It’s no secret that technology is progressing faster than we have ever seen. Todays world of AI, automation, working from home and video calls is fast becoming the norm for most companies. As technology continues to advance at such a pace, it is important for procurement recruitment companies such as Talent Drive, to stay ahead of the curve and embrace new technology.
Technology is allowing recruitment companies to assess, onboard and recruit talent faster, smoother and with less cost involved in the overall hiring process. This blog post will examine how technology is shaping the procurement recruitment industry, with a focus on key trends that you should be aware of and how recruitment experts are leveraging technology to automate, improve candidate selection, and deliver better outcomes for organisations.
How AI and Automation are changing recruitment
Unquestionably, one of the most powerful advancements in technology in the last decade, artificial intelligence (AI) and automation is fast changing the way recruitment companies approach the search, profile scraping, interview and candidate placement process. Companies in the recruitment industry are looking to embrace and leverage new AI technology to stay ahead of the competition. Software driven by AI is automating tasks previously human driven, providing recruitment teams with more time to focus on the strategical and human side of the candidate hiring process. AI has the potential to quickly and thoroughly sift through large amounts of resumes and application forms to generate shortlists, subject to some conditions, which reduces administrative effort and time.
The alignment between candidates and job requirements can be automated using matching tools, which utilise algorithms for matching candidates to specific job search requirements. This provides a higher degree of alignment between the skillset required and the specific background of the candidate. It also provides a much swifter selection process with matching tools sifting through candidates in a matter of seconds. At Talent Drive, we don’t currently use AI tools to review large numbers of resumes or matching tools as we offer a bespoke recruitment service, however, we know this can be extremely beneficial for some recruitment companies, depending on their business set up.
AI chatbots are also being leveraged to engage with candidates at an initial step of the recruitment process, offering immediate feedback to queries and guiding them through the application process. This enhances the candidate experience and optimises processes for recruiters and companies.
Overall, AI and automation brings a level of speed and data driven decisions to the recruitment industry previously only accessible through hours upon hours of human input. Utilising AI and automation allows recruiters to focus on their key areas such as interviewing and placing candidates, thus shortening and streamlining the overall recruitment process.
The Role of Data Analytics in Finding the Right Talent
Data driven decisions are fundamental in the modern day hiring world, allowing organisations to make fact based decisions to improve their recruitment process. Having a factual, data based understanding of trends, patterns and levels of performance, allows recruiters to spot the best talent available.
Tracking data sets such as; the success of sourcing initiatives, provides procurement recruitment companies with a key advantage in analysing future spend and marketing budgets. By analysing past hiring records, recruitment teams can determine which sources (e.g., job boards, social media or professional networking events) provide the best quality candidates for procurement roles. Recording and analysing this information assists recruitment agencies in maximising their sourcing methods to attract better quality talent, providing a better overall experience for both the candidate and the company.
Furthermore, it is also possible to track the success of candidates after being hired, through KPI indicators such as job performance, achievements, and employee retention. Utilising this data, recruiters can ensure they are hiring candidates that will be successful in the future based on their past performance.
At Talent Drive our data metrics revolve strongly around how to attract the best talent in the industry, we do this by analysing trends in our placed candidates, as well as recording data through our interactions on LinkedIn. We find LinkedIn the best place to locate world class talent. The data we like to analyse is understanding our ideal candidates needs and wants to get them to engage with our brand and content.
Using Digital Tools in Screening Candidates
Recruiters and companies can utilise digital tools to screen candidates prior to manually evaluating them. This provide a faster, more accurate and cheaper way to screen large amounts of candidates. In procurement recruitment, screening is used to examine candidates on the basis of many different criteria, including their experience, abilities, qualifications, and fit into the culture of the organisation. Screening technology provides an easier platform for recruiters to assist them in evaluating candidates in an objective and consistent manner.
One of the most common examples of digital screening is video interview software such as Zoom or Microsoft Teams. Video interviewing has, over the past couple of years, become the norm for most companies, at least at the first interview stage. This has been useful in remote and virtual recruitment situations, where recruiters can screen candidates from around the world. Recruitment companies can also pair AI technology with video interviews that are able to screen candidates responses, body language, and tone to provide recruiters with some additional information and data to analyse. Due to the personalised nature of Talent Drive, we don’t use this software directly, but it available on the market and something our clients could consider if it falls inline with their policies.
