The "AI career coach called Bob" RE: DWP will use £1.3m robot to find people jobs in latest Universal Credit crackdown

Dear Department for Work and Pensions,

RE: DWP will use £1.3m robot to find people jobs in latest Universal Credit crackdown

Please provide the names, addresses of the specific Jobcentres the DWP intends to pilot this "AI career coach called Bob" in. Please also provide the names of the developers or contractors who created this "£1.3m robot", as well as a copy of the tender documents used to secure any contract to deliver the "AI program"

If possible please provide screenshots of the platform from a user perspective (staff and and your customers) and details of precisely what Jobcentre customers/claimants' personal data the DWP will use to operate and run it and whether such Jobcentre customers/claimants consent will be required for personal data to be used?

With regards any Privacy and Human Rights impacts of this DWP "AI program", please provide a copy of any assessment you or others have undertaken or other information you hold that refers to Privacy and Human Rights issues in regards this "AI program" and "AI career coach called Bob".

S. Gwilliam left an annotation (22 February 2022)

"Building on this information, the cutting-edge software will then make intelligent suggestions based on live local jobs market data. Using specialist algorithms, the AI service will recommend next steps, which could point jobseekers to a live vacancy or a local skills bootcamp to help unlock other careers and training opportunities."

That sounds exactly like the skills to job-matching computer algorithm used by the Work Programme some 8 or 9 years ago.
(Perhaps with the added step of pushing you for available jobs that you don't quite match).
Hardly cutting-edge, talk about reinventing the wheel.

The DWP said anyone on Universal Credit who refuses to use the new matchmaking system would not be sanctioned, ensuring the trial is a ‘jobs Robocop’ than a ‘benefits Terminator’.

People looking for work – at any age or stage – will be asked a series of questions about themselves and employment history in order to build an online job-seeking profile. Building on this information, the AI-powered system will then make suggestions based on live local jobs market data. Using specialist algorithms, the AI service will recommend next steps, which could point jobseekers to a live vacancy or a local skills bootcamp to help unlock other careers and training opportunities.

“We will not make taking part in this test mandatory for anyone. Universal Credit claimants would not be at risk of a sanction if they didn’t believe a service would be useful to them or decided not to use it for another reason.”

The government is partnering with three firms specialising in job-matching AI to deliver this trial – FutureFitAI, Bayes Impact, and UK jobs board Adzuna.

Bayes Impact will supply its AI career coach Bob, which provides personalised action plans for jobseekers to overcome barriers it identifies, for the trial. During the pilot, the company will use “additional labour market information to allow people to identify jobs in their area that are sustainable and future proof”.

Bob's coaching methodology is built on career coaches' expertise, extensive user research, and the latest insights from behavioral economics and positive psychology.

Absolut wrote:https://www.bayesimpact.org/en/bob

Bob's coaching methodology is built on career coaches' expertise, extensive user research, and the latest insights from behavioral economics and positive psychology.

 

Thanks for the link #Absolut. Seem like its going to put alot of Work Roach's out of a job?
If it gets off the ground .
"Sign & Sigh'...


Impact on job seekers
88%
satisfied with the relevance of Bob's job search advice

80%
report that Bob's advice is equally or more personalized than a human coach's advice

1 in 2
jobseekers report that Bob's coaching was a key factor in their job recovery

2x higher
open rate for Bob's coaching emails compared to the industry average

I really loved the way Bob works. The fact that it is trying to get to know you and your ambition in your career is great.


Scalable
With AI, there is no limit to the number of job seekers Bob can coach.