Recruiting Future with Matt Alder - What's Next For Talent Acquisition, HR & Hiring? Ep 759: Career Sites and the Growing AI Gap
Jan 13, 2026
In this insightful discussion, Bas van de Haterd, a researcher and consultant renowned for his extensive work on corporate career sites, reveals the evolving landscape of employer branding. He highlights the paradox of improving basics while candidates now demand advanced features like conversational AI. Bas also addresses shrinking DEI content, low chatbot adoption, and the significant strides in mobile application processes. To stay relevant, he urges employers to personalize career sites and optimize them for AI indexing, ensuring they meet modern candidate expectations.
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Episode notes
Basics Fixed, Expectations Have Moved On
- Career sites now pass basic functionality checks but must evolve beyond just working properly.
- Candidates expect conversational AI and personalised experiences before they even visit a site.
Nineteen Years Of Continuous Site Research
- Bas runs a 19-year continuous study covering 500+ Dutch corporate career sites with 125 data points.
- He used students (and plans an AI bot) to audit sites, apply and record findings annually.
D&I Content Shifted To Visual Signals
- Explicit D&I pages declined while visual diversity on sites increased.
- Companies are showing inclusion implicitly rather than through standalone D&I pages.