

Be distinctive, be original, and challenge conventions that don’t add value.

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