AI candidate experience—that is, using AI to handle or support many candidate-facing interactions—is becoming more common. At the recent Talent42 Conference in Seattle, Dan Cambell, Head of TA for Datavant, shared that an estimated 400,000 recruiting jobs could be lost in the coming years. Lost to AI in different forms.
The need for traditional recruiting staff will shrink because of AI automation of recruiting tasks, along with fewer jobs available as AI automates roles that once needed people. Fewer workers means fewer open roles, which leads to fewer recruiting resources needed.
This shift has already started in small ways. The rise of recruiting bots and chat systems over the last few years was the first step. Right now, AI candidate experience seems to be the main focus. The question is: Will these experiences be good or bad?
Pros and Cons of AI Candidate Experience
My best guess is that AI-based candidate experiences will range from poor to acceptable, especially in the next few years. But to be fair, many companies already provide poor to acceptable candidate experiences without AI.
So far, AI-powered HR assistants and similar tools perform tasks like answering questions, scheduling interviews, and handling recruiting tasks—all of which affect candidate experience.
That said, these tools aren’t a big leap forward yet. In many cases, they work like rules-based systems, just doing similar tasks. Some tools that are labeled as “AI” are actually more rules-based than AI-powered. But that’s a separate discussion.
The immediate benefit of AI candidate experience is saving money in the short term. Companies can use AI-powered HR assistants or chatbots to answer basic questions or handle tasks in a more natural way. Many companies probably need to improve their recruiting knowledge bases to make this work well. But with all the attention on AI, it’s likely they will fix and use these knowledge bases now, where it wasn’t a priority before. Companies are looking at AI for recruiting as a way to lower costs.
These knowledge bases can power chatbots, email tools, scheduling, and managing job requests—not just doing tasks but improving how they’re done. There may come a time when an AI-powered candidate sourcing tool or AI recruiter screening tool can pull from recruiting emails and build its own knowledge base. And the system will get better as it learns. The impact of AI on the candidate experience could be big over time.
But on the “cons” side, the first challenge is maturity. As I said, it’s still early for AI tools, and many don’t offer much beyond what rules-based tech already does. Another challenge is regulation. While AI can answer general questions about jobs and the hiring process, candidates want answers about their own situation. That means putting a lot of private data into the system. The risks of data leaks or mistakes, along with possible legal claims if candidates feel AI affected hiring decisions unfairly, all slow down the use of very personalized AI tools.
Governments are already planning rules for transparency in AI hiring tools. I expect similar rules will apply to everyday candidate interactions with AI as well.
But most of this is still ahead of us. In the short term, the biggest problem with AI candidate experience is the chance of hidden issues causing bad experiences that hurt hiring results.
Trust But Verify Your AI
Employers have already added AI and rules-based tools that directly affect candidate experience over the past few years. While it’s not a direct link, I’ve noticed that candidate frustration is higher than ever.
Employers should save time and money where they can. But as they use bots, AI recruiters, and other tools that interact with candidates, they must check how these tools are affecting people—and what problems they might be causing.
Some AI tools ask for simple satisfaction ratings after use. But a thumbs up or down doesn’t tell you if you’re creating deeper problems in your recruiting process. And it doesn’t explain what went wrong.
Tools like Survale can find problems in both technology and process and give clear insights to fix them. If a candidate is unhappy after using an AI recruiter screening tool or chatbot, knowing what went wrong and why is very important—especially while AI is still new in hiring. Guessing what’s going on with your candidates, tools, and processes is risky when AI is changing things so much. Employers need solid tools to track how AI is affecting the candidate experience and overall hiring results.
FAQs
How is AI used in recruitment?
AI is used in recruitment to help with tasks like screening resumes, finding candidates, answering questions, scheduling interviews, and managing job postings. Tools like AI-powered candidate sourcing platforms and AI recruiter screening systems can help recruiters save time and improve hiring steps.
Can interviewers tell if you are using AI?
Most interviewers can’t tell if AI helped you prepare answers or materials unless it’s obvious in your responses. But it’s always a good idea to be honest and make sure you fully understand the information, especially if AI or an employee virtual assistant helped you get ready.
How do I get experience with AI?
You can get experience with AI by learning how AI tools work in your field. For example, if you work in HR or hiring, try using AI for recruiting tasks like screening or sourcing. You can also test AI-powered HR assistants or employee virtual assistants to see how they support work.
How to use AI for candidate sourcing?
You can use AI for candidate sourcing by setting up tools that search for candidates across job sites, social media, and resumes. AI-powered candidate sourcing tools can scan profiles, match skills, and suggest people who fit your job openings, saving time and improving search results.
