With the annual recruitment surge in job-hunting activity underway, a critical question is emerging for finance and accountancy: is anyone truly winning in the AI-led hiring race?
Our latest Global Talent Trends Survey, the largest annual study of careers and working life in finance with more than 11,000 respondents from 160 countries, shows that while AI is now embedded across recruitment workflows, trust is not keeping pace.
Almost half of respondents (48%) have reservations about AI algorithms in hiring, and more than half of board-level leaders (54%) express doubts about growing reliance on these tools when selecting talent. Attitudes vary by sector, country and generation. Those in accountancy practices tend to be more positive, as do Gen Z respondents.
Yet the spotlight falls on corporate leadership, where scepticism is highest. This matters because hiring is not just a transaction; it is a brand promise. If candidates feel their application disappears into a “black box”, the reputational damage can be lasting.
It’s a two-sided dynamic. Organisations are increasingly using AI in their hiring activities, while candidates themselves are using AI chatbots to support their job applications. This is leading to a surge in the volume of applications, and growing complexity in recruitment systems at a time when young people especially face a tough job market.
Without safeguards, this risks becoming a race to the bottom, where the most appropriate candidates are missed.
Where AI adds value and where it must not replace humans
AI can be used at multiple stages: candidate sourcing, shortlisting, interviews and assessments, and even offer and engagement communications. At junior levels, automation often handles volume and logistics. At senior levels, the balance of human intervention should increase.
AI can help scan talent pools, verify documented achievements against public business information, and coordinate complex scheduling and personalised communication. But the bottom line for all senior appointments, in particular, is appropriate human oversight and meaningful touch points.
Used thoughtfully, AI can widen talent pools, reduce administrative burden and improve consistency. It can help hiring teams focus on what humans do best: building relationships, assessing cultural fit and making nuanced judgments about potential.
But the risk is not AI itself; it is poorly governed use. Our research at ACCA identifies four recurring concerns that firms must address if they want to harness AI’s benefits without undermining trust:-
- Bias: even where AI can reduce human bias, distrust remains about the data and algorithms. This can disadvantage groups such as neurodivergent applicants if models are not carefully designed and monitored.
- Lack of human touch: candidates report less personal feedback and a sense of anonymity, which erodes confidence in the process.
- Missed talent: when systems cannot assess cultural fit or nuanced skills, strong candidates may be filtered out prematurely.
- Data privacy and transparency: applicants worry about sensitive data leakage and the inability to understand how and why decisions were made.
There are also practical risks that directly affect employer brand. No feedback to applicants is perhaps the most frustrating outcome and is significantly damaging to reputation. Perceptions that there is no human in the loop creates a sense of distance and anonymity.
Algorithmic bias raises questions about what data the technology was trained on and whether biases have inadvertently been built in. Candidate data privacy remains a live concern. And when applicants game the system by overusing AI in their applications, there is a significant risk that the most appropriate candidates for the role are being missed.
A practical framework for fair, transparent AI hiring
ACCA’s message is clear: AI is here to stay and offers many benefits, but hiring processes must be fair, equitable, transparent and supported by appropriate human oversight. For accountancy firms, that means moving from ad-hoc experimentation to governed deployment. Four actions stand out.
First, make sure you are abiding by the regulations. Because AI regulations are fast-moving, employers must constantly monitor how existing UK laws apply to new tools. Under the Equality Act 2010, companies face direct legal liability if their recruitment algorithms produce biased outcomes or discriminate against protected characteristics.
Furthermore, the UK GDPR and Data Protection Act 2018 strictly govern how candidate data is processed by automated tools, requiring a clear lawful basis for any data collection.
Second, ensure your processes are transparent and governed appropriately. This includes providing relevant training for anyone involved in the hiring process. Transparency is a core legal requirement under UK GDPR, which mandates clear privacy notices for candidates.
To build trust and stay compliant with Common Law principles, employers must avoid opaque algorithmic management that could breach the implied duty of mutual trust and confidence between employer and employee.
Third, give significant consideration to human checkpoints. You should introduce human interventions across the breadth of your end-to-end hiring process and at different levels of seniority. This directly mirrors the official guidance from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT).
Their Responsible AI in Recruitment Guide emphasizes that human oversight and accountability are vital to ensuring algorithmic fairness.
Fourth, introduce audits and appropriate monitoring controls. Safeguarding AI use requires proactive risk management. Under the UK GDPR, employers must conduct a mandatory Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) before deploying any automated decision-making (ADM) systems.
Additionally, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) actively enforces rules around automated hiring and expects recruiters to regularly test their AI tools for bias and accuracy. The bottom line for most is that while AI in recruitment is here to stay, ensuring appropriate safeguards and mitigations are essential as the technology continues to evolve.
Turning concern into competitive advantage
The survey’s findings raise an important question in an increasingly AI-driven environment: is anyone truly winning in the AI-led finance job-hunting race right now? The organisations that will win are those that pair technological capability with strong governance, clear communication and a commitment to human-centred decision-making.
They will use AI to expand reach and improve consistency, but they will not outsource judgment. They will be explicit about where machines help and where humans decide. And they will measure success not just by time-to-hire or cost-per-hire, but by candidate experience, diversity outcomes and the quality of hires over time.
In finance and accountancy, where trust is our currency, that is not optional – it is essential. AI can support better hiring, but only if it is deployed fairly, transparently and with appropriate human oversight. The firms that get this right will not only mitigate risk, they will build a reputation as employers of choice in a competitive talent market.
That is how you win the AI hiring race.
