Working With and Around Artificial Intelligence: AI Crafting and Human-AI Collaboration in Recruitment

Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly utilized across various stages of the recruitment and employee selection process. This study explores how recruiters engage in AI crafting to collaborate more effectively with AI-assisted recruitment tools. Empirically, the study involved 41 in-depth interviews with recruitment professionals who utilize LinkedIn for talent sourcing. Findings indicate that AI crafting relies on recruiters’ ability to understand how AI processes candidate data and adapt the interaction to leverage AI’s affordances while compensating for its perceived limitations. When AI is perceived as inadequate, overly exclusive, or contradictory with the user’s preferred criteria, recruiters engage in AI crafting aiming to promote intellectual oversight, expand the reach of options, and counteract AI’s unwanted evaluation logic. By examining how users proactively repurpose AI systems beyond their intended functions, this study contributes to the emerging research on AI crafting while also highlighting design opportunities for more user-centered AI solutions in recruitment.