With millennials making up more than half of the current workforce and predicted to surge past 75% by 2020, the past decade for the human resource world has been a period of constant change. HR departments no longer rest on traditional strategies and have been thrown into a whirlwind of technology solutions and social media tactics.
If this hits home for you, then you, like many others, have been brainwashed into an HR Tech zombie. Here’s how you know you might be in HR Tech Zombie territory:
Do you find yourself frustrated by new technology created every two years to solve the same issues?
Are you trying (and failing) to tie together all the latest and greatest automated solutions to build a better candidate experience?
Do you find yourself avoiding new demos or pursuing new technology because you just can’t deal with change management?
Don’t get me wrong, technology has helped revolutionize a once stagnant field in many positive ways. However, it is important to not eliminate the human out of human resources.
The solution? Find a way to humanize technology
Talent acquisition has led the way when it comes to innovation in technology. And while this has been a boon to recruiters and HR professionals alike, it can also make the recruiting process robotic and zombie-like. One way that talent acquisition has implemented technology is through the utilization of digital platforms. A recruiter no longer has to solely rely on phone calls and overpopulated job sites.
How to humanize this: Let’s say you use digital platforms to reach out to candidates who’ve already applied, through your ATS or CRM. Instead of going with the automated templates with a few token personalizations plugged in, take a minute to read what’s going out. Update your templates with language that reflects your values, gives directions to jobseekers (perhaps a career site FAQ page) and provides candidates contact information if they’re at a loss for how to proceed. Consider inserting a timeline for when they can expect to be contacted.
The technology wave has allowed HR staff to market to talented job seekers through social platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and blogs. Never before have HR employees been able to tap into so many employee pools.
How to humanize this: InMail, Twitter and Facebook are great but can sound robotic when you never do anything but post random job updates or use automated messages. Use these tools for the very thing for which they were invented, being social! No, you may not be able to blast 100 great candidates with the same job description, but if you find the five who matter and do some great research you have a much higher chance of getting a great placement, or at least starting a relationship with a passive job seeker.
The second way technology and HR have balanced out in talent acquisition is through Auto-communication. The Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) have been the biggest gift technology has given the HR industry. Gone are the days of scanning resumes and manually entering candidate information. HOORAY! It only takes one keystroke for an ATS to accomplice the process of candidate data entry. Unfortunately, sometimes the machines aren’t capable of seeing who is the best person for the job and stats show applicant tracking systems reject 75% of candidates.
Many qualified candidates are rejected by an ATS (which over 90% of large companies use) because they fail to write their resume for the resume screening software. If you’re a recruiter, this ought to scare you.
How to humanize this: Put great directions in your job advertisement. Invite prospective applicants to connect with you on LinkedIn, put an interesting subject line in an email or even request a text including their resume. You’ll be able to see right away who read the job description, followed directions and who is really interested. Once you have their name, email or number, search the ATS yourself to make sure they don’t fall through the cracks.
By recognizing the signs of HR Tech Zombie Fatigue you’ll be able to push past them, humanize your approach to candidates, and build relationships based on people, not robots. Don’t let the whirlwind of new tech dampen your enthusiasm for recruitment!
