As
robots tread their way into every industry from hotels to healthcare, how could
human resources (HR) and recruitment remain far behind?
With automation gradually
seeping into various levels within organisations, resumes are getting
increasingly scanned by robots, or rather specialised applicant tracking
systems (ATS).
According to
TopResume.com, a leading global resume service provider, about 95% of Fortune
500 companies today use ATS software in their recruitment process, with
Greenhouse and Bullhorn being some of the most popular ATS that are used. The
global industrial robotics market is predicted to reach $41.23 billion by 2020,
as per a report by Grand View Research, and robotics in resume scanning is
expected to gain greater credence.
In India, however, the
usage of ATS by HR departments is rising at a gradual pace. “ATS is not used
thoroughly in India as yet. We observe large organisations who undergo
recruitment volumes of over 300-500 candidates in a year for junior level
positions utilising ATS. Advanced recruitment companies who use technology as a
differentiation factor have adopted these platforms too,’’ says Nicolas
Dumoulin, managing director, Michael Page India.
“Resumes are being read
by tools using natural language processing techniques and software tools,’’
says Aditya Narayan Mishra, CEO, CIEL HR Services.
Experts believe as ATS
seeps into the recruitment process, it is becoming vital for job seekers to
make their resumes ATS=complaint. According to Nida Shahid, associate director
– advisory, SHRM India, resumes in India are often not well optimised for ATS
as they weigh low in grammar and formatting.
“Even a LinkedIn profile
that is not recently updated may not support an ATS to make the correct
decisions. The algorithm works basis the data it is fed and analysed in a
format that is readable by the software,” adds Shahid. Experts say ATS is
designed to pick out keywords in the resume and analyse if the keywords match
with the job description. “Earlier, we would advise candidates to highlight
important points, niche skills, experience and education. Now, as a machine
will scan through the data, candidates should use keywords that match with the
job description,” explains Shahid.
For example, if the job
description says “time management’’, the same keyword should reflect in the
resume, instead of something like “managing time’’.
Moreover, job titles
should match those in the job description. If the job requirement reads as
“Brand Manager’’, then a resume using the fancier “Brand Evangelist’’ might
find no favour with the ATS.
Secondly, the resume
should be clear and simple while quantifying the work, as the algorithm gets
confused by the use of jargon, says Shahid.
Moreover, candidates
should include key information in a concise manner and avoid long narratives,
adds Dumoulin. Experts add that neither do the tools undervalue a concise
resume that uses keywords sparingly but intelligently, nor do they give more
importance to resumes that overuse keywords.
ATS carries a host of
benefits for HR teams and organisations. “On an average, one job posting
receives about 250 resumes. It’s impossible for an HR person to go through and
vet each resume minutely.
In fact, almost 75-88% of
resumes that are received do not qualify for the job that is available. ATS
reduces human intervention and thus cuts down the cost to the company. We weave
in AI and human insights to predict absolute quality in recruits,” says
Umasanker Kandaswamy, joint director and chief operating officer, Bruhat
Insights Global.
Kandaswamy explains that
ATS optimises the turnaround time for recruiters. He says that companies invest
up to Rs 50,000 per hire, which also includes 23 working hours taken to
thoroughly screen each resume.
“The biggest shocker is
that a candidate stays up in the market for only 10 days, as they are gulped
down by other hungry recruiters.”
Besides optimising the
cost of hiring and the time taken, ATS enhances recruiter efficiency by as much
as 20%, says Mishra.
FINDING A MATCH
·
Large
organisations who recruit over 300-500 candidates in a year for junior level
positions utilising ATS
·
Resumes
in India not well optimised for ATS as they weigh low in grammar and formatting
Source: Daily News and Analysis dated 28 February 2019URL: https://www.dnaindia.com/business/report-now-companies-are-deploying-robots-to-decode-cvs-2724840 (Accessed on March 4, 2019)
