How Employers Are Using AI to Stop Bias in Hiring
Today, employers across the globe are already using AI to monitor and control their employees. According to a study done by undercover recruiter, this technology might replace about 16% of HR jobs in the next decade. This doesn’t mean you will remain jobless. On the contrary, it simply means that the recruitment process will be made quicker and easier. That said, the overarching question remains; how are employers using AI to stop bias in the recruitment process?
Artificial Intelligence, which most people love to call in its abbreviation AI, has had a significant contribution to economic growth. The role of AI in HR practices, more so in hiring, cannot be undermined. HR managers will be more than glad to testify how much tools like the Wonderlic test have come to make the recruitment process efficient and effective in every possible way.
Well, the hiring process had for a long time been exhausting and slow, even for the candidates. It took so long for one to get his/her turn with the panel and feedback too: it must have been worse for HR. Apart from automating the recruitment process and making it faster, there is one more thing that AI has done: eliminating bias. Bias in the recruitment processes interferes with the performance of an organization at the end of the day. It is something that the responsible parties may fail to notice. Bias only leads to having the wrong people allocated particular tasks. Being able to identify and solve the problem will go a long way in ensuring a smooth flow in the operations of a company. How has AI tackled the issue of bias in HR recruitment processes?
1. Identifying the nature of bias
Bias can be of different kinds. One type of bias is the unconscious one. This one mainly can be problematic since it may take a substantial amount of time to realize that it is there. Unfortunately, this can happen a little too late. It is where AI comes in handy.
How does it work? Well AI is very functional in pointing out any patterns of bias that may be there. Analysis tools can be used to assess any existing patterns, for instance of application senders or persons receiving feedback. That can be in light of age, gender or even location. The information is then sent back to the responsible parties who will then use it to put necessary amends in place.
2. Setting and monitoring strategy
Once the problematic areas have been identified, plans are put in place to address the issue of bias. Efforts are then geared towards accomplishing the set goals in regards to warding off bias. At this point, AI is deployed to monitor changes.
Have the strategies in place been able to address the negative patterns? Are there any improvements? At this point, an AI interface should be able to provide the needed answers. It is, however, important to note that all the work cannot be left to technology. A human hand is required. AI is there to point out areas that need to be addressed and give information regarding the patterns of interest.
It is the responsibility of the managers to act upon it.
Also Read: Can Artificial Intelligence Eliminate Bias in Hiring?
3. Bias-free assessment
AI products such as the Wonderlic test provide a skill assessment platform that is free of bias during recruitment. AI solutions are also able to address the diversity gap that exists in organizations. As you may well know, many benefits come with having diversity in the workplace. Bridging the diversity gap improves product and process innovation, which eventually results in the company outperforming those that lack variety.
AI has become a useful tool in assessing the skills and the contribution each employee make consequently leading to deserving merit of the employees. More so, AI has also empowered the decision-making abilities of employees at the junior level and therefore leveling out orthodox stratum. AI machines are being trained to be inclusive when it comes to diversity.
4. Preventing unintentional bias
AI machines do a great job at stopping unintentional bias. Such may include gender-biased language in job descriptions, getting candidates that have already found their way to the organization’s system and pinpointing candidates that are diverse already at the top of the funnel.
AI can be able to spot algorithms that facilitate bias and correct them.
5. Gender-biased language
The management may notice that there is a lack of diversity in the candidates during the recruiting process. It may come as a surprise, but this can be blamed on the language used. Use of AI and machine learning will go a long way in removing any gender biased language present in job descriptions.
As such, you will notice a significant improvement when it comes to the diversity of the candidates.
6. Removal of bias through an applicant tracking system
AI machine learning has enabled recruiters to point out the possibility of bias from within. There may be cases of unconscious bias when it comes to the candidates that a company already has in their applicant tracking system. It is the job of AI to identify and remove some of the elements that may lead to bias. It may include geographical information of a candidate and names that may catalyze bias.
7. Human bias
AI is doing a great job at removing human bias. The idea of HR recruiting candidates that they have a pre-existing relationship with beforehand has become problematic and has compromised the fairness in a recruiting process.
Thanks to AI, hiring based on favoritism has been eliminated and been based more on merit.
AI has undoubtedly and seamlessly done an exemplary job at eliminating bias when it comes to recruitment processes. The results of bias in recruitment could cost the organization a lot. AI is a foolproof system that could be used to ensure fairness in the processes.
