AI is making it easier for professionals to polish how they come across. At the same time, mid-senior specialist consultants across the insurance and technology sectors say that when everyone has access to the same tools, CVs, outreach and even personal branding can sound generic, making it harder for qualified mid-senior candidates to stand out.
See perspectives from our specialists in New York and Philadelphia:
Melanie Whittaker, Principal Consultant, Data & AI- Philadelphia:
"Resumes, cover letters and outreach messages increasingly share the same smooth, generic tone. Hiring managers notice and often discount it. A plain, specific sentence about what someone built with quantifiable metrics stands out more than a polished paragraph. In interviews, candidates are better prepared than ever; their answers are often well structured. The gap shows up on follow-up questions. Clients are adapting by asking candidates to walk through a specific project in detail, explain trade-offs they made, or work through a problem live. Depth is the thing that cannot be artificial.
When it comes to day-to-day interactions, communication is faster and more asynchronous, with AI-written summaries, notes, and updates. The trade-off is lost in nuance. As a result, real conversations like calls, voice notes, and face-to-face meetings carry far more weight than they have before because they show how someone actually thinks. My biggest takeaway would be AI makes it easier to look qualified, so the value of human verification, honest conversation and context goes up for both candidates and clients."
Paula Coughlan, Principal Consultant, Actuarial - New York:
"I’ve noticed that written communication can sometimes feel more generic or overly polished, so authenticity stands out more. Candidates who can speak naturally about their experience and give specific, real examples tend to make a stronger impression.
From the client side, there’s also more emphasis on communication skills. If you’re using AI to produce analysis, you still need to be able to explain the results to an underwriter, client, or senior stakeholder and have a conversation around what the data actually means.
In interviews, clients are asking more follow-up questions and digging deeper into candidates’ thought processes to make sure they genuinely understand what they’re saying, rather than just giving a polished answer. AI can definitely help with preparation, but it can’t replace being able to have a good conversation, ask thoughtful questions, and communicate clearly with people."
Shakara Rose, Senior Principal, Data & AI - New York:
"This is probably one of the biggest changes I’ve noticed as a recruiter. You can tell that more people are using AI to help with CVs, LinkedIn profiles, cover letters and even interview preparation, so everything can sound very polished now. The challenge is that polished doesn’t necessarily mean experienced.
I’ve found myself going much deeper into conversations with candidates. Rather than just taking what’s written on a CV at face value, I want to understand what they actually did, what was their involvement, what decisions did they make, what went wrong and what was the outcome?"
Callum Stainer, Principal Consultant, Data & AI- Philadelphia:
"Candidate CVs and outreach increasingly read as AI-polished, and clients are pushing back by asking more scenario-based questions (e.g., examples of deals they’ve closed/ their value), plus unscripted interview questions to see how someone actually thinks. Genuine, specific communication stands out more than ever against a noisier backdrop of templated, AI generated content. Especially when recruiting sellers, because a lot of people can talk the talk but not walk the walk!"
Lediana Domi, Consultant, Data & AI - New York:
"CVs are a lot more polished now, but they're also starting to sound alike. Because of that, the interview matters more than ever, since it's where you get a real sense of how someone thinks. The candidates who stand out are the ones who are open about how they use AI but can clearly talk about their own experience. Day to day, a quick, genuine message usually goes further than a perfectly worded one."
Dylan Hayes, Principal Consultant, Underwriting - New York:
"Candidates are using AI more in resumes, outreach and interview preparation, so it can sometimes make everyone sound a little too polished or generic. In the Underwriting space, I’m seeing more value placed on being able to explain your actual book, appetite, authority, and decision making rather than just giving a polished answer. Day to day, AI is also changing how people communicate by making things faster, but good relationships is what Underwriting is rooted in. Relationships with brokers, agents, and hiring managers still depend on personal connections and real conversations."
