I’ll admit it. I’m obsessed with Artificial Intelligence (AI). I’ve done every course I can get my hands on. I’ve tested more AI tools than I care to admit, and our business has invested heavily in both the technology and the training to make sure we’re getting the most out of it.
It’s brilliant. But here’s the thing…
Despite all the hype, there still isn’t an AI tool on the market that can walk into a store, meet a manager for ten minutes and instinctively understand the culture they’ve built. It can’t tell when someone says they want “a strong assistant manager” but actually means they need someone calm who’ll steady the ship after a difficult few months.
It also can’t sit across from a candidate and spot that they’re not really leaving because of salary. They’re leaving because they’ve stopped learning. Or because they’re exhausted. Or because they simply don’t click with their manager anymore.
Those are human conversations. Retail is still a people business, and recruitment is still about people. Where AI does shine is taking care of the jobs that don’t need your brainpower, so you can spend more time on the ones that do.
So, if you’re recruiting into your store, here are a few of my favourite do’s and don’ts.
Don’t let AI write your recruitment strategy. Do use it to help build your wish list.
One of my favourite tricks is incredibly simple. Open ChatGPT (or whichever AI tool you like), press the microphone button and just…talk. Describe your perfect hire exactly as you would to another manager over a coffee.
“I need someone who loves fresh food.”
“They’ve got to be calm under pressure.”
“I’d like someone who enjoys coaching younger managers.”
“The deli standards have to be second nature.”
Don’t worry about structure or grammar. Just chat. When you’re finished, ask AI to turn everything you’ve said into a professional candidate specification. You’ll be amazed how much clearer your own thinking becomes.
Don’t copy and paste a generic job description.
Every retailer has them. The same Store Manager job description that’s been sitting on a shared drive since 2018 with a few job titles changed along the way. Your store isn’t generic. Your people aren’t generic. Your next hire shouldn’t be either. Use AI to improve your job specification, not replace it. Ask it to tighten the wording, remove repetition or make it easier to read, but always leave your own personality in there.
Do let AI help write your advert.
Once you’ve created a proper candidate specification, ask AI to turn it into a job advert. Better still, tell it where you’re advertising and ask it to optimise the advert using search terms candidates are actually typing into Google or job boards. A well-written advert won’t magically solve a recruitment shortage, but it will make sure the right people actually find your vacancy.
Do use AI as a second pair of eyes.
I still believe interview questions should come from the hiring manager. However, AI is brilliant for checking you’ve covered everything that mattered in your original job specification. One tip I use regularly is after an interview, dictate your notes into your AI tool and ask it to produce a concise interview summary. Instead of pages of handwritten scribbles, you’ll have clear interview notes for every candidate, making it much easier when you’re comparing your shortlist later.
Don’t forget about GDPR.
This one matters. If you’re using a free AI platform, think twice before uploading CVs, contracts or personal information. Make sure you’re using an appropriate, secure and GDPR-compliant platform before sharing anything confidential. It’s a fantastic assistant, but it still needs sensible boundaries.
Do freshen up your paperwork.
I’ve seen plenty of retailers still using contracts, policies and documents that haven’t had a proper review in years. AI won’t replace legal advice, but it can absolutely help modernise wording, improve clarity and highlight areas you may have overlooked before your solicitor reviews the final version. Think of it as a really efficient first draft.
Don’t automate the moments that matter.
This is probably my biggest one. Yes, AI can write an offer letter. Should it? Probably not. The best offer letters explain why you’ve chosen that person. Why you think they’ll fit your team. Why you’re excited about what they’ll bring. That’s personal. The same goes for offering someone a job. A phone call will always beat an email. Always. Candidates remember how you made them feel long after they’ve forgotten what the contract said. That’s something no chatbot has managed to master yet.
AI is changing recruitment, and I’d encourage every retailer to embrace it. Used well, it can save hours every week, improve consistency and remove a lot of admin. Just don’t confuse efficiency with connection. Use AI to give yourself more time to meet people, not less. Because at the end of the day, recruitment isn’t about finding CVs. It’s about finding people. And thankfully, that’s still something humans are pretty good at.
