The Institute - September 2018 - 9

OPINIONS

EDITOR IN CHIEF
Kathy Pretz, k.pretz@ieee.org

Sparking Conversation

A S S O C I AT E E D I TO R
Monica Rozenfeld, m.rozenfeld@ieee.org
A S S I S TA N T E D I TO R
Amanda Davis, amanda.davis@ieee.org

Our blog posts inspired comments from readers

E D I TO R I A L C O N S U LTA N T
Alfred Rosenblatt
COPY EDITOR
Mark Yawdoszyn
SENIOR ART DIRECTOR
Mark Montgomery

people of a certain age who have
not grown up in front of a computer
screen and taking selfies. What
about privacy? What happens to
this material after the interview?
And lastly, it is called "human"
resources for a reason.

ART DIRECTOR
Bonnie Nani
PHOTOGRAPHY DIRECTOR
Randi Klett
D I R E C TO R O F P E R I O D I CA L
PRODUCTION SERVICES
Peter Tuohy

-Kevin in Calgary

D I R E C T O R , B U S I N E S S D E V E L O P M E N T,
MEDIA & ADVERTISING
Mark David

It is automated algorithmic filtering
that prevents the best candidates-
the ones who don't fit the algorithm's
criteria-from being seen by hiring
managers. Automation overlooking
exceptional talent is good news for
the few employers who know better.
But it is not good for the industry as
a whole.

ADVERTISING AND
P R O D U C T I O N M A N AG E R
Felicia Spagnoli
ADVERTISING PRODUCTION
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EDITORIAL AND WEB
P R O D U C T I O N M A N AG E R
Roy Carubia
W E B P R O D U C T I O N C O O R D I N ATO R
Jacqueline L. Parker

Should AI Be
In Charge of Hiring?

M U LT I M E D I A P R O D U C T I O N S P E C I A L I S T
Michael Spector

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V

-Tiok

If they are going to interview me
with an avatar, I can just have their
avatar talk to my avatar.

program
designed by Russian startup Stafory, is helping
hundreds of companies fill open positions. In minutes,
the program sorts through résumés from five job
websites to find candidates who meet the employer's
requirements, and then calls them with details of the position.
The avatar [above], which appears relatively lifelike on
the screen, conducts video and phone interviews to further
narrow prospective workers down to what it considers to
be the top 10 percent. From there, the employer makes the
final hiring decision.
More than 300 clients, primarily those with offices in
Russia and the Middle East, are using Vera. Pilot programs
are running in China, Europe, and the United States. Large
employers include Ikea, L'Oréal, and PepsiCo.

E D I TO R I A L A DV I S O RY B OA R D
John Baillieul, Alexei Botchkarev, Philip Chen,
Michael B. Forster (Managing Director, IEEE
Publications), Shashank Gaur, Samir M. El-Ghazaly
(Vice President, IEEE Publication Services and
Products), Susan Hassler (Editor in Chief, IEEE
Spectrum), Cecilia Metra, San Murugesan,
Mirela Sechi Annoni Notare, James O'Neal,
Joel Trussell, Hon K. Tsang, Chonggang Wang

A DV E R T I S I N G I N Q U I R I E S
IEEE GLOBALSPEC
30 Tech Valley Dr., Suite 102
East Greenbush, NY 12061
+1 844 300 3098
Toll-free: +1 800 261 2052
www.globalspec.com
V P, D I G I T A L M E D I A &
ENGINEERING INSIGHT
Don Lesem, +1 518 238 6514
don.lesem@ieeeglobalspec.com

SENIOR DIRECTOR, PRODUCT
M A N AG E M E N T & M A R K E T I N G
Christian Noe, +1 518 238 6611
christian.noe@ieeeglobalspec.com

DAVID SUTPHIN

S E N I O R P R O D U C T M A N AG E R
Linda Uslaner, +1 518 238 6527
linda.uslaner@ieeeglobalspec.com

T H E I TN HS ET I N
T US TT EI T. U
I ETEEE. .I O
E EREG. O R G

FROM TOP: STRAFORY; ISTOCKPHOTO

V P, S A L E S & C U S T O M E R C A R E
Peter Hauhuth, +1 303 594 8007
peter.hauhuth@ieeeglobalspec.com

-Jim Klessing

ERA, AN ARTIFICIAL-INTELLIGENCE

I would have to be truly desperate
to take a job with any company that
would expect me to interview with
an AI avatar. And if I ever were that
desperate, I would keep looking
for a better job. Any company so
disrespectful of the people it's trying
to recruit clearly doesn't have its
employees' best interest in mind.
-Barry Moss

I would be curious to see if there are
any biases entailed by the use of Vera.

This kind of tool should be unpacked
for its selection mechanisms, especially biases against people with
disabilities or criminal records, or of
various racial and ethnic groups, and
so on.
-Daniel Schiff

I have four issues with this process.
If you want an actor who can speak
to a camera, include that it in the
list of qualifications. At the very
least, it is discriminatory against

'Publish or
Perish' Is
Hurting
Research

I

EEE FELLOW CHAI K. TOH

wrote about his concerns
over researchers' "paper
cranking" to increase their
citation number. He says
one should not publish for
the sake of publishing, but to
make an impact on society.
One problem with
measuring productivity,

S EP TEM B ER 2018 TH E IN STITUTE

9
https://ai.robotvera.com/static/newrobot_en/index.html https://ai.robotvera.com/static/newrobot_en/index.html http://theinstitute.ieee.org http://www.globalspec.com
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Institute - September 2018
