In response to member demand, ISE hosted a virtual open forum where employers shared concerns and solutions for finding authentic talent amid a flood of applications.
Employers are facing a challenge that many described as one of the defining issues in early careers recruitment today. Not because hiring volumes have dramatically changed, but because application volumes have.
Employers came together to discuss a problem that is becoming increasingly familiar. Candidates now have access to AI tools that can help them write applications, tailor answers and submit applications at a scale that simply wasn't possible a few years ago.
This is driving more applications, competition and pressure on recruitment teams trying to identify genuine potential.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, there was plenty of debate. What was striking, however, was that employers are approaching the challenge in very different ways.
The tsunami of applications
Across different industry sectors, recruiters are reporting significant increases in application volumes.
AI is undoubtedly part of the story. Tools that help candidates refine CVs, generate responses and tailor applications can reduce the time it takes to apply for an opportunity. Combined with a job market that many young people perceive as highly competitive, it is encouraging a behaviour that some employers described as ‘apply first, research later’.
Candidates are making large numbers of applications and only investing time in understanding an employer if they progress through the process.
From a candidate perspective, this is understandable. If securing a graduate role or apprenticeship feels increasingly difficult, making more applications can feel like the sensible thing to do.
For employers, however, it creates a new challenge.
How do you identify the candidates who genuinely want to work for your organisation when everyone can present a polished application?
Talent isn't the problem. Volume is.
One of the most interesting aspects of the discussion was that employers weren't necessarily talking about a shortage of talent. Neither were they reporting dramatic reductions in hiring. Instead, the challenge was volume.
The sheer number of applications landing in recruitment systems is making it harder to identify candidates with the right skills, potential and motivation. It is also creating additional pressure on recruitment teams who are trying to maintain a positive candidate experience while reviewing unprecedented numbers of applications.
The issue is becoming less about attracting applicants and more about effectively assessing them.
A growing divide in employer responses
The forum revealed that employers are responding in very different ways.
Some organisations are leaning heavily into technology. AI-supported screening, automated assessments and AI-enabled interviewing are becoming part of the recruitment toolkit for a growing number of employers. For organisations managing very large applicant volumes, the attraction is obvious.
Others are taking a more cautious approach. For some, advanced technologies remain out of reach because of cost or resource constraints. For others, there are concerns about fairness, candidate experience or confidence in the technology itself.
What emerged was not a sense that one approach is right and another is wrong. Rather, employers are experimenting, learning and adapting.
The reality is that the sector is still working out what good looks like.
The danger of going backwards
A particularly thought-provoking part of the forum focused on unintended consequences.
When applications become overwhelming, the temptation can be to look for simpler ways to reduce numbers. Academic attainment, work experience and other traditional filtering criteria can appear attractive because they provide an efficient route to a smaller shortlist.
But employers also recognised the risks. Many organisations have spent years broadening access to opportunities, removing unnecessary barriers and improving social mobility outcomes. A return to blunt filtering mechanisms could undo much of that progress.
This is where the challenge becomes particularly complex. The pressure to manage volume is real. But so too is the need to ensure that recruitment processes remain fair and continue to identify potential wherever it exists.
Are we still assessing the right things?
Underlying the entire discussion was a bigger question. In a world where candidates can use AI to help create highly polished applications, are employers still assessing the qualities that matter most?
Many recruitment teams are increasingly interested in how they identify curiosity, motivation, commitment and genuine interest in an organisation.
This is not about trying to catch candidates using AI. AI is increasingly a normal and essential workplace tool, and new EC hires are expected to use it responsibly during their careers so there is an acceptance that they would naturally use it to assist in their applications.
The challenge is understanding what sits behind that application. Can applicants demonstrate why they want the role? Do they understand the organisation? Have they engaged meaningfully with opportunities to learn more about the employer?
For many organisations, authenticity is emerging as an increasingly important part of the assessment equation.
A challenge we're all learning to navigate
The forum reinforced something that ISE is hearing regularly from employers: AI is changing candidate behaviour faster than recruitment processes are evolving.
At the same time, employers themselves are exploring how AI can support recruitment, from managing applications to supporting assessment and decision-making. The debate is no longer whether AI should play a role in recruitment. The question is how to use it responsibly and effectively.
The openness with which employers shared their experiences was encouraging. There was no sense that anyone had fully solved the challenge. Instead, it was recognised that the sector is learning together.
For now, perhaps the most important question for employers is not whether candidates are using AI, it is whether recruitment processes are still helping us identify the people with the potential, capability and motivation to succeed. Because ultimately, that remains the goal, regardless of how applications are written.