What AI is Changing About Work and Hiring
A New Perspective from Workplace Intelligence
Today I’d like to take a different tact with our blog. I’ve extracted some opinions from Dan Schawbel, the managing partner of Workplace Intelligence, an organization which produces a weekly newsletter focused on work trends, issues, and environments to help businesses create more intelligent workplaces.
In each of his March newsletters, he shared perspectives with employers about Artificial Intelligence (AI). While he’s primarily addressing the newsletter to human resource professionals with advice aimed at creating more intelligent workplaces, I’d like you to read them with your own career aspirations in mind. The emphasis added in the various extracts is mine, and I believe it will make more sense by the end of this short blog.
How AI is Reshaping Recruiting
From the 3/29/26 issue, “The Autonomous Recruiter: How AI Agents Are Redefining Talent Acquisition,” the article highlighted these topics: – Sourcing talent – Screening conversations – Matching candidates with precision – When the Hiring Process Runs Itself – Speed as a Competitive Advantage – How the Recruiter Role is Evolving.
Automation vs. the Human Side of Hiring
Dan states, “Whenever automation enters a profession, there is concern that it will replace human roles. In recruiting, the reality is more nuanced. The administrative side of recruiting is disappearing. Tasks such as sourcing candidates, conducting initial screenings, and writing reports are increasingly being handled by software.
But the human side of recruiting remains essential. Recruiters build relationships with candidates, guide hiring managers, assess cultural alignment, and shape the organization’s employer brand. These responsibilities require judgment, empathy, and contextual understanding that technology cannot replicate.
AI in Interviews: What Really Matters Now
In the 3/23/26 issue, “Should Job Seekers Be Able to Use AI in Interviews.”
Interviews Are About Trust, Not Just Skills
“Interviews are not just about skills; they are about trust. Employers are trying to understand how candidates think, communicate, and respond under pressure.Hiring managers ask questions to evaluate problem-solving ability, communications skills, and experience. The goal is to understand how someone performs independently.”
How Hiring Managers Are Evaluating Candidates Differently
“Interviews can focus on areas where human judgment is more visible. This might include:
– Asking candidates to explain their reasoning and decision-making processes
– Presenting ambiguous scenarios that require interpretation
– Evaluating how candidates critique or improve AI-generated outputs
– Incorporating real-time problem-solving tasks that reveal thought patterns
These approaches shift the emphasis from what candidates say to how they think.” (Behavioral Interviewing anyone??)
The Real Question: How Well Do You Use AI?
“The question is no longer whether candidates use AI, but how well they use it. Whether or not candidates should use AI in interviews is ultimately the wrong question. The better question is how hiring processes can evolve to measure the right skills in an AI-driven world.”
The Most Underrated Skill in the Age of AI
Why Curiosity Drives Resilience and Growth
From 3/16/26 “How to get Ahead in the Age of AI: A Conversation with Aneesh Raman.” He’s the Chief Economic Opportunity Officer at LinkedIn and co-author of “Open to Work: How to Get Ahead in the Age of AI.” What’s the most undervalued human skill right now? Per Raman, “Curiosity. Full stop. It’s the root of resilience, agility, and agency, things everyone says they want but few people are actively developing. The good new is curiosity is a practice, not a talent.”
The Hidden Risk: Skills Decay
Why Your Current Skills May Not Last
Finally, from the 3/9/26 newsletter, “Skills Decay: The Biggest Hidden Risk in a World of Constant AI Upgrades.” – “In a world where workflows evolve every quarter and AI tools update constantly, existing capabilities are eroding faster than most companies realize. The problem is not just that employees need new skills. It’s that the skills they already have can become partially obsolete within months. The half-life of expertise is shrinking, and organizations are not prepared for what that means. While upskilling is visible and proactive, skills decay is subtle and reactive. Skills decay is the overlooked counterpart to upskilling.
Feeling Overwhelmed by AI? You’re Not Alone
SO, if you’re like me, you might feel a bit whipsawed! I feel some encouraging reinforcement about the reality that the human side of human beings will remain, but the speed of change, uncertainty, skillsets shifting, and companies trying to figure it all out is a bit disconcerting.
