Once upon a time, finding a job was entirely done offline. From handing out hard copies of a CV to prospective employers to browsing job adverts in shop windows and newspapers, job seekers were largely left to their own devices when changing roles. And while the nature of the ordeal – that’s often filled with knockbacks and walls of silence – remains challenging to navigate, modern professionals can benefit from a plethora of digital tools and technologies that can accelerate and streamline the entire process.
One of the most important advancements in recent years is artificial intelligence (AI). Businesses are applying the advanced capabilities of AI in a number of ways, and job seekers shouldn’t discount the value of these time-saving tools. In this post, we explore just how AI could help you find the right job.
Writing your CV and cover letter
One of the most time-consuming parts of the job application process is fine-tuning and redrafting your personal documents to match the criteria listed for any given role. Lots of people find this aspect of applying particularly difficult, since it can feel uncomfortable to talk ourselves up and list all the reasons why you’d be a good fit. Even if you know what you want to say, writer’s block can prevent us from getting started, and see you spending hours staring at the screen having made no real progress.
Automated writing tools powered by AI can help you to create sections or even entire drafts of your CV, saving you both time and energy. To get the most from these programmes, it’s important to carefully consider the prompts you give them – the information you provide could be the difference between a professional, relevant CV and one that’ll dent your job prospects. The practice of using AI to create professional documents is becoming increasingly common. In fact, research shows that 46% of job seekers now use ChatGPT to write cover letters and/or CVs.
Identifying suitable roles
While the internet has certainly helped to streamline the process, combing through seemingly endless lists of jobs remains a monotonous and time-consuming task. Even with the use of tailored searches and filters on job boards, you’re unlikely to only be presented with roles you deem to be a great fit. By leveraging algorithms and statistical models, machine learning can scan your CV and find jobs that match your specific skill set and experience.
Modern technology is taking this one step further, with some tools even automating the application process, meaning AI can both find and apply to jobs on your behalf, without any effort on your part. Of course, this is one extreme, and most job seekers find a happy medium with AI, instructing it to find jobs that may have otherwise slipped through the net before fine-tuning their applications themselves.
Interview prep
We’re not quite at the stage where artificial intelligence can take your place in the interview seat. However, once you’ve secured an interview, the technology can help you to prepare effectively, and tailor these preparations depending on the content of the job description. Using natural language processing tools, you can practise speaking your answers out loud for AI to analyse, helping you to hone your communication skills. In addition, you can save hours of time that’d be spent researching companies by asking AI to divulge key information about a business that’ll help set you apart from other candidates.
