I was talking with a tech recruiter friend last week who told me something that stuck with me. “You know what’s funny?” she said, “The more advanced our AI tools get, the more candidates seem to crave actual human conversation.”
She’s onto something important. While we’ve all watched recruitment become increasingly automated over the past few years, there’s been a quiet pushback happening. People want to talk to people, not algorithms.
What Candidates Are Actually Saying
Last month, I spoke with Jamie, a senior developer who’d just finished a job search. He described going through five different interview processes simultaneously. “Four of them were practically identical,” he told me. “I recorded video answers to pre-set questions, did coding challenges that were automatically scored, and didn’t speak to an actual human until the third round.”
But the fifth company? “They had a real engineer call me for the first conversation. We talked about my projects, he shared what they were working on, and I could ask questions that got answered. I took their offer even though it wasn’t the highest.”
Jamie’s experience isn’t unusual. A recent survey found that about three-quarters of job seekers prefer processes with meaningful human touchpoints. Even more telling, many said they’d accept slightly lower compensation from companies that showed genuine interest through personalized recruitment.
The Blind Spots in Our AI Tools (Human-Centric Recruitment)
Don’t get me wrong – I’m not anti-technology. The AI tools we have today are impressive. They can scan thousands of resumes in seconds and identify candidates with matching keywords faster than any human could.
But they miss things. Important things.
I remember reviewing applications with an AI tool. It ranked a candidate with “5 years Python experience” higher than someone with “led development of a machine learning platform that processed millions of transactions daily.” The second candidate had the more impressive experience, but the AI couldn’t see beyond the keywords it was trained to prioritize.
AI also struggles with career changers. A former teacher who taught themselves coding and built impressive side projects might get filtered out because they lack formal tech experience. But these career-changers often bring valuable perspectives and soft skills that technical-only candidates might lack.
The Human Elements That Matter
When I ask hiring managers what makes someone successful on their team, they rarely mention technical skills alone. They talk about:
- How someone handles unexpected problems
- Whether they can explain complex ideas simply
- If they’re curious and eager to learn
- How well they collaborate with different personalities
These qualities show up in human conversations. They emerge in the follow-up questions, the casual chat before the formal interview starts, and the way someone’s face lights up when discussing a project they loved.
Helene, a CTO at a midsize fintech, told me she scrapped her company’s automated initial screening after realizing they were missing great people. “We went back to having 15-minute human conversations for first-round screening,” she said. “Yes, it takes more time, but our quality of hires improved dramatically.”
What This Means for Your Company
If you’re hiring, this matters for two big reasons.
First, your recruitment process is a preview of your company culture. When candidates interact only with automated systems until late in the process, it signals that efficiency matters more than people. Is that the message you want to send?
Second, there’s a competitive advantage here. While everyone else automates everything, companies that maintain thoughtful human interaction stand out. I’ve seen smaller companies win talent away from tech giants simply by creating a more personal, engaging interview experience.
Finding a Better Balance
I’m not suggesting we throw away our AI tools. They’re valuable for handling administrative tasks, initial resume filtering (with human oversight), and scheduling. But we need to be intentional about where we keep the human element:
- Initial outreach that feels personal and researched
- Screening conversations that allow for two-way dialogue
- Interviews that adapt based on a candidate’s unique background
- Feedback that acknowledges the person, not just their skills
A friend who leads talent acquisition at a growing startup put it well: “We use AI to help our recruiters be more human, not less. The tech handles the repetitive stuff so our team can focus on the conversations and connections that actually matter.”
The Way Forward with Human-Centric Recruitment
As we navigate this AI-enhanced future, the most successful companies won’t be those with the most advanced automation. They’ll be the ones that thoughtfully preserve human connection where it matters most.
In my conversations with hundreds of candidates over the years, I’ve never heard someone say, “I wish the process had been more automated.” But I’ve heard countless people say they chose a company because someone took the time to see them, understand their goals, and make them feel valued.
In recruitment, as in most human endeavors, technology works best when it enhances our humanity rather than replaces it. Contact us today for help!
