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AI is accelerating many parts of executive-level hiring, though other parts remain constrained by distinctly human obstacles.Recruiters say homing in on suitable candidates can account for as much as half the work in high-stakes C-suite job searches. AI can speed up that process by mapping the market, surfacing names, combing through years of internal notes, and suggesting unconventional talent pools."The identification of candidates is going to become commoditized," said Marty Parker, CEO of Waterstone Human Capital, an executive search and culture advisory firm.Meanwhile, other parts of the recruiting process remain slow because they still depend heavily on people, from coordinating and conducting interviews with busy candidates to exercising judgment, building consensus, and persuading an executive to make a move."All of those things are irreducibly human," said Umesh Ramakrishnan, chief strategy officer of executive search firm Kingsley Gate. Now, he added, AI "takes care of everything else."What AI can doWaterstone saw AI's potential at the start of an ongoing search for an executive to oversee a jewelry company's high-tech manufacturing operation. The firm had initially focused on recruiting from other jewelry businesses when the company's proprietary AI tool suggested looking to the dental tech industry, where similar precision machinery is used to make veneers, crowns, and other tiny, intricate products."Who would consider dental manufacturing with jewelers?" Parker said. "You just wouldn't. It's not obvious."
