Algorithms Hire Better Than Humans

Yup, you read that right. A study released last month by the National Bureau of Economic Research suggests that algorithms make better hiring decisions than humans do. The study, which was conducted by Mitchell Hoffman, Lisa B. Kahn and Danielle Li, observed over 300,000 hires across 15 companies that employ low-skill workers such as call center operators or data entry employees. The study required the companies to implement hiring assessments created by PeopleMatter that asked candidates a variety of questions about their technical skills, personality, cognitive skills, and fit for the job. In some cases, hiring managers were removed from the process, and hiring decisions were made by an algorithm that based the decision on the test results.