Press “0” to Speak With the Chatbot

Great Insurance Jobs’ Cofounder Roger Lear is here to help you overcome obstacles to your career and job search. This month, he explains how hiring managers put the “art” into artificial intelligence.

Q: Is it true that I will never talk to a human again when applying for insurance claims jobs because of artificial intelligence?

A: There is that phrase: artificial intelligence. The insurance industry is a prime candidate for the robot invasion because it loves data and this industry is full of it. AI is predicted (and is already being used) to streamline the claims process without humans and dramatically reduce fraud. In telematics, marketing, customer service, underwriting, and many other areas, AI makes a lot of sense in the insurance industry.

The way insurance companies are going to recruit, interview, and hire you also will change with AI. Yes, we are early in the process but imagine a world where you ask your Google Home or Alexa-enabled device to find you a new claims job. AI will know everything about what you do, where you worked, what you like, the people with whom you worked, your skill set, and your technical skills. It will go out and bring back jobs that use these data points, matching only employers that fit. It will text you the job and, if you want to apply, all you will do is say “yes.” No resumes needed, since all of your digital career data points will be shared with the employer’s AI computer and an interview will be set.

Insurance employers already have AI tools where they can find you not just through LinkedIn, but also by analyzing hundreds of data points like blog postings, social media, personal websites, photo sharing sites, and anything else you may have online. You will have a sophisticated “profile” instead of a resume. Employers will always be fishing for profiles that line up closely with their current top performers. AI-focused companies also will be able to tell employers when you are ready to make a job change even before you know yourself.

Once you find a job, AI is taking over the initial interview process, too. Job seekers are being prescreened by recruitment chatbots like “Mya” that use AI to ask you relevant questions. These chatbots are so smart, you will never know that they are not a human. You can even ask it questions about the job and it will give you machine-learned answers that give you very specific, relevant information with no fluff. (If you asked a real person in an interview how many days of travel each month, AI may actually give you the real number!) Depending on how you answer the questions, the chatbot will also be able to schedule your interview. I have seen Mya in action, and I actually think it may do a better job of screening than a human because its responses are based on your answers, not things like looks, job changes, schools, or anything else discriminatory. Everyone who applies to the job will meet Mya. No more applying to jobs and never hearing back.

Other recruiting AI companies like TalkPush, HireVue, and Affectiva are video-interviewing products via a website or video text. The big difference is that it not only analyzes your natural language skills, but also it allows AI robots to scrutinize your facial expressions using Big Data to determine what you really mean when you say something. If an employer tells you that the job pays $60,000, your voice may say that is fine—but the robots can tell by your expression that you really are expecting much more.

AI is coming, so insurance claims professionals have to realize that the way they get their jobs, and the jobs themselves, are changing. Those who understand and embrace this will get some pretty cool jobs in the years to come.

Got a career question for Roger? Email him at Roger@GreatInsuranceJobs.com.