Dayforce’s global head of talent attraction and acquisition on keeping the ‘human element’ in recruitment

Speak with any seasoned HR pro, and they’ll tell you the profession has changed drastically since their early careers.

Steve Knox, global head of talent attraction and acquisition at Dayforce, who’s been in recruitment for 30 years, certainly can attest to the changes. Knox recalled his experience posting job openings in his first position at consumer goods and personal care corporation Kimberly Clark. Jobs were advertised in a newspaper, and he’d wait for people to mail their résumés in, and then receive a package of paper applications to sort through.

“The process was completely analog, no automation whatsoever, no technology,” Knox said. “And now we’re in a world where people apply with a chatbot and everything’s automated, and it’s completely different.”

Recruiting’s digital evolution has created a host of challenges for recruiters, though. They must parse through sky-high volumes of applications, combat job seekers using AI tools to cheat or pose as someone they’re not, and focus on candidate experience as automations make job hiring more impersonal than ever.

To combat these challenges, Knox is emphasizing the “human element” of recruitment, while embracing AI and automation. For example, introducing workload capacities for recruiters so they’re not overwhelmed by applications pouring in and can have the time and bandwidth to interact with candidates in a meaningful way. Meanwhile, AI tools can take over the tasks otherwise eating up a recruiter’s time.

“It’s just taking those tactical tasks off the recruiter, so the recruiter can step up and do more of the human element and give back to the candidate really what they want, which is coaching, guidance, mentorship, advice on what the best role is for them, and connecting them to the line manager in the business so they can have a decent conversation,” he said.

This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

What’s the best change you’ve made at a place you’ve worked?

A change I have made at every organization I have worked at over the past 15 years has been to implement a TA capacity model that governs and outlines the ideal requisition load for a recruiter. This has successfully ensured that the recruiting team is properly resourced and at capacity to help the business with hiring. TA teams are always challenged by resource constraints and having too many open positions to work on. Having this capacity model ensures the team has the time needed to properly support the business and deliver a great experience for all stakeholders.

What’s the biggest misconception people might have about your job?

People often have a perception that talent is abundant and that we simply look through a stack of applications and pick someone to fill a role in a matter of hours. In fact, the requirements that hiring leaders are looking for are often far more complex.

Additionally, hiring managers sometimes believe that everyone will want their role, and they will be willing to jump through hoops to accommodate the hiring manager’s process. In reality, candidates are expecting a world-class candidate experience with constant updates on where things stand. It can be overwhelming to manage everyone’s expectations as the process unfolds. At the end of the day, when you are dealing with a variety of people, things tend to not always follow a simple plan.

What’s the most fulfilling aspect of your job?

It’s always rewarding to help people find their professional passion and purpose, and to eventually watch them get promoted beyond the role you helped them secure. At the same time, it’s always fulfilling when an executive or hiring leader is thrilled with how a new hire is doing and appreciates that you help them secure the most important resource for the business, which is the talent!

What trend in HR are you most optimistic about? Why?

I am most excited about the growing role of HR in helping the business understand the modern workforce and the skills needed for business growth and success now and in the future. Many organizations have not invested enough in an overarching strategy that helps the business uncover the skills they will need two to five years from now.

HR has a huge opportunity to sit with business leaders to unpack what skills they are going to need and then craft a strategy for securing those skills. Many companies tend to be reactive around current or short term needs versus properly planning for long-term innovation.

What trend in HR are you least optimistic about? Why?

I think we’re sometimes too quick to brand talent behavior that we are seeing, like quiet quitting, the Great Resignation, or the Great Reshuffle, which put the blame on workers and can take the focus off of the work needed to understand labor markets. Ultimately, these are fairly normal cycles, and it’s up to us as HR professionals to understand the paradigm shifts that are happening and respond accordingly.