Tech can make hiring smarter. But if we hand over the moments that make hiring meaningful, if we automate connection in the name of convenience, we don’t just risk losing candidates. We risk losing culture. Dive into our latest blog to learn how candidates really feel about bot-led interviews.
Estimated Read Time: 7-8 minutes

“Hello, your call is important to us.”
Press 1 for an interview.
Press 2 to decline the job offer.
Tap 2 quickly to accept the job offer.
Press 3 to ghost.
Press 0 to hear these options again.
You pressed 2… decline the job offer… wait, wait, wait, no no no.
This isn’t a glitch. It’s the future of hiring. Or at least one version of it.
A version where interviews are conducted by bots, questions are generated by algorithms, and candidates are evaluated by sentiment scores and “proctoring signals” instead of gut instinct and genuine conversation.
When You Can’t Get a Pulse on Your Interviewer

Meet Zara, the AI recruiter built by micro1 and used by platforms like Deel and Alignerr. She conducts over 10,000 interviews a day, never misses a question, never gets tired, and always delivers a shortlist of “top candidates.”
For hiring teams overwhelmed by volume, she sounds like a dream, but dreams can turn into dystopias pretty fast.
Zara: From Z to A – Are We Going Backwards or Forwards?
The problem isn’t the tool, it’s the trade-off. Zara is technically impressive. No question.
It’s efficient. It’s scalable. It’s also deeply impersonal.
Candidates have described the experience as “robotic,” “cold,” and “like talking to a wall” in a recent Wall Street Journalfeature. There’s no space for curiosity, no real-time context, no one to say, “Tell me more about that.” Just a machine scanning a person’s story for compliance rather than connection.
This isn’t innovation. It’s a transaction.
And while companies may be saving time upfront, they’re paying for it in ways that don’t always show up on the balance sheet: weakened employer brand, frustrated candidates, and an erosion of the very human connection that top talent increasingly values.
Remember When Hiring Was a Conversation?

A great interview isn’t a performance. It’s a moment of mutual discovery.
It’s the space where someone shares not just what they’ve done, but who they are, the things they’ve overcome, what drives them, what they’re still learning, and what lights them up.
AI doesn’t ask, “What was that like for you?” It doesn’t pause. It doesn’t hear subtext. It doesn’t laugh, and it certainly doesn’t notice the candidate who lights up when talking about mentoring someone. Or the one who stumbles through a question but reveals something meaningful behind the nerves.
These are the moments that matter, and they’re being filtered out.
What the Candidates Are Saying
We talk a lot about candidate experience. But listen closely, and you’ll hear a different story.
Candidates are increasingly vocal about what it feels like to be interviewed by a bot. Not evaluated. Not welcomed. Just… processed. A recent feature in the Wall Street Journal shared reactions from job seekers who used Zara. Words like “weird,” “impersonal,” and “like being graded by a machine” came up repeatedly.
One candidate described it as “the loneliest interview I’ve ever done.” Another said, “I couldn’t tell if I was doing well or being silently rejected.”
And while AI may not care, people do. According to a CareerPlug survey, 58% of candidates say they are more likely to accept an offer if the hiring process feels personal, timely, and human. In contrast, nearly half will walk away from an opportunity if communication feels cold or automated.
It’s not just about finding a job. It’s about feeling seen.
What We Believe: High Tech Should Serve High Touch

At Titus Talent Strategies, we’re not anti-tech. We use automation. We leverage AI. We believe in smart tools that reduce friction and reveal insight. In short, we LOVE tech, and we’ve invested a lot in it.
But we don’t believe in replacing connection with code. Our philosophy is simple: Use tech to scale. Use people to see.
That means:
- Using AI to support our sourcing efforts but letting recruiters ask the real questions.
- Using automation to schedule, not to screen people out.
- Listening with curiosity, not just recording with a webcam.
Hiring is about potential. It’s about chemistry. It’s about fit. And while we challenge the idea of relying solely on gut instinct, we don’t ignore it; we test it.
We use tools like the Predictive Index to help us understand behavioral alignment, natural work style, and ramp-up speed. But it’s not pass or fail. It just sharpens our perspective so we can ask more meaningful questions and make more thoughtful, data-informed decisions.
Because sometimes the best hire isn’t the obvious one, it’s the one who grows into the role, one that makes an impact. And that takes more than automationm it takes discernment.
If You’re Leading Hiring, Read This Twice

If you’re a hiring manager, business owner, or HR leader being pitched tools like Zara, ask yourself:
- Are we trying to hire faster or better?
- Are we outsourcing judgment or improving it?
- Are we removing bias or just people?
- How can Zara give insight into my company and bring life to our EVP? (because the candidate needs to know this is right for them)
Tech can make hiring smarter. But if we hand over the moments that make hiring meaningful, if we automate connection in the name of convenience, we don’t just risk losing candidates. We risk losing culture.
We don’t need less humanity in hiring. We need more.
Speed Matters. But So Does Preparation.
In the race to hire, speed isn’t just a nice-to-have; it’s essential. The fastest path to the right person starts with two critical steps: being crystal clear on the role you’re hiring for and honestly assessing how ready you are to bring someone on board. If these steps aren’t secure, Zara won’t be the help you think it is. It will just provide you with more candidates to sift through.
When you clearly define what success looks like in a role, your hiring team can focus sharply, with no distractions and no chasing ghosts. Likewise, knowing your internal readiness, budget, onboarding resources, and leadership capacity means you can act decisively when the right candidate appears.
That temptation to say, “Let’s see just one more candidate.” is real, especially in a tight market. But if you’ve done your homework, that needle in the haystack becomes easier to spot. The groundwork saves you from unnecessary delays and the risk of losing talent to slower competitors.
In hiring, speed and precision go hand in hand.
The Wrap-Up

Zara might represent a glimpse into the future, but the way we choose to hire will always say more about our values than our tools.
You can automate a process, but you can’t automate trust. While AI can help us move faster, only humans help us move forward in a way that builds culture, connection, and commitment.
At Titus Talent Strategies, we don’t just help you fill roles. We help you find the right people for the right reasons in the right way. We love AI, we love what it can do with us not just for us. We’ve invested in AI to boost speed and efficiency, so we can stay focused on what matters most: people. It’s not just what tech does for us, but what it enables us to do with it. Faster. Smarter. More human.
We call it High Tech. High Touch.
It’s not a tagline, it’s a promise.
Ready to build a hiring strategy that scales with soul?
At Titus Talent Strategies, we partner with organizations that care about both results and relationships. We bring the insights of behavioral science, the innovation of technology, and the heart of a people-first approach to help you attract, engage, and retain top talent.
Let’s connect and create a hiring experience that works better—for everyone.
Book a discovery call Or learn more at www.titustalent.com
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