Gurugram: KPMG’s audacious attempt to use AI in talent recruiting is already yielding noteworthy outcomes. Over 1,000 hours have been saved for the talent acquisition team in just over a year thanks to the professional services giant’s custom-built AI assistant, Kai, which has reduced interview scheduling time by 58 per cent, from an average of an hour to just 25 minutes.
Sandy Torchia, the Vice Chair of Talent and Culture at KPMG, spearheaded the AI-driven transformation. She had two specific objectives: give job seekers 24/7 access to information and free up her staff to concentrate on more strategic hiring tasks.
According to reports, Torchia said:
“The notion of freeing up time to focus on more strategic initiatives is so important. It’s not only giving [the team] back hours, but it’s increasing job satisfaction because they’re able to reduce the time it takes to complete an administrative task that isn’t super rewarding and focus on something else.”
Kai was created in collaboration with hiring software provider Paradox, which specializes in conversational AI solutions. Candidates who want replies outside of usual business hours will find the bot particularly helpful as it provides answers to frequently asked questions concerning KPMG’s hiring procedure, benefits, working hours, and other topics. In actuality, 33 per cent of the more than 23,000 inquiries that Kai received in its first year arrived after 5 pm.
In addition to responding to inquiries, Kai is designed to suggest suitable career opportunities based on a candidate’s background, hobbies, and geography. Remarkably, about 21.5 per cent of people who get these customized recommendations show interest in the positions that are offered.
Paradox CEO Adam Godson emphasised that the success of Kai lies in its narrow, focused application. “It’s not about automating as much of the process as you can,” Godson said. “It’s about picking the spots where automation makes sense. You can use AI for everything, but candidates don’t want that, and recruiters don’t want that.”
KPMG is maintaining a human touch where it counts most, even while automation is turning out to be a potent efficiency driver. Decisions about candidate screening and interviews are still made using conventional techniques, guaranteeing that personal connection and cultural fit are not compromised for expediency.
“It’s still super important to have a human in the loop,” Torchia added. “Because you can learn about our culture by asking questions, but you’re not going to experience it until you talk to someone.”
