Can a computer programme choose the right applicant for a job? Online assessments, scanning programmes, computer algorithms and the number crunching of social network data are all now part of the tool kit of the recruitment industry. As Peter Day discovers, to get through to an actual interview, you often have to impress a computer algorithm first. Traditionally a subjective process, Peter looks at this huge change in the way people are selected for jobs and asks whether technology can achieve the recruiters' aim of eliminating bias from hiring.



Producer Caroline Bayley.