A practical guide / Recruitment
AI in recruitment: how agencies can use it
Recruitment agencies can use AI to draft role briefs from client calls. It can also summarise CVs shared with consent and help book interviews. Keep the role needs and the candidate’s logged work history visible in the working draft.
Start with a candidate profile for one agreed vacancy. Use headings tied to the role. Give the consultant the source details and points to discuss with the candidate.
Prepare a candidate presentationConnect candidate experience to the agreed role requirements.
Check the vacancy before describing candidates
Gather the client’s notes. Check the role purpose, duties and key skills. Add the location, working pattern, pay range and hiring stages. Ask AI to draft a role brief using these headings. Put unanswered questions in a client call agenda.
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Distinguish key needs from preferences using the client’s agreed wording. Resolve vague phrases such as “good fit”. Ask the client which tasks and skills they mean. This gives candidates a clearer picture and gives the consultant a useful basis for the profile.
Keep the latest role brief with the vacancy ID and approval date. If the client changes a need, record the change before preparing further summaries. Send revised points to the consultants handling the role. Use them in the next candidate calls.
Present work history against the agreed role
Use the CV and checked call notes, with the candidate’s consent for the intended sharing. Ask AI to draft a profile with four headings. Cover role-related skills, evidence, start date and questions to check. Link each claim to the source section or call date.
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Keep the difference between work set out in the CV and a qualification your agency has checked. Keep check status in its own field. A clear profile lets the client understand what has been supplied and what the consultant will check next.
Give the candidate the relevant summary to review through your normal process. Add their corrections to the source record and update the profile. Use the same role headings for each candidate. Describe their own work history in those fields.
A concise candidate profile
Example with made-up details: a logistics coordinator vacancy asks for depot scheduling and customer contact. The CV lists two years planning depot collections. Their call notes describe handling delivery queries. The notice period is awaiting reply.
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The profile reads: “Relevant work history: two years coordinating depot collections. Customer contact: handling delivery queries, discussed in the candidate call. Start date: awaiting reply on notice period.” Each line has a source ID in the working copy.
The consultant’s call agenda asks about the size of the scheduling workload and the notice period. The client gets a brief account of skills for the role. The consultant has questions ready for the next call.
Keep interview bookings in one record
Gather the person’s free slots, the panel’s free slots, meeting format, length and time zone. Use AI to draft slot options and booking messages. Use the calendar to establish which slots are actually free and record the agreed booking.
Give each booking the vacancy ID, date, time and time zone. Add the place or link and a contact for changes. Add the agreed briefing notes and stages. Keep agreed interview adjustments in the approved private messages.
When someone changes the time, update one booking record and prepare revised messages for everyone affected. Ask for a daily summary of confirmed interviews, replies outstanding and changes awaiting agreement. This gives the consultant a clear list of the scheduling calls that still need attention.
Apply equality and candidate data rules
GOV.UK explains that discrimination rules apply during hiring. Its responsible AI guide covers risks such as bias and errors. Keep selection decisions with trained consultants using agreed, role-related criteria. Review summaries for unsupported assumptions about a candidate’s background or personal characteristics.
The ICO’s draft guidance covers CVs, candidate checks and retention. The draft is under review. Establish the lawful basis, privacy information, access and retention rules for your process. Obtain permission for the intended CV sharing and use an approved tool. Assess planned automated hiring as a separate project. Apply current law and guidance.
Read the source: GOV.UK: discrimination in recruitment; GOV.UK: responsible AI in recruitment; ICO: draft recruitment and selection guidance
Try a practical task
Write a source-linked candidate summary
Prepare a profile for vacancy [ID] using this approved role brief, fictional CV and candidate call notes. Use the headings skills for the role, role needs, start date and points to check.
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Gemini
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For each role need, describe the evidence supplied. Cite its source. Keep qualifications and employment dates as written. Keep candidate statements and finished agency checks in separate fields.
Write a 100-word client overview using the supported work history. Then draft a consultant call agenda for missing details and a copy for the candidate. Focus the profile on the agreed work needs. The consultant reviews suitability.
Questions about this task
Can AI help write a better role brief?
Yes. Use the client’s agreed notes to describe the work, key work history, pay, location and process. Ask it to find vague needs and prepare questions the consultant can resolve with the hiring manager.
How should we compare candidate profiles?
Use the same agreed role headings and source IDs for each person. Describe the evidence supplied and questions still open. The consultant can then apply the agency’s selection process fairly.