Job seekers and hiring managers depend on AI — at what cost to truth and fairness?

Job seekers, use genAI judiciously

What may be an issue is when chatbots craft resumes that aren’t particularly honest about the job seeker’s actual skills, embellishing on their talents because that’s what the AI was trained to do.

“Job seekers should definitely use AI to help them with the job search process, but it needs to be utilized with caution,” said Resume Builder’s Toothacre. The problem, she explained, is that AI is pulling its information from what is online, and not all advice and information is accurate.

Not all hiring managers and executives are enamored with the idea that AI is crafting a job applicant’s online persona and skill set.

“Any applicant using ChatGPT or other generative AI to pass assessments or write a cover letter would be a hard pass for me. I think it’s totally fine to use for interview practice or to generate ideas. But any time you are substituting the work of an AI for your own organic work, that’s where it crosses a line for me,” Andre Kazimierski, CEO of house painting business Improovy, told Resume Builder.

Job seekers need to make sure that whatever AI drafts for them, it makes sense for their experience and job function. “AI can sound too generic at times, so this is where putting your eyes on it is helpful,” Toothacre said.

She is also concerned about the use of AI to complete assessments. “Skills-based assessments are in place to ensure you are qualified and check your knowledge. Using AI to help you pass those assessments is lying about your experience and highly unethical.”

There’s plenty of evidence that genAI can improve resume quality, increase visibility in online job searches, and provide personalized feedback on cover letters and resumes. However, concerns about overreliance on AI tools, lack of human touch in resumes, and the risk of losing individuality and authenticity in applications are universal issues that candidates need to be mindful of regardless of their geographical location, according to Helios’ Hammell.

“Encouraging a balanced approach that combines AI assistance with personalization and creativity is essential for job seekers navigating the global job market,” Hammell said.

Forrester Research’s Summers said many recruiters and HR functions have been leveraging AI for at least a decade, automating processes, personalizing action recommendations based on machine learning, and analyzing language for sentiment. But genAI represents a “huge change,” she said.

“And based on our data, the broader HR function didn’t prioritize AI in the past, which sets them up for a steep learning curve,” Summers said.

According to a Forrester survey in 2021, only 28% of HR professionals reported that AI was in their list of priorities. Only 19% of HR leaders were confident in their function’s AI capabilities, and only 32% of them said they were investing in skill development for their teams on AI and automation.

“Building AI confidence and capability doesn’t happen overnight, so HR has to make up for the lack of prioritization,” Summers said. “The biggest impediment to incorporating AI into recruiting use cases is the mismatch between how AI works and what recruiters expect from their technology. AI learns and improves over time, with adoption and use. But expecting recruiters to enroll in that new way of interacting with technology is a tall order.”