Anonymous CVs: what are they and how to use them for blind recruitment

L’obiettivo di ogni campagna di ricerca e selezione è quello di riuscire ad individuare e assumere il candidato più qualificato per una posizione vacante. La ricerca del talento, però, rischia di essere ostacolata dalla comparsa dei cosiddetti bias cognitivi, dei pregiudizi inconsapevoli che possono insorgere nel recruiter in fase di selezione, condizionando la scelta del candidato. Nell’ottica di minimizzare la comparsa di questi bias e consentire all’HR Manager di scegliere, in modo imparziale, il candidato più giusto per la sua o altre aziende, Inda offre la possibilità di selezionare i candidati in incognito generando in tempo reale un CV anonimo da condividere con colleghi e clienti.

How to do blind recruitment with artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence (AI) is one of the main 2021 recruiting trends. One of the merits of applying AI to the HR world is that it helps to reduce cognitive bias just like blind recruitment. Although it is often specifically talked about in reference to gender, ethnicity, age and religion, bias can relate to any prejudice brought against the candidate during the search and selection process that potentially compromising their evaluation. For this reason, automatic screening systems, semantic search, as well as blind hiring and anonymisation of CVs are now preferred methods.

What is an anonymous CV?

The anonymous CV is a resume that is examined ‘blindly’ by the recruiter. An anonymised CV hides, or disguises, some of the candidate’s personal information, information that could give rise to bias and compromise the selection process. By obscuring some of the CV data, HR Managers and recruiters can focus on the skills and professional experience of the candidate, and effectively evaluate on the basis of experience and potential.

How to anonymise a CV with Inda

In order to make the recruitment process more transparent for candidates and companies, and to select the most qualified candidates without being influenced by other factors, Inda has developed an Anonymous Resume / CV system.

This new feature allows you to anonymise a digital document (e.g. pdf, doc, docx), whether it’s a CV or a cover letter. Starting from the CV file that is uploaded by the candidate in response to an advertisement, Inda allows you to generate an anonymised copy of the same CV in real time (thus maintaining the original layout / template). The new anonymised copy obscures some personal information, including:

• First name
• Surname
• Telephone number
• Email
• Gender
• Nationality
• Date of birth
• Photo
• Links

Example CV anonymisation

CV uploaded by the candidate

CV anonymised by Inda

As a tool suitable for blind recruitment, optimisation work is already underway to also disguise some of the specific language in the CV or cover letter. It will soon be possible to anonymise and hide even textual expressions that could reveal details of the candidate (for example, the expression “I’m a female graduate” indicates the gender of the person).

Advantages of the anonymous CV in the recruitment process

The anonymous CV is a blind recruitment tool useful not only for companies and HR teams who want to carry out disguised selections, but also for Employment Agencies, Search & Selection Companies and hiring outsourcing companies who want to share anonymous CVs externally, with customers and clients. In addition to this, CV anonymisation has other positive effects, for example:

• Select candidates with a view to Talent Acquisition. By changing the quantity and quality of the information available on the candidate, recruiters can let themselves be guided specifically by the skills during the selection and choose the profile that is most in line with the requirements of the Job Description. This system ensures HR Managers select the most qualified candidates for the subsequent interview phase, and it allows candidates who are at risk of being misjudged in the initial stages, to have a fair shot at being evaluated.
• Have transparent selection processes. If cognitive biases are eliminated, the selection process will be more transparent and fairer. There will be less discrimination and companies will really start achieving diversity in their workforce, reducing generation and gender gaps. Disguised selection allows for the focus to be entirely on competence: there is no older or younger candidate, it is simply the skills that count.
• Diversify the team. A company that chooses to select anonymous candidates is enhancing skills and also welcoming diversity. This has a positive effect on the team and employee engagement.
• Focus on productivity. Giving the right weight to the skills of candidates means being paying attention to the actual value that a person brings to the company. This can also affect internal productivity.

Are you curious to carry out a disguised selection? Consult one of our experts and find out how you can do just that with Inda’s anonymous CVs.