Recruitment process outsourcing (RPO) buyers have demanded better technology for years. Everest Group research found that buyers prioritize process improvement, quality candidate experience, analytics, and cost reductions. However, traditional recruitment technology failed to deliver on these demands. Applicant tracking systems sped things up, but left candidates in the dark. Chatbots answered questions 24/7 but frustrated people with terrible conversations. In 2024, only 26 percent of HR professionals used AI, according to SHRM. The gap between buyer expectations and available solutions continued.
AI agent systems now close this gap. At the 2025 Annual RPOA Conference, the leading industry conference for recruitment process outsourcing (RPO) leaders and their industry partners, Stanislaw Wasowicz, co-founder of Scotty AI, an innovator in AI recruiting that frees humans to do strategic work that matters, showed how companies use AI agent networks. These systems run complete hiring processes from job posting through the first day while making candidates happier than human recruiters do. This post explores how multi-agent systems eliminate the speed-versus-quality tradeoff, deliver dramatic cost reductions while improving outcomes, and create opportunities for RPOs that master AI before customers build it themselves.
Major takeaways for RPO executives and senior TA leaders:
Multi-agent systems beat chatbots by using specialized AI workers that coordinate across platforms, comply with international regulations, and demonstrate superior judgment in routine conversations while maintaining consistent empathy.
European deployments show AI agents transforming core RPO economics by simultaneously engaging candidates, automating job matching, reducing ghosting rates, and achieving exceptional satisfaction scores across hundreds of thousands of conversations.
Three high-value opportunities exist for RPOs:
- Helping customers redesign hiring processes for an agentic era
- Implementing AI systems that integrate with existing technology infrastructure
- Building proprietary AI products rather than solely reselling vendor solutions
Multi-Agent Systems Replace Single-Purpose Chatbots
Wasowicz described traditional chatbots as a terrible compromise technology that delivers a poor candidate experience. Multi-agent systems function as specialized AI workers that coordinate complex workflows, he explained. They talk naturally in 47 languages. Voice systems use Gemini Flash for quick responses, while text screening employs Claude for better judgment.
SHRM's 2025 Talent Trends study of 2,040 HR professionals found 43 percent now use AI, up from 26 percent in 2024. Among users, 51 percent apply AI specifically for recruiting. Eighty-nine percent report time savings and efficiency gains.
Crisis Mobilization Demonstrates Simultaneous Candidate Contact
Wasowicz described how a Dutch RPO used AI agents to contact 200,000 candidates simultaneously when the government needed military reservists fast. In 12 hours, the system completed 25,000 conversations and secured 5,201 hires through phone calls, voicemail and WhatsApp, he reported. Human recruiters working the same assignment contacted 1,000 people and made 40 hires. That's a four percent conversion rate. AI agents achieved 21 percent by customizing messages for each person.
Retail Deployment Gathers Location-Specific Intelligence
According to Wasowicz, HEMA, a retail chain that makes daily life better, easier and more fun, operates 700 stores across six countries with 225 store managers responsible for hiring. The company reduced its central recruiting team from 25 to five people by providing managers AI recruiting partners available 24/7. Wasowicz reported the deployment saved $1.2 million in payroll costs while freeing five hours per store for customer service. The system gathers intelligence by calling all 700 store managers simultaneously, asking what makes each location unique within the company framework, he explained.
Facilities Management Prevents Contract Penalties Through AI
Wasowicz described how facility services company with world-leading tech and expertise, created an AI recruiter that completed 5,250 hires in six months. The system saved $1 million in payroll. More significantly, it identified $2.4 million in additional revenue by preventing service level agreement violations at airports and stadiums, he said. Unfilled security positions trigger contract penalties. The AI costs $46,000 for 5,250 hires using outcome-based pricing, where providers charge per successful conversation rather than usage volume.
AI Recruiting Agents Achieve Exceptional Satisfaction Ratings
Wasowicz reported that 91 percent of candidates rated AI conversations with four or five stars across 250,000 interactions, including 36,000 rejections. Candidates value speed and clarity over human contact for routine tasks. Scheduling that required four days now completes in five minutes for 70 percent of applicants, he said.
Gartner's Q1 2025 study of 2,918 job seekers found that 52 percent believe AI screens their applications. However, only 26 percent trust that AI will evaluate them fairly. An additional 32 percent express concern that AI may fail them in their applications. This trust gap creates opportunities for RPOs that deploy AI transparently with human oversight, Wasowicz noted.
Cross-Selling Automation Converts Rejected Candidates
According to Wasowicz, Dutch Post's AI automatically suggests alternative positions to candidates who fail to qualify for their initial application. The system achieves 18 percent conversion that human recruiters cannot match due to knowledge and time constraints. When an 18-year-old applies for a delivery job in the Netherlands that requires applicants to be 21, the AI completes the entire screening conversation. It then informs the candidate they don't qualify for that position, but asks whether they would be interested in alternative jobs they are qualified for. The system suggests three other positions based on location and pay requirements with 80 percent success, he explained.
Wasowicz said automated follow-up prevents candidates from falling through cracks in manual processes. Dutch Post's ghosting dropped from 49 percent to 21 percent. This significantly impacts advertising budgets, as the company now hires the same volume with half the previous spending, he reported.
Three High-Value Opportunities for RPO Growth
Wasowicz described three extremely high-demand opportunities where RPOs can generate significant revenue and impact over the next decade:
Process redesign consulting helps companies transform workflows for an agentic era, Wasowicz explained. Customers struggle to navigate AI implementation without guidance.Implementation services integrate AI agents with existing technology infrastructure while ensuring regulatory compliance across jurisdictions, he said. Organizations need partners who understand both AI capabilities and legal requirements.
Proprietary technology development enables RPOs to build their own AI products rather than resell others' tools, according to Wasowicz. This creates differentiation in the market. Leading RPO providers have recently pursued this build-partner-buy approach.
Market Conditions Favor Early AI Adopters
McKinsey's January 2025 survey of 3,613 employees and 238 executives found 92 percent of companies plan to increase AI investment over the next three years. Meanwhile, 47 percent of C-suite leaders believe their organizations move too slowly in adopting AI. PwC's analysis of 1 billion job advertisements shows that 88 percent of executives plan to boost AI budgets over the next 12 months. This creates immediate opportunities for RPOs that develop expertise while customers remain uncertain, according to Wasowicz.
“A one-person recruiting firm now possesses Randstad's sourcing power through AI. Processing speed, delivery capacity and barriers to entry no longer favor large established players. Companies can implement AI recruiting agents for thousands of dollars instead of millions. This means RPOs cannot rely on scale advantages to defend market position.
Strategic Action Determines Competitive Position
The historical compromise between speed and quality that defined recruitment for decades no longer constrains organizations deploying multi-agent AI systems, Wasowicz explained. European RPOs transform operations through automation that addresses the exact challenges buyers identified in 2023 research. They deliver better technology effectiveness, superior candidate and recruiter experience, and measurable cost reductions, he said.
The case studies demonstrate outcomes that human-led processes cannot replicate at scale, according to Wasowicz. Recruitment process outsourcing providers (RPOs) face clear choices. Those that pivot toward process redesign consulting, implementation services, and proprietary technology development will capture high-value opportunities while competitors lose relevance. Organizations that experiment now, build AI literacy across teams, and develop owned intellectual property will shape recruitment's future. Slow movers face commoditization or displacement from customers who internalize AI recruiting functions, he concluded.
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