One-third of recruiters say their colleagues are ‘AI power users’ according to new LinkedIn survey

Talent acquisition has become HR’s poster child for AI disruption.

Recruiters now have a wealth of AI-powered tools at their fingertips to help streamline their job, from sourcing candidates to scheduling interviews and screening candidates.

But, according to a new LinkedIn survey, many recruiters aren’t taking full advantage of all that AI can do for their jobs—beyond productivity gains.

“Power users” wanted. Just 34% of the more than 1,000 recruiters based in the US and UK surveyed by LinkedIn described the majority of their colleagues as “AI power users,” meaning they’re using the technology to restructure their workflows and help them better deliver on business goals. Another 47% said their recruiter colleagues are “practitioners,” solely using AI to boost their productivity.

Recruiters recognize the pressure they’re under to find the best talent as their organizations increasingly embrace AI. The majority (86%) of recruiters said their CEO relies on them to build a “workforce of the future,” according to the survey.

“CEOs want talent that can adapt and embrace new AI tools to make an impact, and companies that invest in these AI change agents will progress further and faster,” Erin Scruggs, LinkedIn’s VP of talent acquisition, told HR Brew via email.

There’s a palpable anxiety among many recruiters about falling behind: Those who don’t develop AI skills in the next 12 months expect to struggle to keep up with competitors, attract top talent, and hit growth targets.

So, what does an “AI power user” look like in action? Scruggs gave an example from her own team. A recruiter at LinkedIn used the platform’s agentic AI-enabled Hiring Assistant to fill a niche role that had been vacant for more than 100 days, according to Scruggs. After the traditional approach of looking for candidates via Boolean search didn’t net adequate results, she sourced a candidate who hadn’t been recommended by providing more feedback to the AI agent.

“A recruiter who is an ‘AI power user’ is thinking bigger and understanding the full breadth of possibilities for AI changing how they work. It’s not just about ‘can AI help with this search string’ and more about truly re-designing the end-to-end of what they do,” Scruggs said. “AI will make tasks easier, but it’s also going to make processes better and ultimately truly improve quality of hire.”

Focus on the human. Recruiters who want to increase their AI use should also focus on enhancing the human elements of their jobs. Soft skills are more important than ever with AI’s rise: Even in roles that previously didn’t require “human skills,” importance in such competencies has increased by 20% from 2018, research from the World Economic Forum found. For recruiters, that means that the human elements of their jobs—such as forming relationships with candidates, having strong communications skills, and thinking creatively with matching talent—will be more important as AI takes over the time-consuming, rote tasks with their jobs, as recruiters previously told HR Brew.

“While it is critical that recruiters build AI skills, every talent professional will tell you that the hiring process has always been about humans and relationships,” said Scruggs. She said recruiters should prioritize soft skills, like relationship building, adaptability, and negotiating.

“It’s these human skills that are a recruiter’s true superpower,” Scruggs added. “They’re becoming even more powerful in the age of AI, giving recruiters the space to connect, influence, and lead in ways that truly move the business forward.”