Recruitment trends 2020

Digging through each resume manually is gradually becoming a thing of the past for large companies. Today, recruiters and other human resources professionals are more skilled than ever in the field of technology, and the workforce is becoming younger and more global.

Recruitment methods are continually developing; the methods used today are not the same as those of ten, or even five, years ago. This change is undoubtedly inevitable, and that’s why it’s important to keep an eye on the latest trends that will affect the hiring industry in 2020. Below, we explain four trends that will take center stage this year:

The use of AI

One of the main trends, and paradoxes, in human resources these days is the use of artificial intelligence in recruitment processes. AI has penetrated HR and the initial results have been promising. But there’s no need to worry: many recruiters and HR managers agree that AI technology isn't intended to replace human recruitment but to help improve its functions.

Among the various promising results is an increase in transparency and efficiency in HR teams when implementing AI technology; unlike people, AI has no bias in the selection of new employees, which makes the application process more transparent; but not only that, it has also been observed that automating processes with AI increases the productivity of the HR team and makes the work easier, faster and more efficient.

One of the main factors responsible for the success of AI in HR has been the use of chatbots in recruitment processes. These bots can easily pre-select candidates and resolve many of the doubts that applicants often have. If an applicant has any questions about a job description, company details or possible responsibilities, they can simply ask the bot and it will respond within seconds. Fascinating, isn't it?

Candidate experience

Another of the most important trends this year is the prominence that candidate experience has gained during the recruitment process. And by this we don’t mean the candidate's work experience, but the perception that the candidate has during the process.

The "candidate experience" is the general perception that current, past and potential candidates have of your company's recruitment process. It’s based on the feelings, behaviors, and attitudes that candidates experience during the recruitment process, starting from the search, through the selection assessments and interviews, to hiring and finally onboarding.

But why is paying attention to candidate experience one of the most important recruitment trends of the year?

The answer is simple: if candidates have a positive experience in their recruitment process, they’re more likely to accept your job offer, reapply in the future and/or refer others to your company. On the other hand, if candidates have a negative experience, it could cost the company more than a few candidates, and it may even lose a lot of money!

Candidates, as well as everyone involved in the recruitment process, expect a consumer-level technology experience. Companies that offer good experiences to their applicants are the ones that attract the best talent and turn more candidates into employees.

Remote work

Flexible working hours, work-from-home policies, and the ease of working from anywhere in the world are some of the characteristics most sought after by employees in today's jobs, and companies must adapt to the work aspirations of their employees. Remote work has been very popular these days, even before the unfortunate situation being experienced worldwide.

One of the main reasons why more and more companies are allowing their employees to work remotely is that, in this way, they increase their talent pool; since, by hiring remotely, the company opens up a gigantic talent pool that isn't affected by geographical limitations.

Throughout this year we will see an increase in the use of tools and technologies that help recruit, select and manage remote teams, including online assessment platforms such as Evalart, and communication and collaboration tools.

More flexibility

Finally, we have the increased flexibility that current selection processes have experienced. Offering flexibility as one of the advantages of working at your company can help you gain an edge over companies that do not offer it.

A competitive hiring market means offering greater benefits to workers, including a feature that is increasingly a priority for job seekers: flexibility.

According to a survey conducted in 2019 by International Workplace Group, 80% of respondents said they would choose the job offer that had flexibility over the one that did not. Also, 85% of companies responded that workplace productivity increased due to flexibility.

Many companies have already begun to allow their employees to work in a “hybrid” way, that is, some time from home and some in the office; allowing them to have a better work-life balance and, as a result, getting better performance from them.

Of course, this flexibility will depend on the type of work and the technology involved. That’s why arrangements such as hybrid work are usually more suitable for employees who can work remotely on their laptops.

However, over the last few months there has been a significant increase in the number of companies offering hybrid and even fully remote arrangements to their employees because of the need to implement preventive social isolation due to the rapid spread of the COVID-19 virus.

Conclusion

With the emergence of numerous tools, recruitment methods, and technologies, 2020 will be the year when the traditional hiring process as we know it will be automated. There's no doubt that the workplace of the future will be digital, dynamic, fast, and able to meet multiple requirements efficiently and transparently.

Whatever recruitment method your company chooses to adopt in 2020 will ultimately be at the mercy of the labor market and the global economy. While we cannot predict the future of the economy, we can guarantee that this year recruitment will be defined by flexibility, innovation, and technology; and companies that adopt all three will be more successful in recruiting the right employees in the long run.