Majority of Job Seekers Open to Ditching Resumes for AI-Driven Hiring Process

Criteria Corp's annual Candidate Experience Report reveals candidates' perspective on the changing job market

Published on Mar. 10, 2026

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According to Criteria Corp's eighth annual Candidate Experience Report, a majority (68%) of the 2,500 job seekers surveyed are open to forgoing traditional resumes in favor of a hiring process focused on assessments and structured interviews, as the resume is seen as less valuable in the age of AI. The report also found that only 20% of job seekers feel optimistic about this year's job market, down 12 percentage points from last year.

Why it matters

As the job market continues to evolve with technological advancements and other societal changes, understanding the perspective of job seekers is crucial for hiring professionals and business leaders to adapt their practices and meet candidate expectations.

The details

The in-depth report from Criteria Corp, a leader in talent solutions, surveyed over 2,500 global job seekers across multiple industries. Key findings include that 68% of job seekers are willing to ditch the resume in favor of a process focused on science-based assessments and structured interviews, as the resume is seen as less valuable in the age of AI. Additionally, 49% of job seekers say competition is too high, and only 20% feel optimistic about this year's job market, down 12 percentage points from last year.

  • The report was released on March 10, 2026.

The players

Criteria Corp

A leader in talent solutions that empowers companies to hire and develop top talent with assessments, interviews and employee development resources.

Josh Millet

Co-founder and CEO of Criteria Corp.

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What they’re saying

“The resume was built for a different era of work. Today, candidates can generate perfect resumes in seconds using AI, which means hiring teams need better ways to evaluate talent. The future of hiring will rely less on what looks good on paper and more on objective signals that show how someone will actually perform.”

— Josh Millet, Co-founder and CEO (Criteria Corp)

The takeaway

As the job market continues to be impacted by technological advancements, hiring professionals and business leaders must adapt their practices to meet the evolving expectations of job seekers, who are increasingly open to forgoing traditional resumes in favor of more predictive talent assessment methods.