VoiceAI agents: Are they transforming staffing and recruitment?
As with any new technology, especially one that directly impacts our candidates, VoiceAI has come with its challenges. While we've seen great success, we know that perfecting the experience takes time. There will be bumps along the way, but our priority remains ensuring a positive experience for job seekers.
Candidates: Your patience, feedback and input are invaluable in helping us refine our approach. As AI continues to evolve, we’re dedicated to adapting, improving and equipping our recruiters with tools that help them work smarter, not harder.
What is VoiceAI, and how are we using it?
VoiceAI refers to technologies and systems that use artificial intelligence to process, understand and generate human speech. It encompasses a range of applications, including speech recognition (turning spoken words into text), natural language processing (understanding the meaning behind those words) and speech synthesis (generating human-like speech from text).
To keep it simple: It’s AI that you can talk to and actually have a conversation with.
We use VoiceAI to conduct an initial screening with our candidates as soon as they apply to an open position. Alex, our AI Recruiter, asks general questions that are not found on a resume to learn more about your experience as it relates to the position you applied to. Don't worry about preparing for this call: Alex is primarily asking basic questions such as location and worksite preferences, openness to contract versus permanent roles or target salary expectations.
Once that call with Alex is complete, Alex will summarize your conversation, pulling out the key information to share with recruiters. Alex will also update your profile in our candidate database with all of this information which can be used in matching candidates to open jobs in the future as well.
Here’s an example of how a conversation with Alex might begin:
📞 Alex
Hi, this is Alex. I'm a virtual recruiter with Horizontal Talent. Is this Sean?
📱 Sean
Yes.
📞 Alex
Great! Do you have a few minutes to chat regarding the Senior Project Manager position you applied for?
📱 Sean
Yes.
📞 Alex
Awesome! I’ll start by gathering some general information about the type of position you’re looking for, then we’ll go over your experience. This helps speed things up for my colleagues on the Horizontal Recruiting Team. Let’s get started.
📱 Sean
Okay! Let's do it.
Why is VoiceAI on the rise in staffing?
Staffing is rarely seen at the forefront of technological innovation, but with VoiceAI’s rapid growth in recent years, the industry has really embraced its value. Particularly for high-volume hiring, in-demand roles and remote positions that generate an influx of applications, VoiceAI is proving to be an indispensable tool. It allows us to screen multiple candidates simultaneously and at a time that’s convenient for them, eliminating delays and endless back-and-forth that can slow down the hiring process. By scaling the screening process, we can ensure that no candidate is overlooked, allowing recruiters to focus on the most crucial stages of hiring.
A recent Staffing Industry Analysts (SIA) report highlights just how quickly VoiceAI has gained traction, with the number of vendors in talent acquisition soaring from just 1 in 2021 to more than 36 today. This explosive growth highlights the technology’s pivotal role in shaping the future of recruitment.
The scalability and efficiency of candidate outreach has rapidly changed the recruiting and sourcing space. VoiceAI is able to instantly reach out to candidates that apply, with no limit to how many candidates can be contacted simultaneously. VoiceAI gathers crucial information on a candidates’ background asking about what they are looking for and asking screening questions for the specific role they applied to. This allows our recruiters to evaluate that info and have higher value initial conversations with potential candidates, determining if they are a fit for the role or others within our org.– Kris Hancock, Sr. Regional Delivery Director
The benefits for candidates
One of the most exciting aspects of our VoiceAI journey has been the overwhelmingly positive response from candidates interacting with our AI agent/virtual recruiter, Alex. Job seekers appreciate the immediate response they receive after applying, eliminating the waiting game that often leads to frustration. They feel comfortable expressing their thoughts openly and without judgment, which fosters a more natural and engaging conversation.
Candidates also appreciate Alex's professionalism and ability to summarize their responses for clarity, ensuring that all points are understood without miscommunication. This transparency builds trust and helps create a more positive experience for everyone involved.
VoiceAI agents ensure a consistent and fair screening process by evaluating all applicants using the same criteria. This eliminates human biases that can affect early-stage recruitment decisions, fostering a more inclusive and equitable hiring process.
VoiceAI streamlines the recruiting process by providing insights into how a candidate fits the role, potential fit for other positions and their overall interests before our initial outreach. It gives the candidate an opportunity to showcase communication/soft skills with their resumes. This frees us up to focus on ‘high touch’ items while continuing to build pipelines for clients and provide better customer service to billing and potential consultants.– Todd Haider, Functional Recruiting Manager
The challenges and the future of VoiceAI
While VoiceAI has proven successful, we acknowledge its challenges. As a relatively new technology, it still struggles to fully grasp nuances in human communication, such as sarcasm, tone and emotional depth. VoiceAI excels at tasks like answering questions and screening resumes, but it may overlook the subtle insights that human recruiters naturally detect.We recognize the importance of balancing AI with human expertise. VoiceAI can handle the bulk of initial screenings, but human recruiters are still essential for assessing creativity, emotional intelligence and cultural fit; qualities that AI is not yet able to evaluate accurately.
