Greater Confidence In Reliability Of AI Amongst HR Professionals
As we highlighted in a previous article, the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in the recruitment process has increased markedly over the last couple of years.
Report
Now, new research conducted by HireVue has found that confidence in the reliability of AI generated results amongst HR professionals has increased by two-thirds in just a year in terms of identifying potential candidates.
Moreover, 73% of HR professionals now trust AI generated recommendations to such an extent that they would be prepared to hire a candidate on the strength of that recommendation.
Other Findings
Other findings from the survey include:-
- 70% of HR professionals either now use artificial intelligence in some capacity or plan to do so at some point in the next year
- In terms of how HR professionals currently use artificial intelligence, 31% use it to assist with communications, whilst 27% deploy it for screening CV's and the same percentage for conducting assessments
Employees
Nevertheless, artificial intelligence is far less trusted by candidates, with 75% opposed to the use of AI generated recommendations when making hiring decisions, believing that human decisions are superior. Moreover, 79% of candidates stated that they would like to know whether artificial intelligence will be used when applying for a role, and just 49% of them believed that AI would have any impact in terms of alleviating bias and unfairless during the recruitment process.
This finding about the concerns of employees is also backed up by recent research by SurveyMonkey, which found that 54% of employees are not comfortable with HR using AI, and that 39% do not trust it. The survey also found that 41% of employers have no artificial intelligence policy in place and 70% of employees have received no artificial intelligence training.
Comment
Commenting upon the HireVue findings, the chief data scientist at HireVue, Dr Lindsey Zuloaga, stated: "It was fantastic to see HR leaders and workers equally comfortable with AI’s role in completing repetitive recruitment tasks. The data suggests a shared understanding of how AI complements rather than replaces the human touch in hiring."
Zuloaga adds: "It’s always been important for candidates to understand how they’re being evaluated in the hiring process, but the widespread use of AI-backed tools makes it even more critical that companies are transparent about how decisions are made. Leaders who err on the side of clear explainability about how AI is used will reap the benefits of these new technologies without sacrificing applicant satisfaction or causing undue concern about fairness."
Hybrid Working: Staff Absences More Difficult To Manage
New research conducted by WorkNest has found that 50.4% of employers who allow hybrid working have found it more difficult to handle staff absences, with 7.2% stating that it had become "much more difficult".
Furthermore, 74% of employers had had staff cite illness as a reason why they wanted to work from home on a day when they should have been in the office
Employees Loses 7.5 Hours Per Week To "Productivity Killers"
A new survey called 'Great Reset: Empowering Employees to Manage Their Time' by Protime UK has found that the average full-time employee loses 7.5 hours per week to unnecessary "productivity killers".
The Main Disrupters
The research found that the top "productivity killers" were emails marked as urgent that don't require immediate attention (29%), chats with colleagues that are not work related (28%), and "desk drop-ins" (21%). Others included unnecessary meetings and being asked to join a telephone discussion at short notice.
Two-thirds of the respondents reported that they encounter disruptions on a daily basis, which range from 30 minutes to 2 hours in duration, undermining their productivity in the process. In terms of the impact, 46% stated that the tasks they are engaged in take longer to complete than originally anticipated due to the disruption, and 23% have to put in unpaid overtime to make up for the time lost. Just 12% stated that they feel able to take steps to avoid the disruption.
37% of the respondents reported that these disruptions increased their stress levels and 21% stated that they were demotivating.
Comment
Commenting upon the findings, the Country Manager for Protime UK, Simon Garrity, stated: "Our research highlights how a plague of avoidable productivity killers are undermining UK businesses. Constant workplace disruptions aren’t just a frustration – they directly impact the bottom line through lower productivity, engagement and retention."
Garrity added: "Employers need to get a grip on the hidden time-wasters and equip managers to have open conversations about prioritising workflows. Workers want to focus but can’t do it alone – they need support from the top to reclaim their time and unleash their full potential. The cost of doing nothing is too high. By empowering employees to master their time, businesses can maximise productivity, morale and profitability."
