RecFest UK: AI Adoption, Recruitment’s Human Element & What Comes Next

Hosted live from RecFest UK by Sean Kennedy, host of Talking Talent, this episode of RecTalk brings together Jamie Jay Lyons, Joe Atkinson and Darren Bush for a candid conversation about AI, talent acquisition and how recruitment teams can actually make AI work in the real world.The conversation explores a key question for modern TA teams: as AI becomes embedded in recruitment workflows, do we need to put more emphasis on the human element?Jamie, Joe and Darren discuss the reality behind the rapid adoption of AI across recruitment and HR, including why simply giving everyone an AI licence isn't an AI strategy. They explore the importance of understanding where AI genuinely adds value, identifying the right use cases, measuring ROI and creating the infrastructure needed to scale AI safely.The panel also gets into some of the biggest mistakes organisations are making with AI adoption, including:• Jumping onto tools because everyone else is using them• Building AI solutions without understanding the underlying business problem• Running before teams have properly understood what AI can actually do• Lack of visibility and consistency when individuals build their own AI workflows• GDPR, compliance, data governance and quality-control risks• Failing to give recruiters enough time to experiment and learn• Trying to build overly complicated solutions when simpler, safer use cases may deliver more value• The challenge of operationalising AI across an entire business rather than leaving it as isolated experimentsThere is also discussion around the future of recruitment technology, from the potential of conversational data generated through candidate and hiring-manager interactions to Darren’s prediction that AI interviewing is coming – and may become increasingly normal as consumers become more comfortable interacting with AI elsewhere.The overall message? AI adoption isn't simply about buying tools. It's about curiosity, experimentation, governance, infrastructure, time, ROI and knowing where technology should augment people rather than simply replacing human interaction.GUESTSJamie Jay Lyons: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamiejaylyons/Joe Atkinson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joe-atkinson1/Darren Bush: https://www.linkedin.com/in/taunboxed/HOST — Sean Kennedy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanthetaguy/SPONSORED BYNOVA by Dweet — Define what good looks like. Screen, source, and shortlist talent automatically. Nova works with your hiring team to build structured scoring criteria for each role, then screens every applicant, resurfaces past candidates, and finds new ones automatically.https://nova.dweet.com/Zyverno — builds Frontline Hiring Intelligence for logistics, care, hospitality and retail: the sectors where a single vacancy can attract hundreds of applications that never get properly assessed. Its AI agent, Lina, conducts structured screening interviews against manager-defined criteria and returns ranked, scored shortlists. Lina screens and ranks. Hiring managers make every decision.https://www.zyverno.app/Screenloop — is the all-in-one ATS built for SMEs. Replace your scattered stack of tools, from ATS to interview intelligence, scheduling, scorecards, and note-taking tools with one intuitive platform. Backed by AI time-saving features and an award-winning support team. That way, you save time, cut tooling costs, and make smarter hiring decisions faster.https://www.screenloop.com/Find out more about RecFest UK: https://recfest.com/uk/Discover recruitment tools and services: https://www.rectools.io/Listen to RecTalk on another platform: https://rectalk.co.uk/#RecTalk #RecFest #RecFestUK #Recruitment #TalentAcquisition #RecruitmentAI #AIinRecruitment #HRTech #RecruitmentTechnology #ArtificialIntelligence #FutureOfRecruitment #TA #TalentTech