From gamification in hiring to video format cover letters, here are 10 recruiting trends that answer the question, “What is one innovation you expect to see in job recruitment for 2023 and beyond?”
- Gamification Will Be Clearing Hiring Levels
- DEI Initiatives Will Continue to Grow
- Tuition Reimbursement Is Gaining Steam in Tech
- More Data-Driven Sourcing and Screening Tools
- Automation Streamlines the Hiring Process (Pitfalls Included)
- Virtual Candidate Onboarding and Breakout Info Sessions
- Augmenting Reality for a Virtual Interview
- Hybrid Flexibility Will Reach All-Time Highs
- You’ve Heard of ‘Quiet Quitting’ but 2023 Is the Year for ‘Quiet Hiring’
- Video Format Cover Letters
Gamification Will Be Clearing Hiring Levels
Gamification—the application of game design principles in non-game contexts—has already made an impact in recruiting to engage candidates and assess their talents. I anticipate that, in order for organizations to stand out in the competitive job market of 2023, gamification is going to become an increasingly popular option.
For example, to gauge a candidate’s proficiency in programming, a software development firm might use a game-like coding challenge. The test might be structured to mimic a game, with progressive challenges and steps, all which provide near-instant feedback and analysis of the candidate’s talents. This could be useful for screening applicants and briefing them on the company’s values and work environment before making a final hiring decision.
Gerrid Smith, Chief Marketing Officer, Joy Organics
DEI Initiatives Will Continue to Grow
Organizations will drive Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives forward, even amid growing pushback. DEI has long been a cornerstone of successful organizations. In 2023, I expect to see recruitment processes that are actively designed to foster DEI. These processes will go beyond traditional interview techniques such as competency-based or behavioral interviews.
Instead, recruitment processes will be tailored for every role and to the company culture in ways that ensure diverse candidates are given an equitable chance to succeed. This could include things like more structured recruitment processes, tailored interview questions, and diversity-focused feedback loops.
Asker Ahmed, Director and Founder, iProcess
Tuition Reimbursement Is Gaining Steam in Tech
While continuous learning programs have long been supported in the tech world, I’m seeing an interesting move towards undergraduate tuition reimbursement that I think will continue into 2023 and beyond. To land top talent in this competitive hiring landscape means going to the source and getting an eye on candidates early. Usually, this involves placing a source within the college environment so that exceptional students can be targeted with roles long before graduation.
But companies are instead driving candidates to them through tuition reimbursement programs. The deal is simple: A future contract in exchange for tuition reimbursement, whether partial or full. These types of programs are gaining popularity with students, who welcome the thought of secure employment and less student debt waiting for them at the end of several tough years.
Rob Reeves, CEO and President, Redfish Technology
More Data-Driven Sourcing and Screening Tools
One of the biggest challenges in recruitment over the past few years has been identifying the right candidates out of a large and growing pool of applicants. It’s just as challenging for job seekers to find the right employers, in many cases, so companies can’t always count on these top-tier applicants to find them. Personal outreach to strong applicants can help, but only if you’re reaching out to the right candidates.
Tools that can interpret job seeker data to deliver usable insights can help companies identify these best-fit job seekers and streamline their recruitment process, and this technology already exists in other areas. I anticipate we’ll see an explosion in the development and adoption of these types of data-driven recruitment tools over the next year as more hiring leaders seek out more efficient ways to identify and recruit top talent.
Matt Erhard, Managing Partner, Summit Search Group
Automation Streamlines the Hiring Process (Pitfalls Included)
Of course, we’re going to see more automation in 2023. Many of the initial steps in the recruitment process can become faster and more efficient with algorithms that browse CVs for specific keywords and phrases and identify the candidates fit for the next steps. It sounds exciting, but automation also has its challenges.
We can expect keyword stuffing from candidates who want to optimize their CVs for AI algorithms. And most importantly, processes may overlook excellent candidates who only check some of the required, automated boxes. As HR leaders, we must find ways to use these tools effectively while minimizing the potential biases and limitations that can arise from relying solely on algorithms. After all, there is still the “human” in “human resources”.
