How Automation is Changing the Talent Game with Stuart Potter, ARU

Episode notes

In a tight labour market, employers can’t afford slow, unclear hiring - yet moving fast without fairness creates risk, bias, and damage to your employer brand. In this episode of the HRchat Podcast, Bill Banham welcomes Stuart Potter , Senior Lecturer at Anglia Ruskin University and contributor to digital skills initiatives supporting SMEs, to explore the real-world use of AI, automation, and employer branding in modern hiring. Ahead of the Peterborough AI Summit at ARU , Stuart shares where AI can genuinely add value in HR and recruiting - such as screening support, scheduling, assessments, and candidate communication - and where human judgement must remain in charge. Stuart also shares simple, practical guardrails for ethical AI: disclose AI use, keep people as final decision-makers, and audit outcomes for bias. We also discuss how automation is reshaping early career pathways, what graduates need to prove now that entry-level “busywork” is disappearing, and how employers can attract emerging talent by showcasing mentorship, growth, and meaningful work.