Marcus Sawyerr on Using AI to Drive Inclusion in Recruiting
On this episode of Redefining Work, I’m joined by Marcus Sawyerr, the visionary founder and CEO of EQ.app, and former president of Adecco Group X. We dig into Marcus' background in recruitment technology innovation, the power of community in recruiting, and AI’s impact on recruitment and the broader world of work.
Marcus has a wealth of experience in HR tech and recruiting, but recently began investing his experience and expertise into using AI to double-down on the human side of the equation. “I more recently turned my attention to a really important topic to me, which is inclusion — but also with AI,” he says. “So we’re ensuring that we include people in a next wave, the next generation of work.”
Recruitment technology is constantly evolving, and AI has become an increasingly important member of your recruitment team. Marcus is here to explain Ai’s ideal role in recruiting, and how he’s using it to support better inclusion and opportunities for candidates.
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Leading Innovations in Recruitment Technology
Marcus’ early career at CareerBuilder.com came during the job industry’s shift from newspaper advertising to the internet. This transition coincided with the digital revolution in recruitment, making Marcus a key player in early digital recruitment strategies.
As the president of Adecco Group X, Marcus led initiatives focused on digital transformation and innovation, including strategic investments in HR tech companies seeking to transform the recruitment process.
All of his experience in tech and talent acquisition has prepared Marcus to help the talent acquisition community answer some challenging questions. Business leaders are evaluating AI for its opportunities, while employees are often uncertain about AI’s impact on their jobs. Talent acquisition sits at the intersection of these complex questions.
“We're managing the company’s expectations and trying to manage the employees’ expectations,” Marcus says. “And if you're a global TA leader, you're managing your team's expectations.”
Applying AI to Enrich Human Interactions
Marcus is excited about AI’s potential to address ongoing recruiting challenges, including administrative burdens that detract from value-added activities, like interacting with candidates and stakeholders. By automating routine tasks, AI frees recruiters to focus on the human aspect of their roles — fostering better relationships and improving the overall recruitment experience.
“AI should be there to support you in having more sensible, meaningful and useful conversations with human beings,” Marcus says.
He shares his systematic approach to thinking about AI use cases in recruitment, emphasizing the "four P's" framework: purpose, problem, people and profit. This method ensures that the implementation of AI addresses specific needs, solves real problems, involves the right people and ultimately contributes to the organization's profitability.
Applying AI to recruitment isn’t just about enhancing efficiency: you can also use AI to enrich interactions and decision-making throughout the recruitment process.
Enhancing Recruitment Through Community
Marcus developed EQ.app to empower people to thrive. The app started as a community platform designed to help people connect.
“We created a community-based app where we would have discussions around things I called the four C's, which were: careers that were meaningful, conversations that could make a real difference … and connections — how do you get connections to open doors? — which ultimately lead to capital,” he says.
Over time, the app evolved to use AI to source diverse talent for companies' job openings in an inclusive way. It also provides a platform for recruiters to leverage AI to find the best talent more efficiently.
“You'd have the community on one side, then we would get job roles that would come in,” Marcus says. “We would then match those candidates for those positions, and we would do a process of sourcing, curation and introductions.” As the product evolved, Marcus and his team leaned heavily into AI to help match the right people to the right roles with a strong focus on inclusion.
Marcus envisions AI's role as shifting recruitment from being reactive to proactive, where technology is used not just for efficiency but as a strategic partner in the hiring process. AI and other technology should improve human interaction rather than replace it.
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Marcus Sawyerr: LinkedIn
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