Like many people, I recognise the benefits that automation has brought to certain areas of society but I still recoil at the idea of robots replacing key workers. I don’t trust robo-doctors and police bots make me uneasy. I also worry about the threat that assistance robots can pose to human life when they malfunction. But would I be comfortable with a robot interviewing me for a job? Absolutely.

In fact, I’d like to see robots interviewing candidates in every office and recruitment agency in Britain. Why? Because robots that have been designed specifically for recruitment purposes are generally much better than humans at making unbiased decisions about a candidate. The results of an experiment in Sweden, where robot recruiters have been used to conduct interviews, proves this to be true.

Tengai, a robot developed by Furhat Robotics, has been carrying out simulated job interviews since last October as part of a collaboration with Stockholm-based recruitment firm, TNG.

Ageing Japan: Robots' role in future of elderly care Show all 15 1 /15 Ageing Japan: Robots' role in future of elderly care Ageing Japan: Robots' role in future of elderly care Residents follow moves made by humanoid robot 'Pepper' during an afternoon exercise routine at Shin-tomi nursing home in Tokyo. Reuters Ageing Japan: Robots' role in future of elderly care Funabashi Hiroshi from A Fun, repairs broken'AIBO's, pet dog robots, at his office in Kasama. Reuters Ageing Japan: Robots' role in future of elderly care A caretaker wearing a 'HAL for care support' robot suit pushes a wheelchair at Shin-tomi nursing home in Tokyo. Reuters Ageing Japan: Robots' role in future of elderly care Residents follow moves made by humanoid robot 'Pepper' during an afternoon exercise routine at Shin-tomi nursing home in Tokyo. Reuters Ageing Japan: Robots' role in future of elderly care Yoichi Suzuki spends time with 'AIBO', a pet dog robot, which his father used for his rehabilitation at his house in Takahag.i Reuters Ageing Japan: Robots' role in future of elderly care A resident approaches humanoid robot 'Pepper' to pat its head during an afternoon exercise routine at Shin-tomi nursing home in Tokyo. Reuters Ageing Japan: Robots' role in future of elderly care A caretaker, wearing walking rehabilitation equipment 'Tree', helps a resident with his walking training at Shin-tomi nursing home in Tokyo. Reuters Ageing Japan: Robots' role in future of elderly care Yoichi Suzuki shows 'AIBO', a pet dog robot, to his bed-ridden mother at his house. Reuters Ageing Japan: Robots' role in future of elderly care A broken'AIBO', a pet dog robot, waits for repair in A Fun's office in Kasama, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. Reuters Ageing Japan: Robots' role in future of elderly care A resident touches 'AIBO', a pet dog robot, at Shin-tomi nursing home in Tokyo. Reuters Ageing Japan: Robots' role in future of elderly care A resident touches robot seal 'PARO' at Shin-tomi nursing home in Tokyo. Reuters Ageing Japan: Robots' role in future of elderly care Yoichi Suzuki and his wife take care of his bed-ridden mother as 'AIBO', a pet dog robot walks around at his house in Takahagi. Reuters Ageing Japan: Robots' role in future of elderly care A caretaker wearing a motion assist equipment 'Muscle Suit' carries a resident from a bed to a wheelchair at Shin-tomi nursing home in Tokyo. Reuters Ageing Japan: Robots' role in future of elderly care 'AIBO', a pet dog robot, which Yoichi Suzuki's father used for his rehabilitation, is seen at Suzuki's house in Takahagi. Reuters Ageing Japan: Robots' role in future of elderly care A resident claps to call 'AIBO', a pet dog robot at Shin-tomi nursing home in Tokyo. Reuters

Tengai is a disembodied robotic head with an innocent-looking face projected on to it. The machine can mimic human speech and mannerisms, and is designed to look friendly and approachable. It doesn’t do small talk, which ensures it only records responses that are work-related. It asks the same questions in the same order, with no variation in its tone of voice throughout. Perhaps most importantly, Tengai neither knows or cares about a candidate’s race, gender, religion, appearance or any other potentially influencing factors. Once it has carried out its duties, human recruiters or managers are then given text transcripts of each interview.

Now that Tengai has passed its probation period, it will soon be used to conduct real job interviews in Sweden. As with other examples of artificial intelligence, there’s always the danger that a machine can inherit human biases. But Tengai has been tested with a diverse set of interviewers, which minimised the chances of this occurring, according to BBC News.

Sweden has shown it’s willing to tackle recruitment bias head-on. Now it’s Britain’s turn. Evidence shows that the issue is rife across the UK and not nearly enough is being done to address it. Many companies have looked to unconscious bias training as a possible solution. However, multiple studies suggest the training is ineffective and in some cases, could actually increase biased decision-making. In a nutshell, if recruiters believe the training procedures are being used to tell them how to feel or what to believe, they are more likely to rebel against them.

With this in mind, the Tegai experiment should be extended to the UK and if the results are positive, recruiters should ensure the machines are a permanent fixture in offices. Companies need to use every tool at their disposal if they are serious about tackling bias. Some will claim they cannot afford to purchase robots, but given that organisations with less racial diversity are statistically less likely to achieve above-average financial returns, how can they afford not to?

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Robot recruiters have their limitations, of course. Despite Tengai’s promising results, it was designed specifically for job interviews but research shows bias often occurs before applicants reach that stage. As a Runnymede Trust report states: “Despite various policy initiatives by governments over the years, bias and discrimination affect people at work from recruitment to progression: at the CV stage, during interview and once in the role.” So a tech-based solution that is only focused on interviews will be ineffective unless accompanied by similar measures that can be applied to other parts of the recruitment process.

It would also be foolish to pretend that we can rely on technology alone to solve the problems in recruitment without addressing both the implicit and explicit biases that are prevalent in wider society. It’s up to humans to educate themselves about bias and how it affects their decision-making.