Marketing AI recruitment: The next phase in job application and selection

Abstract

Organizations are beginning to adopt and capitalize on the functionality of AI in their recruitment processes. However, little is known about how potential candidates regard the use of AI as part of the recruitment process and whether or not it influences their likelihood to apply for a job. Our research finds that attitudes towards organizations that use AI in the recruitment process, significantly influences the likelihood that potential candidates will complete the application process. The novelty factor of using AI in the recruitment process, mediates and further positively influences job application likelihood. These positive relationships between attitudes towards the use of AI in the recruitment process and the likelihood of applying for a job have several important practical implications. First, it means that whilst anxiety is naturally present when AI is part of the recruitment process, the anxiety doesn't really affect the completion of job applications and therefore, organizations do not need to spend money on either hiding their use of AI or reducing the anxiety levels of potential candidates. To the contrary, the research suggests that organizations do not need to hide their use of AI in fear of alienating potential candidates, rather organizations may want to promote their use of AI in the recruitment process and focus on potential candidates that already have positive views of both the organization and AI.