Encouraging Trends in an AI-Driven Workforce
Why Experience and Adaptability Still Win
Here are a few more positive perspectives. From the 3/12/26 issue of Fast Company, “Why Women over 50 Are the Future of Work in the Age of AI.” Schawbel summarizes,”Women over 50 are emerging as a critical but overlooked workforce segment because their experience, adaptability, and resilience make them especially well-suited to navigate constant change and complexity in an AI-driven economy.”
AI May Create More Work, Not Less
From a 3/9/26 blog from the Institute for Faith, Work, & Economics, “Why AI May Lead to More Work, Not Less,” author Jacqueline Isaacs states,
“Research from the University of California Berkeley shows that workers with AI tools often end up taking on additional tasks and projects rather than working less. The technology increases productivity, which increases the value of skilled workers. When people can accomplish more in the same amount of time, organizations discover new ways to deploy that talent.
In other words, AI may increase the amount of meaningful work available rather than reduce it.
Technological change always brings disruption, often described by economists as “creative destruction.” New tools reshape industries and alter career paths. The transition after the dot-com bubble burst provides one example of how innovation can produce both uncertainty and new opportunity. The long pattern of innovation shows that human ingenuity continually discovers new ways to serve others through meaningful work.
A Biblical Response to Fear and Uncertainty
Christians ought not live in fear but should rather be at the forefront of utilizing new technologies to expand the possibilities of work in ways that allow more people to use their God-given gifts in service to others.”
Thanks for persevering through the information share. First, a burst from Scripture.
- Psalms 46:1-3 “God is our refuge and strength. An ever-present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.”
- John 14:27 “Peace I leave with you: My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your heart be troubled and do not be afraid.”
- Luke 12:7 “Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid: you are worth more than many sparrows.”
Key Message: Trust God in the Age of AI
No matter what we face, our God will protect and provide for us. And that includes helping us be equipped for what we encounter at work with AI. Counter AI with the I AM. 🙂
Practical Applications for Your Job Search
Next, some Crossroads Career applications:
Networking Still Matters Most
Networking – NOTHING can take the place of a face-to-face meeting, phone, or video conversation with a live human being. Get the advice and advocacy of people within the company to access the number one way to get the job of your dreams! Click here to learn more.
Stay Informed on Hiring Trends
Get Information – Stay up to speed with changes in recruiting processes through job networking groups, articles, and speakers. You need to have access to what is going on, and many times, word of mouth can move faster than anything written, see #1.
Adapt Your Job Search Strategy
Adapt Your Approach – AI is here to stay, and the hiring processes continue to morph with it. What may have worked yesterday with getting your resume picked up by the Applicant Tracking System (ATS) may not work today. Be flexible and adaptable to the information you’re receiving, see #2.
Be Clear About Who You Are
Be Clear With WHO You Are – Not just what you do. While organizations need to know what skills, abilities, and experiences you’ll bring to bear on the role being interviewed for, as Schawbel points out above, “interviews are not just about skills, they are about trust.” Point out your Unique Distinctions (click here to learn more) on your resume and in an interview to differentiate yourself from the competition.
Don’t Go It Alone, Get Counsel
Get Counsel – I’ve always advised people to “never go it alone.” Being unfulfilled or unemployed can be a very lonely journey. Get advice and counsel from confidential advisors who have been through this before and can provide you specific insights on your situation. Click here to schedule a FREE 45 minute consultation with one of our Crossroads Guides.
We’re Here to Support You
Crossroads Career is here to support you in whatever way we can. We’d love to listen to you!
Our work will constantly change, but our God never does. He is the source of our strength, and He tells us further in Psalm 46:10, “Be still and know that I am God,” and again in James 4:8, “Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.” He’s just a prayer away!
And we’re just a quick request away as well. Please reach out. We’d be honored to support you in your job transition!
Dave Sparkman currently serves as the volunteer Crossroads Career board chair and local ministry leader. He is also the founder and managing director of Spark Your Culture, a corporate culture consulting firm. Prior to that he worked at UnitedHealth Group, a Fortune #5 public company, serving in the role of Chief Culture Officer. His unemployment experience came from the implosion of Arthur Andersen, where he served as the West Region Managing Partner, People.
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