For many job seekers, it might seem like there’s never been a harder time to find a job.
Hiring for white-collar jobs has been especially weak, part of what economists call a “low-hire, low-fire” job market in which businesses are largely holding onto their workers while hiring remains sluggish, making it difficult for younger workers to land permanent work.
Technology is also shaking up the hiring process. Automated systems enable job seekers to apply for more jobs more easily, but they also make it even tougher to get noticed. According to data from the hiring platform Greenhouse, the average recruiter has 3.5 times as many job applications to sift through as they did a few years earlier.
But artificial intelligence has offered job seekers new ways to stand out, such as improving resumes or helping with interview prep. Here’s advice from experts on how to use technology to your benefit.
Properly using AI to build your resume.
An updated resume is one of the basic tenets of a job search. AI is a great tool for revamping CVs and cover letters, but experts warn that everyone else has also already realized this.
AI “absolutely does risk reducing your job application materials to the same style as every other applicant’s,” said Daniel Zhao, chief economist at online job and recruitment site Glassdoor. “As a hiring manager, this is something I have seen myself in application materials that have clearly been customized using AI. For job seekers, that makes it hard for your application to stand out from your peers.”
Instead, take it a step further by using AI to “personalize your approach” to the companies you’re most interested in, recommends Daniel Chait, CEO of recruitment firm Greenhouse. You could, for example, get AI to read all of a company’s reports for the past year or analyze its job openings to “help you improve your cover letter or the wording of your resume in very specific ways,” he said.
The myth of using keywords
A lot of people think there are secret tricks to getting a resume past the automated system that screens applications. One long-held belief is that you can add keywords in white text that a human won’t see but a computer will.
But the latest systems have long since moved on from that practice, said Chait.
“There’s no secret keyword you can put in, that’s just wasting your time. Don’t bother doing that.”
Going beyond the resume
You shouldn’t just rely on your resume to land a job.
“The resume is still an important part of the job search process b, but it is not sufficient. You need far more than your resume,” said Pat Whelan, a product manager at LinkedIn.
With AI seeping into many parts of work life, Whelan said job seekers should showcase any AI skills they have.
LinkedIn has teamed up with some AI platforms, such as Lovable and Relay.app, to certify that a user has the proficiency to use AI, for example, to vibe code an app. Others, however, say it’s more important to make sure you have basic AI skills that the office jobs of the future will require, and which can be easily transferred.
“When the state of the art is shifting so rapidly, focusing on narrow AI certifications or skills isn’t as important as being thoughtful about the benefits and risks and also being able to adapt quickly,” Zhao said.
Look for AI guidance.
The rules of the recruitment game are changing quickly, and employers are now starting to include AI in their hiring guidelines, so do check whether the company you’re applying to has any rules to follow.
Target, software company SAP, cybersecurity company Zscale, and even the British civil service are among employers that outline the dos and don’ts of using AI in recruiting. Acceptable uses generally include formatting resumes, explaining technical concepts, and brainstorming, while inappropriate uses include using AI to invent skills, achieve results, or complete assessments.
The process, from initial application to final interview, should “be an authentic representation of your own skills, experience, and thought process. This principle is especially important in the age of AI, according to cloud security firm Zscaler.
Use AI to prepare for an interview.
If you’ve made it through to the interview stage, AI can be a useful tool to help prep for your conversation with a hiring manager.
Chat recommends having the AI tell you everything about the company, the industry, the job, the hiring manager, and best interview practices.
Then, he advises spending an hour or two with the AI, having it task you with mock interview questions to help ensure you’ve prepared good answers for the real thing.
But don’t use AI as an interview cheat
There are AI tools marketed to job seekers to help them pass remote job interviews and tests, but experts say you should avoid the temptation to use them.
These tools are typically used to listen to interview questions and provide answers in a window overlaid on the video call. But it’s often pretty obvious to the interviewer that you’re using them.
Chait said customers have told him about interviews where the applicant has responded to every single question by saying, “Let me think for a minute,” before replying, making it obvious they were reading from an AI answer.
“You’re not fooling anyone,” he said.
Get ready for AI-powered job interviews.
One emerging trend that job seekers should be ready for is the AI-powered interview. More employers are expected to start deploying bots to conduct at least the initial round of interviews, either via text chat, audio calls, or video avatars.
While the tech is still in its early days, Chait predicted AI interviews would quickly spread because they offer a better, fairer interview experience.
“Being comfortable with being screened by a bot first is something that will help give you an edge as a job seeker. It will make you applicable to more jobs,” Chait said.
Watch out for job scams.
AI technology is also powering employment scams on both sides of the hiring equation.
Workers should be on the lookout for phony recruitment ads designed to con desperate people. These postings, often shared via email or text messages, typically say that a well-known company is hiring and ask the recipient to follow a link for more information.
But experts say you should verify that it’s a real job by visiting the hiring company’s website or a reputable job board to confirm the job is posted.
If you click the link, there’s a good chance you’ll end up talking to a scammer who wants to hire you for a non-existent job. They’ll want you to provide identification, a social security number, or bank details so they can supposedly put you on the payroll, Chait said.
Employers, meanwhile, are increasing scrutiny for remote hires. They’re learning to be wary after some companies unwittingly hired North Koreans as remote IT employees, earning money for Pyongyang.
Job hunters should be prepared for identity verification requests from potential employers, who typically ask applicants to take a selfie and compare it with their government-issued ID. LinkedIn also offers a verification service that either checks ID or sends a confirmation request to a work email.
