AI in Staffing: How Staffing Companies are Improving Operations Through Artificial Intelligence

eCapital Corp

Last Modified : Aug 07, 2024

Fact-checked by: Bruce Sayer

Artificial intelligence (AI) technology has been rapidly developing, offering staffing businesses innovative new tools to streamline operations and boost profits. In fact, 76% of senior business leaders who responded to an Infosys survey cited AI as fundamental to the success of their organization’s strategy, and 64% believe that their organization’s future growth is dependent on large-scale AI adoption.

That means there’s a good chance that your closest staffing industry competitors are incorporating AI technology into their agency’s workflow. AI staffing programs are developing rapidly, equipping staffing agencies with new tools that promise cost savings, enhanced time management, and other efficiencies.

While AI development is exciting, learning how AI staffing technology works and how it is used may seem overwhelming. Agency owners and management who are aware of AI’s capabilities and potential applications could gain a competitive edge as these tools become widely applicable.

Read on to explore how new AI staffing programs and tools could be applied in your staffing agency’s operations to save money and time.

Understanding AI staffing technology

Artificial intelligence is any form of computer problem-solving that completes a task commonly handled by humans.

Recent forms of AI are significantly more capable and widely used than past programs. Called generative AI, these programs operate through complex algorithms and data analysis to automate repetitive tasks, streamline processes, and make data-driven decisions.  This is achieved by machine learning and deep learning, both of which are subsets of AI technology.

Machine learning enables systems to learn and improve from experience without being explicitly programmed. Deep learning uses artificial neural networks to mimic the learning process of the human brain. These AI systems learn from vast amounts of data and identifying patterns and trends resulting in greater efficiency, productivity, and effectiveness in recruiting and staffing operations.

Combining data analysis and deep learning technology means that AI’s outputs can be relevant and tailored to your staffing agency’s needs. Businesses are leveraging this fast-evolving technology to create solutions-focused AI programs tailored to hyper-specific tasks. These include creating market forecasts, to more general ones like developing written content.

AI staffing technology is changing the industry

AI staffing programs are growing rapidly as developers create automation technologies capable of handling a wide array of burdensome business tasks. These developments could fuel further widespread adoption of AI staffing technology.

Here are five ways AI staffing technology can help increase efficiencies and stay ahead of the competition:

1. Enhance recruitment strategies: Sorting through candidate profiles, manually scheduling interviews and more is expensive and time intensive. Specific AI staffing programs can rank candidate skills, match candidates to roles based on location and more. These features speed up the selection process, while others standardize it: new AI tools can extract resume information to create simple reports aligned with your company’s style. An added benefit is AI’s ability to minimize bias in recruitment processes. Software designed to assess candidate skills won’t be burdened by the same biases or prejudice which can impact traditional methods of candidate selection. For example. AI software ranking candidate skills and abilities would not take name, sexuality, or ethnicity into account, where as studies have found unconscious bias can emerge in even the most equitably-designed recruitment strategies.
2. Analyze big data: AI’s chief skill is its ability to analyze data quickly and accurately. This could be an invaluable use of AI staffing tools for firms operating in a highly competitive market. For example, consider a staffing agency that has five years of data on a team working at major healthcare centers in the Northeast and Southwest. Depending on the nature of the agency’s records, the use of AI staffing technology could predict employee attrition rates, client repayment timelines, gauge the speed at which job positions are filled, and more. This data analysis could help staffing firms use past contractor experiences as a measuring point for future deals. This knowledge would make it easier to know which contractors are the most and least reliable.
3. Speed up payroll: Finance industry insiders predict AI will change how businesses handle payroll. This could be especially useful for staffing agencies. Payroll processing requires a lot of time and energy – especially if your firm pays workers every week. This pressure can make it easy for staff to input inaccurate or incomplete data, and even if this inconsistency is found fast enough, it still takes time to fix it. Through an ability to quickly interpret mountains of data, the use of AI staffing technology can spot errors in payroll processing and identify long-term patterns that could point to data issues. For example, if an employee incorrectly logs hours worked, AI technology can more consistently spot large variances in shift length compared to historical norms.
4. Optimize scheduling: For many years automated scheduling tools have been driven by AI. However, recent developments in AI staffing technology is speeding processes, such as automating forecast demand, scheduling teams, and backfilling shifts with ease. Often, agencies setting up multiple schedules are confronted with possible backlogs or errors that only become present in day-to-day operations. The use of AI staffing tools and programs can help eliminate possible errors that occur when workforce demand exceeds a team’s capacity to properly schedule talent. Leveraging inputted datasets, AI can ingest historical scheduling information, and set shifts based on worker availability and company needs.
5. Improve communication: AI chatbots and email tools could soon be saving staffing agencies money and time. Chatbots can be programmed to automatically pop up on your agency’s website to answer candidates’ queries or serve as a triage for customer concerns. With the ability to authentically respond to inquiries and common questions, AI chatbots can save customer service personnel hours and still effectively answer client questions. According to a Forbes Advisor survey, 73% of businesses use or plan to use AI-powered chatbots for instant messaging. In a highly competitive landscape, the use of AI technology in staffing to improve a prospect’s experience of your website, and connect them to information faster, could be a deciding factor in their final employment choice.

How to fund investments in AI staffing technology

The ability to access available working capital to fund investments in AI staffing technology is often a barrier for struggling agencies. For many, the solution is payroll funding, an easy to manage cash flow solution designed for the staffing industry. This flexible funding solution combines the accelerated cash flow benefits of invoice factoring with easy access to working capital through asset-based lending. Staffing firms with creditworthy customers are well positioned to quickly qualify, onboard and begin fast funding via payroll funding.

Conclusion

AI staffing technology could soon transform how agencies operate, enhancing efficiency and competitiveness.

AI-powered writing tools, recruiting software, data analysis, and others promise to revolutionize candidate selection, data analysis, payroll processing, scheduling, and client communication. By leveraging the power of AI staffing technology, agencies can streamline their processes, make data-driven decisions, and provide superior services to clients.

Embracing AI staffing technology could soon be not an option, but a strategic necessity for staffing agencies aiming to stay ahead in the rapidly evolving market. Those who harness the potential of AI are likely to gain a decisive competitive edge and thrive in the dynamic landscape of the staffing industry.

For more information about the benefits of payroll funding to support staffing agency growth and afford investments in AI staffing technology, contact eCapital today.

Key Takeaways

• Agency owners and management who are aware of the capabilities and potential applications of AI staffing technologies could gain a competitive edge.
• Generative AI staffing programs operate through complex algorithms and data analysis to automate repetitive tasks, streamline processes, and make data-driven decisions.
• The use of AI staffing technology Is revolutionizing candidate selection efficiencies, data analysis, payroll processing, scheduling, and client communication.

eCapital Corp

eCapital Corp. is committed to supporting small and middle-market companies in the United States, Canada, and the UK by accelerating their access to capital through financial solutions like invoice factoring, factoring lines of credit, asset-based lending and equipment refinancing. Headquartered in Miami, Florida, eCapital is an innovative leader in providing flexible, customized cash flow to businesses. For more information about eCapital, visit eCapital.com.