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October 10, 2025
Key Takeaways
The pandemic has accelerated tech adoption in recruitment. Trends like mobile-first design, video interviewing, and AI are shaping how organisations attract, assess, and engage talent.
The pandemic accelerated the speed at which technology was adopted in the workplace. For the recruitment sector, this was out of necessity. This technology paved the way for connections to continue while meeting in person could not.
When restrictions were eased, many of these measures were adopted for the long-term and have since become a standard part of recruitment.
During the pandemic, we asked our Candidate Manager, Sophie Ward, to share her thoughts on how the recruitment sector was adapting to the changing landscape.
We’re now revisiting this piece to expand on the role of technology in the recruitment sector, and how trends like AI and machine learning are changing the face of recruitment. We’ll also examine the limitations of technology, and how some of these changes might not always deliver improvements.
“Technology is everywhere, and having a number of years of experience working as an IT specialist recruiter I have experienced first-hand how technology has developed and evolved over the last few years from the various companies I have recruited for, as well as the way in which the recruitment process is being conducted.
The way in which technology is used has been amplified over these last few months due to the current pandemic and having to adjust to the way in which we communicate and keep in touch with clients, candidates, and colleagues alike.
I have noticed changes in demand in various areas of technology due to the way it is having an effect on recruitment as a whole, such as Mobile and UX/UI developers, Video Calling and Artificial Intelligence.
A couple of key trends that will be important to look out for in the near future will include:
One of the most common ways candidates view an organisation’s website and job portal is through their mobile devices. Mobile devices have developed dramatically over the years allowing us to do more and more on our phones than ever before.
As an example, Mobile Application Developers and User Experience/User Interface (UX/UI) Developers will become more sought after, due to these individuals being responsible for making a website or web application as interactive, engaging and easy to navigate for the user as possible.
Mobile Application usage can also go hand in hand with Social Media, as there are currently 3.8 billion active social media users in the world as of 2020, with this number having increased by 321 million from this time last year. Ensuring Social Media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, to name a few, are utilised effectively has never been more important.
The second trend to be considered and that will be more heavily utilised throughout the recruitment process will be the use of Video Calls, from both the clients’ point of view as well as for the candidates.
Due to the recent pandemic video conferencing/interviewing has come a long way in a short space of time due to the fact that this has been one of the very few ways to continue that communication link with all parties.
Videoing can be useful for recruitment agencies looking to build a rapport and be more interactive with their candidates to gain a greater understanding of their needs and wants in their future career search. It also allows organisations to conduct interview stages/interactive tests or even group discussions all at the touch of a button.
Technology as we know will continue to evolve and become more ingrained in our day to day working life. Therefore the challenge will be working on utilising and reaping the rewards from using technology effectively to make the most of what is on offer to us.”
Five years on, video calling has become a firm part of the recruitment process, helping to speed up the interview process and cut costs. However, candidates are now just as likely to be joining a call with a HR manager and their trusty AI companion.
AI agents will commonly join in on video calls to help with everything from simply taking minutes and providing a summary of the call, to assessing things like emotional intelligence.
Mobile-First Expectation
As applications shift to mobile, the candidate experience must perform well on phones—making mobile UX & UI vital.
Tech with Judgement
Tools like AI and automation will enhance recruitment, but smart implementation and human checks are critical to maintain fairness and quality.
Building on this growth, we’ve seen an explosion of AI use in the recruitment space. This is both at an organisational level, and on an individual level, for both recruiters and candidates. It presents a unique challenge for recruitment teams, as a growing number of candidates are using AI to hone their applications, while recruiters are using AI for candidate screening.
The use of AI in recruitment raises important questions about where the ‘human’ in human resources fits into everything. The very same tools that are helping to streamline the process of applying for and hiring for roles could also soon become a threat to those very roles.
Job descriptions are changing, often now including an element of AI expertise required for the role. While AI might be charging forward at a staggering rate, we still need the human wranglers to manage the input and monitor the output. We still want and need human oversight.
One of the reasons we need human oversight when putting AI and LLM to work in business operations is simply down to the fact that AI is commonly trained on biased source material. This leaves organisations open to risk of lawsuits if they leave AI in charge of their initial screening and hiring processes. We know that humans need to be conscious of their biases to not allow them to creep into the recruitment process, but research has found that AI will pick up on these biases and then amplify them.
Before marching forward with an AI strategy, it’s vital to consider the potential implications, and how human oversight will always prevail to prevent poor decision making.
The University of Bristol was recently crowned AI University of the Year at the National AI Awards, and this was followed up with the announcement of an incredible £225 million of government investment to create Isambard-AI.
This is the UK’s first sustainable data centre that allows for the deployment of AI technology without the associated environmental risks. The data centre is a low carbon project that also has the capacity to recycle the heat generated for local infrastructure.
The South West is fast becoming a hub for AI development, so it makes sense for organisations to take advantage of the cost-saving benefits. Companies are using AI to accelerate growth, identify opportunities and achieve more with less. Working with small scale teams means that finding the right workers is more important than ever before.
If you’re thinking about employing AI within the recruitment sector, it’s worth looking at how some of the larger organisations are making this work. Large organisations often have the budget and scale to push forward with innovative approaches.
In short, we can see how these practices work on a large scale, and then extract key learnings from their insight – including mistakes that other companies might want to avoid.
Companies like Amazon are using AI in their candidate search process, as it allows them to quickly filter through applications and find candidates with the right skills and experience. Unilever is using AI assessments and video analysis in a unique way by allowing candidates to interact with games and video interviews to assess traits like risk taking and emotional intelligence.
American fast food brand Chipotle streamlined the process of seasonal recruitment with the help of an AI assistant aptly named Ava Cado. Application completion rates surged from 50% to 85% and hiring time was reduced from 12 days to just 4 days.
It’s clear that technology is moving quickly, and failure to adapt could quickly become an existential threat to organisations. As much as we might like to hold on to legacy and traditional values, there’s no denying that AI is going to transform the way we do things.
This doesn’t mean that organisations have to blindly adopt new technology and then move forward at speed. There is a case to be made for slow and intentional adoption of new technology at a pace that makes sense to the people at the helm.
Ultimately, we need to retain a sense of human control, otherwise there is a risk of mistakes being made and then multiplied. And while AI might feel intelligent and sentient, it’s important to remember that it is only as good as the data on which it is trained. Human oversight will help to prevent threats like AI bias from derailing your recruitment plans.
Looking to embrace the future in recruitment? Browse CMD Recruitment’s live roles or talk to us about integrating technology into your hiring process.
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