In that context, the human resources sector, the recruitment department (Talent Acquisition - TA) is often defaulted to be "executives".
According to Anphabe Company, the role of TAs has changed because up to 69% of businesses have applied AI. When smart tools can filter thousands of CVs in seconds and automatically send interview invitation emails, the value of manual TAs will be zero.
On the other hand, the labor market in 2026 is witnessing a paradox: Businesses recruit less but require higher (tighter budget), while candidates are "reluctant to make mistakes", choosing carefully. If TA still maintains the mindset of "receiving orders", they will fail to connect these two extremes. "Smart recruitment" requires TA to participate more deeply in the business problem of the business.
According to Anphabe Company, instead of being the "receiver of orders" from professional department heads, TA now plays the role of advisor. Besides, TA also has a new role as a "bridge of trust".
LinkedIn Recruitathon report data shows that 15.1% of candidates "fall" because of confusing information and lack of trust. Therefore, TA plays the role of an experience leader when transparent, positioning the employer brand. TA will not only talk about salaries, bonuses, benefits but also be the one to "translate" the image values of the company (organizational culture, development opportunities, leadership, work-life relationships...) into the language that candidates are most interested in.
TA also pays attention to the trend of skills-based recruitment replacing degree-based recruitment. At this point, TA becomes a "data scientist" when analyzing related skills: If you cannot find someone with 100% of the required skills, strategic TA will identify candidates with related skills that are highly adaptable.
TA also forecasts the capacity gap based on the company's business orientation in the next 2 years.
The LinkedIn Recruitathon report also pointed out that when AI finishes manual labor, TA's human skills increase sharply in value. In which, relationship development skills are 54 times more important; professional communication skills are 13 times more important.
In the context of AI booming, TA saves 20% of time each week. Smart TAs will not use that 20% to go out, but to interact with potential candidates who are not looking for jobs to build long-term relationships; talk more deeply with recruitment managers to truly understand that department; listen to the candidates' secret concerns to help them overcome the fear of job transfer.
To undertake these new roles, the TA team needs to "upgrade" themselves with 3 competency pillars: Knowing how to read market reports, knowing how to use data to persuade leaders instead of saying "I feel..."; sensitively predict business when understanding how the company makes money, who the competitor is and which talents will help the company win in that market; master AI when proficiently using AI tools to optimize productivity, turning AI into an "assistant" instead of considering it a competitor.
