Not long ago, hiring felt predictable
Advertise a job, wait for applications, choose the best one. The digital tools evolved, but the mindset didn’t. Job boards replaced classifieds, career sites replaced brochures , yet most organisations still expected talent to come to them, armed with a CV and ready to impress.
But the world candidates move through today looks nothing like that contained, linear journey.
In e-commerce , the industry that shaped modern digital behaviour , people expect transparency, reviews, social proof, authentic content, and meaningful reasons to buy. They want to understand the experience before they commit.
Candidates are no different.
They browse at night on TikTok, YouTube, Instagram. They research employers with the same curiosity and scepticism they bring to buying a new pair of trainers. And they want to know:
What is it really like to work for you?
Why should I choose you over anywhere else?
The challenge is that most employer brands still answer this with a single careers page and a list of vacancies.
When technology evolves faster than the hiring experience
AI has accelerated the pace of change. It’s now woven into sourcing, screening, scheduling, and even interview scoring. Used well, it gives hiring teams back precious hours. Used poorly, it replaces human judgement with black-box decision-making and creates hiring funnels that feel cold, automated, and impersonal.
But the story isn’t “AI vs humans”. The real opportunity is AI + humans.
The question employers must now ask is: How do we use AI to help us become more human?
Those that embrace this mindset are already reshaping the hiring experience.
Job boards are losing influence and candidates want more
Job boards are no longer the centre of the candidate universe. They deliver volume, but not conviction. They list jobs, but they don’t influence anyone’s decision.
Candidates want to understand the company long before they care about the job.
This is where forward-thinking employers are borrowing from e-commerce. They’re shifting from selling roles to sharing stories. They’re no longer waiting for vacancies to generate traffic - they’re building continuous talent pipelines by publishing the content people can connect with:
Stories from departments, apprentices, leaders
Video insight into culture and day-to-day life
Employee endorsements and real reviews
Behind-the-scenes moments that show (not tell) what the organisation stands for
This is a completely different approach to hiring. It’s not reactive. It’s building long-term familiarity, trust, and emotional connection. It’s giving candidates reasons to choose you before you ever ask them to.
And when a vacancy does open, the people who’ve been quietly following your story already feel closer to your brand, and more ready to apply.
Why employer brand destinations are becoming essential
The companies leading the way aren’t relying on a single careers page. They’re building employer brand destinations: immersive hubs that combine storytelling, design, content, job search, location insight, and clear expectations.
These destinations answer the real question candidates care about: Why should I choose you, not just for this job, but for my career?
And crucially, they create informed applicants. Candidates understand the culture, the commute, the environment, the values, and the people before they ever hit apply. A little friction, the right kind, filters out low-commitment applicants and attracts those genuinely aligned.
The result? Better matches. Stronger intent. Faster hiring. Less time wasted on people who were never the right fit to begin with.
Using AI to become more human: the new competitive advantage
The companies that will win in this new era aren’t the ones that automate everything, they’re the ones that automate the right things.
AI can summarise CVs, draft job ads, surface talent, and remove admin friction. It can help you respond faster, organise smarter, and reclaim hours of work that used to drain energy from your team.
When used correctly, AI gives employers the chance to be more human than ever, if they choose to use it that way.
Interested in learning more? Watch our recent webinar "How Employers Are Taking Control of Hiring in the Age of AI".
Website by