At Horizontal, Alex is built to enhance, not replace, the human element of our hiring process. While Alex streamlines the initial steps, our expert recruiters retain full control over the crucial decisions, ensuring the right fit between candidates and roles.
The primary goal of any AI tool is to minimize inefficiencies across various workstreams. By incorporating Voice AI tools in recruiting, we must strike a balance between leveraging technology to enhance the efficiency of our recruiters' tasks and maintaining a strong emphasis on human interaction. When implementing any new change, whether it be AI, technology or processes, it is crucial to consider all stakeholders and ensure the tool has a positive overall impact.– Anna Gerold, Learning & Change Manager
A smarter, faster and more inclusive hiring process
While there’s still plenty of room for growth, we’re confident that VoiceAI is transforming staffing and recruitment. By leveraging this technology, we’re making hiring more efficient, personalized and candidate-friendly, and we’re excited to see how it continues to evolve.At Horizontal Talent, we’re proud to lead this shift, embracing innovation to empower recruiters and enhance candidate experiences. The future of recruitment is here, and it speaks with a voice of its own.
FAQ’s:
Q: Who is Alex? Is this legit?A: Alex is our virtual AI recruiter and is a legit, valuable member of our team. At the time of application, Alex conducts an initial interview, helping our recruiting team gather key details beyond what’s on a resume. This not only assesses your fit for the role you applied for but ensures your information is up to date in our database for future opportunities.
Q: Why am I getting a cold call? I’d rather schedule time to speak with a recruiter.
A: We completely understand that when a call comes in, not everyone has the time or energy to speak with a recruiter, whether AI or human. That’s why Alex always starts by asking if it’s a good time to talk. If it’s not, you have the option to reschedule or choose a more convenient time for Alex to call you back.
Q: I was caught off guard with the phone call, so I don’t think I did my best in answering questions, will this impact me?
A: The short answer is no, it shouldn’t. However, if you mention you don’t have experience with a specific skill or requirement that’s critical for the position, you may not be considered a fit for that particular role. That said, Alex is trained to view this screening as an introductory conversation to collect general information for the recruiting team and update the database. So, brief or incomplete answers won’t be penalized during your conversation with Alex.
Q: Why am I getting a call at 9 pm?
A: Did you apply for a job at 9 pm? If so, that’s by design. Our VoiceAI recruiters are available 24/7, allowing us to connect with you when you're actively applying for jobs. We understand that not everyone is available during traditional 8am-5pm hours, so this gives you the flexibility to speak with a recruiter at a time that works best for you, not just when it’s convenient for them. If you’re browsing LinkedIn before bed and weren’t expecting a call, no worries! You can text Alex and reschedule your screening for a time that better suits you.
Q: Why are you using AI for interviews? I just want to talk to a human!
A: At Horizontal, we’re always striving to stay ahead of the curve with technology, embracing new innovations that can make a meaningful impact on both our recruiters and candidates. By implementing Alex, our AI recruiter, to screen candidates during the application process, we’re able to gather essential information that resumes alone can’t provide. While resumes are valuable, they often don’t cover key details like location and worksite preferences, openness to contract versus permanent roles or target salary expectations. This additional information helps our recruiters move quickly and efficiently with candidates after they apply.
As a candidate, you may be applying for one role, or possibly more, but you're only seeing the positions we’ve posted publicly. We have hundreds of roles we're actively working on that aren't posted on job boards. By completing a call with Alex, you’re sharing valuable information that’s added to our internal database alongside your resume. This enables us to match you with all our open roles, helping us find the right fit based on your experience and preferences.
Q: I spoke with Alex, but I am not hearing back from a human recruiter, so what’s the point?
A: We understand the frustration of completing a step in the process that involves AI and not hearing back from a human with next steps for a role. With any application you complete, there are typically hundreds of other candidates applying at the same time. Our team carefully reviews completed interview summaries and resumes of candidates that complete a call with Alex to determine fit. If we believe you’re a good match for a specific role, a recruiter will reach out with next steps.
Unfortunately, not every applicant can be moved forward for every position, so you may not hear from a recruiter right away. However, it’s important to note that because you’ve already spoken with Alex, all of your key information is stored in our database and will be referenced as new opportunities arise.
Q: I’ve experienced technical issues with Alex – I don’t want to continue.
A: We completely understand how frustrating technical issues can be, especially during the job search process, and we apologize for any inconvenience. While we wish technology could work flawlessly all the time, we know that’s not always the case, and we truly appreciate your patience. If you experience a dropped call or connection issues, we recommend calling back, as that often resolves the problem. If you’re facing other issues, please reach out to us directly using the contact form on our website, and we’ll have the right team assist you.