How AI Talent Mapping Delivered 10× More Qualified Candidates

Faced with an aggressive hiring target and traditional agencies failing to deliver, DevTalent partnered with TechTree to take a new approach: AI-first sourcing.

This wasn’t about layering AI as an add-on to old processes. It was about rethinking sourcing entirely - using automation to identify, qualify, and rank candidates at a scale human recruiters simply can’t match.

Step One: Mapping the Talent Pool

Within days of engagement, TechTree’s AI agent autonomously scanned markets and surfaced 3,000+ potential candidates. Unlike manual approaches, this wasn’t about scraping names into a spreadsheet. The system analyzed candidate data across multiple dimensions to generate a precision shortlist.

How the Role-Fit Model Works

TechTree’s proprietary models ranked candidates against three key criteria:

1. Skill Match
   Beyond listing keywords, the AI evaluated technical depth in Java, Python, Kubernetes, and machine learning, ensuring candidates had the hands-on expertise needed.
   
   
2. Compensation Alignment
   Salary mismatches waste time. The AI factored in compensation expectations, aligning candidates with the fintech’s budget range.
   
   
3. Engagement Likelihood
   Drawing on behavioral signals, the system predicted which candidates were most likely to respond positively to outreach. This meant recruiters weren’t chasing ghosts.
   
   

Why This Outperforms Manual Sourcing

Traditional sourcing is painfully slow. Recruiters spend hours reviewing profiles, cross-checking skills, and sending outreach messages that may never be opened. Even the best manual sourcers are limited by time and human error.

By contrast, TechTree’s AI:

• Scales instantly — thousands of candidates mapped in hours, not weeks.
• Ranks intelligently — recruiters see the best-fit profiles first.
• Improves continuously — feedback from recruiter outcomes feeds back into the system.

This creates a sourcing engine that doesn’t just run once, but gets smarter over time.

The Impact on Recruiter Productivity

Far from replacing recruiters, AI sourcing elevated their role. Instead of wasting hours on research and screening, recruiters could spend their time on high-impact activities:

• Personalizing outreach.
• Conducting deeper candidate conversations.
• Guiding candidates through technical interviews.
• Partnering closely with hiring managers.

By outsourcing the “grunt work” of research and qualification, recruiters became strategic operators.

Candidate Experience Benefits

Candidates also benefitted. Instead of receiving irrelevant outreach, they were approached with roles tailored to their skills and career goals. That personalized fit created stronger interest, reduced drop-offs, and improved the employer brand.

In fact, one of the standout metrics of the project was the 90%+ candidate-to-interview rate, which simply wouldn’t have been possible if candidates weren’t aligned and engaged from the first contact.

KPIs That Matter

• 3,000+ profiles sourced in days.
• 10× throughput compared to manual sourcing.
• Ranked shortlists enabled recruiters to focus on the top 10–15% of candidates immediately.

This phase didn’t just deliver volume — it delivered precision at scale.

Lessons for TA Leaders

The AI-first sourcing model illustrates three key lessons:

1. Technology is a force multiplier. Recruiters can’t outpace AI at research — but they can use it to amplify results.
   
   
2. Data-driven shortlisting reduces waste. Less time screening poor-fit candidates means more time building relationships.
   
   
3. Candidate experience improves when fit improves. A more personalized first touch increases both response and acceptance rates.
   
   

The Transition to Engagement

By the end of the initial sourcing phase, DevTalent and TechTree had a mapped, ranked, and ready-to-go pipeline of thousands of candidates. The next challenge? Engaging them at speed.

That’s where TechTree’s 20-strong recruiter network came into play, driving outreach and creating a funnel that achieved 151 interviews out of 167 candidates introduced.

That story continues in Article 3: 20 Recruiters, Powered by AI: Scaling Engagement at Speed.