The key path
- Calkins warns that the use of AI risks reducing the hiring process to simply checking boxes.
- Companies like Google and Salesforce use AI at various points in the hiring process.
An estimated 99% of Fortune 500 companies use automation in some part of their hiring process. Now, one CEO is challenging the use of AI to review resumes, arguing that the practice could cause companies to miss out on exceptional candidates.
According to a Tuesday report from Business Insider, Matt Calkins, CEO of enterprise software company Appen, ruled out using AI to screen again. He said that AI cannot judge the applicants fairly.
“We should have been better than that,” Calkins told BI during a recent press dinner. “We had to see the magic in people when we read their resumes, and I don’t know, did you do well in school or something?”
Related: According to a new Stanford study, these fields are losing the most entry-level jobs to AI.
Calkins cautioned that relying on AI for resume reviews, while “sophisticated,” could result in unique individuals being overlooked.
“We’re trying to hire at a very elite level, and I think we’re going to start checkboxing if we use AI,” Culkins said at the dinner.
Companies like Google and Salesforce use AI at various points in the hiring process. Google told BI earlier this year that while humans still review each of its applications, the company uses AI to recommend the right open roles for candidates based on their skills and experience. Meanwhile, Salesforce told BI that it uses AI-powered tools to scan candidate resumes for valuable skills like AI literacy.
Calkins says most companies aren’t using AI properly, citing an MIT study released in July that found 95% of companies have yet to see a return on generative AI investments. The study, which included interviews with 150 executives and surveys of 350 employees, found that the overwhelming majority of AI pilots do not result in financial savings or increased profits.
Related: 37% of employers would hire a robot or AI instead of a recent grad: ‘ideology alone isn’t enough’
Calkins says the lack of AI measurement results is due to “ignorance” about how to put the technology to work. He favors connecting AI to real, high-impact business challenges rather than applications like resume screening.
Calkins mentioned one potential use case – corporate communications – noting that most companies receive millions of pieces of information coming in every day. They can use AI to manage it more efficiently.
Appen’s own internal AI system can understand a variety of inputs, including emails, handwritten notes, faxes and calls, and upload documents to the correct database with 99% accuracy. Calkins calls this an “amazing” but also “boring” use case of technology.
“It’s the back office,” he said at the press dinner. If you do a Super Bowl ad about it, no one will understand it. “
Related: An AI company with a popular writing tool tells candidates they can’t use it on a job application
The key path
- Calkins warns that the use of AI risks reducing the hiring process to simply checking boxes.
- Companies like Google and Salesforce use AI at various points in the hiring process.
An estimated 99% of Fortune 500 companies use automation in some part of their hiring process. Now, one CEO is challenging the use of AI to review resumes, arguing that the practice could cause companies to miss out on exceptional candidates.
According to a Tuesday report from Business Insider, Matt Calkins, CEO of enterprise software company Appen, ruled out using AI to screen again. He said that AI cannot judge the applicants fairly.
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