Piotrek Sosnowski, Chief People and Culture Officer, HiJunior
Virtual Candidate Onboarding and Breakout Info Sessions
The human element has been lost in hiring these past few years, evident in how companies are attempting to navigate this recruitment landscape. Nearing the end of 2022, I picked up on one practice where talent acquisition teams would host virtual information sessions with candidates. In these sessions, the team spoke on what it’s like working for the company, what sets them apart from the competition, and highlighted unique job opportunities.
I believe companies can take this practice a step further by having breakout rooms after the information session to quickly meet with candidates via “speed networking”. You can often tell whether a candidate has potential within five minutes of meeting them, and that rule holds true both virtually and in-person. Meeting candidates like this serves as a great way to turn warm leads into hot recruitment leads and allows candidates to share their pitch out loud rather than just in their resumes.
Kelli Anderson, Career Coach, ResumeSeed
Augmenting Reality for a Virtual Interview
Since virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR) technologies have been developing rapidly, I expect they’ll start to play a role in the hiring process. VR/AR may soon be used by recruiters to immerse potential employees into simulated work settings and duties to help them decide if the candidate is a suitable fit for the position. Furthermore, VR/AR might be used by recruiters to conduct interviews and evaluate “soft skills” like communication and teamwork in a more grounding environment, rather than just through a webcam screen like we have now.
This doesn’t just have potential with office jobs. A recruiter for a construction firm, for instance, might utilize VR to recreate a worksite and test a candidate’s proficiency with various tools and teamwork. This method may be more time and cost effective than in-person interviews while giving recruiters access to more applicants.
Timothy Allen, Sr. Corporate Investigator, Corporate Investigation Consulting
Hybrid Flexibility Will Reach All-Time Highs
The flexible hybrid work model is going to reach all-time highs. Companies will look for individuals who can work remotely, but also travel when necessary. Employers will invest in technologies and processes that enable secure, remote working while still maintaining teams in both virtual and physical spaces. This new job recruitment model could lead to greater access to a larger pool of talent all over the world.
I anticipate companies valuing employees who are comfortable and proficient in both digital and physical spaces. These employees could have an edge over those who are only experienced in one or the other. The hybrid work model also enables teams to be more agile, adaptive, and responsive to rapidly changing demands from the market—all qualities any company values. The possibilities for innovation and job growth within this hybrid space are incredibly exciting!
Yaseen Shurbaji, Co-founder and Managing Partner, Prismfly
You’ve Heard of ‘Quiet Quitting’ but 2023 Is the Year for ‘Quiet Hiring’
In the second half of 2022, the theme of “quiet quitting”—the notion that workers do the bare minimum required in their jobs—dominated headlines. Sure, organizations retain people when employees “quiet quit”, but they lose their skills and talents. Smart businesses will adopt “quiet hiring” in 2023 as a method of acquiring new skills and capabilities without adding more full-time staff, turning this approach on its head.
What does quiet hiring look like? Companies will promote internally by placing staff in locations where there’s greater demand; offer staff specialized upskilling opportunities so they’re able to meet changing organizational needs; and, when hiring new staff isn’t an option, using alternative techniques to find talent already onboarded for any high-priority jobs that need doing.
Himanshu Sharma, CEO and Founder, Academy of Digital Marketing
Video Format Cover Letters
With ChatGPT and other AI text-writing programs increasingly becoming mainstream, the traditional cover letter is obsolete. I frequently hear from HR colleagues that cover letters and application form responses have significantly improved in quality in recent months and all due to the use of AI, which defeats the very purpose of requiring a cover letter. However, video content is the only media format still yet to be dominated by AI (at least, deep fakes have yet to make it mainstream like ChatGPT).
Consequently, HR teams are going to rely more and more on video as a screening tool, ensuring that only serious applicants are applying. Naturally, savvy candidates could still use AI to generate a script, but the video requirement prevents them from mindlessly applying to thousands of jobs without serious consideration for suitability. This allows application forms and cover letters to work as intended, ensuring that only serious candidates can apply for the role, which in turn improves the quality of the applicant pool.
Ben Schwencke, Business Psychologist, Test Partnership