Read our recent blog post: Procurement Recruitment Strategies For Employers – For more information on various strategies available.
Another well recognised tool this is transforming the candidate screening process is psychometric testing. These tests are designed to assess a candidates behavioural patterns, personality traits and intellectual abilities to provide recruiters with valuable insights into a candidates likelihood of success within the job role. Utilising psychometric testing is a fast way to filter relevant and non-relevant candidates based on abilities.
Recruitment Software: Streamlining The Recruitment Process
An essential tool for any recruitment company looking to streamline and automate their processes and procedures is effective recruitment management software (RMS). An effective RMS allows recruiters to manage each stage of the recruitment process, from candidate sourcing and screening to interviewing and offer management.
Recruitment software allows companies to safely store candidate data in a single centralised system, making it easy to access and share within the company. This minimises search time and the need for paper files or multiple shared databases. Keeping information on a RMS reduces the likelihood of errors and keeps important information at hand.
Additionally, recruitment software will often include the ability to automate processes and procedures such as job posting syndication, candidate communications and interview scheduling. Automating these processes saves time, reduces administrative expenses and improves the overall candidate experience. For procurement recruitment, an effective system is essential to ensuring that quality candidates are not lost through inefficiency in the recruitment process.
Talent Drive currently use Bullhorn as their chosen CRM system. One of our 2025 focus and mission is to utilise Bullhorns automation and AI features to further improve our internal processes. Currently our team are working closely with Bullhorn to achieve this.
How Social Media Is Changing Procurement Recruitment
Social media can be an extremely powerful platform to source, engage and connect with potential candidates. In particular, LinkedIn, has become the go-to option for finding and engaging with procurement professionals. Recruiters can search for candidates on LinkedIn by filtering specific skills, experience and qualifications, which makes it easier and much faster to identify top talent.
Social media platforms also provide a medium for recruiters to build and maintain relationships with potential candidates. Regular posts, industry information, podcasts and recruitment based knowledge enables companies to position themselves as thought leaders in the procurement field, attracting top talent into their network.
A prime example of utilising social media along with technological improvements is our Talent Talks Podcast, we have found this an engaging, fun and unique way to interact with our audience whilst sharing experiences and key industry insights from procurement professionals.
Social media also provides recruiters the opportunity to assess a candidates web presence and gain a deeper understanding of the way in which they present themselves professionally. For procurement based roles, this can be particularly useful to understanding communication styles, extent of interaction with industry trends and overall professionalism of a candidate.
Remote Work and Virtual Recruitment in Procurement
With the majority of organisations offering flexible or virtual job working options, recruitment companies have had to adapt their recruitment processes to align. Remote hiring is now a prime strategy for sourcing and attracting new talent, especially where geography is no longer a limiting factor.
Video conferencing tools such as Zoom and Microsoft Teams have become and integral tool for recruitment companies allowing recruiters and hiring managers to easily screen candidates without physically meeting with them. This level of autonomy has vastly widened the scope of companies talent pools, allowing employers the ability to hire on a world-wide basis. 
Besides interviews, companies are utilising digital tools such as onboarding platforms to efficiently and effectively integrate new staff members into their remote job roles. The onboarding platforms can cover everything from training, video introductions and software setup to help, guidance and support within their new role.
Utilising Talent Platforms for Procurement Recruitment
Talent websites such as job boards, recruitment agencies and freelance websites are now a valuable source for procurement talent. Allowing organisations a quick and effective way to contact potential candidates that hold the specific skill set and experience needed for the procurement role.
Talent platforms also provide candidates looking for a new role with a platform to show their skills and qualifications to interested parties. On the other hand, candidates who are not actively looking for a new role, but would take up the right opportunity (passive job candidates) can also be accessed here. This is particularly valuable in procurement recruitment, where there is a high requirement for specialist experience and unique skills.
Talent platforms typically offer advanced AI based features such as candidate matching and candidate recommendations that enable recruiters to quickly spot the best fit candidates. Through the us of such platforms, procurement recruitment agencies are able to streamline their hiring process and improve quality of their talent pool.
Conclusion
Technology has and is continuing to impact the procurement recruitment industry. Easing the way recruiters find the perfect talent, process candidates faster and improve the overall recruitment experience for both candidates and customers. As the industry continues to expand, staying ahead and at the forefront of technological breakthroughs will be critical for the future of recruitment agencies to remain competitive and continue to attract top talent.
