“Stop Hiring Humans'' – Provocation Or Uncomfortable Truth?

“Stop hiring humans.”

 

It’s hard to imagine a more provocative slogan.

 

Launched by a San Francisco startup selling virtual salespeople, this tagline sparked a storm. Outrage, viral shares, heated debates—in just a few days, a local ad turned into a global talking point. A masterstroke that boosted the company’s visibility and revenue.

 

But behind the provocation lies an unsettling question: do we still hire humans today? For who they truly are? Or just for what they look like on paper? More importantly, do we ever go beyond the paper—the résumé?

 

Humans in Boxes

 

Modern recruitment has become a well-oiled machine. Formatted résumés, keyword-optimized applications, checkboxes in an ATS (Applicant Tracking System). More often than not, it’s the candidate who best understands these rules that gets through the filters.

 

The result? An efficient process—but also a graveyard for countless talents.

 

How many candidates are eliminated before they even get the chance to show who they really are? How many promising careers are derailed because a degree was missing or an experience didn’t match a job title perfectly?

 

And how can we ignore the fact that job requirements evolve—and that the candidate will be expected to adapt, learn, innovate, and go beyond their initial role?

 

We stopped believing in genius trapped in bottles long ago. So why keep believing in genius trapped in boxes?

 

 

Soft Skills: Unlocking the Boxes

 

What if the answer lies elsewhere? Beyond résumés. Beyond degrees. In seeing what truly makes us human.

 

➡️ Our ability to listen and understand.

➡️ Our talent for solving complex problems.

➡️ Our creativity and adaptability.

 

These soft skills are what make the difference in today’s shifting workplace. They enable us to navigate uncertainty, learn continuously, and collaborate across cultures and technologies.

 

And yet, they’re still treated as an afterthought—evaluated at the end of the process when they should be central from the very start.

 

 

Provocation as a Mirror

 

“Stop hiring humans” may not just be a provocation. It could be a mirror reflecting today’s hiring practices.

 

At what point do we actually see the human behind the résumé, behind the “application form”?

 

We know our recruitment methods are outdated.

We know they prioritize efficiency over humanity.

And we know there’s a better way.

 

So why cling to processes that keep repeating the same mistakes?

 

 

Redefining Humanity in Hiring

 

This debate goes beyond technology.

 

It questions our relationship with work, how we value talent, and whether we’re capable of recognizing the human behind the résumé.

 

Should we pit humans against machines? Or should we focus on valuing what machines will never replace?

 

Tools like fairception—designed to highlight soft skills and human potential—prove it’s possible to evaluate differently. To introduce a human perspective from the very first step.

 

This isn’t a step backward. It’s a reinvention.

 

 

Beyond the Boxes

 

The startup’s campaign achieved its goal: to provoke. But it also exposed a deep discomfort—a world of work that talks about being human-centered yet still hires based on rigid, outdated criteria.

 

So instead of being outraged, maybe it’s time to ask the real question:

 

How do we hire humans—for who they truly are?

 

Because once we step out of the boxes, we might just discover that the talent we need is already here. We just need to give it the space to exist.