Hiring groups can solely appeal to the perfect expertise by utilizing the perfect instruments. Moreover, you want software program that’s constructed on your hiring group’s distinctive wants. That’s the place an applicant monitoring system (ATS) is useful.
Recruiting groups use applicant monitoring techniques to handle job candidates and usher candidates by way of the hiring funnel. Nonetheless, the time period “ATS” will get tossed round a lot that it’s even used to label options that don’t match the precise ATS definition. This error leads expertise leaders to put money into the fallacious tech.
On this information, we’ll equip your group with the whole lot you might want to choose the perfect ATS, answering regularly requested questions, debunking ATS myths, and reviewing our really useful supplier.
Applicant monitoring system FAQ
What’s an applicant monitoring system?
An applicant monitoring system is a user-friendly resolution used to trace prime candidates—those that apply for job openings, in addition to passive prospects recruiters proactively interact for open roles—by way of all the recruiting course of: from resume-reviewing and interview-scheduling to feedback-compiling and offer-extension.
Take a look at the expertise acquisition (TA) tech stacks that Fortune 500 corporations use. For 99% of them, you’ll discover a best-in-class applicant monitoring system proper on the heart, serving to recruiters higher determine and interact certified candidates and expertise leaders analyze group efficiency.
What you gained’t discover of their tech stacks, although, are legacy ATS that deter environment friendly recruiting and hiring, stopping TA specialists from being extremely productive and collaborative. As Lever’s ATS purchaser’s information states:
“Outdated-school ATS assist recruiters evaluation purposes and resumes and transfer job seekers by way of the interview course of. Additionally they allow recruiters and different hiring stakeholders to rent for key roles. As soon as this course of is over, although, all that knowledge disappears right into a black gap (i.e., turns into inaccessible and unusable for expertise groups).”
A number one ATS is an indispensable recruitment and hiring platform that each group—no matter trade, dimension, or enterprise mannequin—must fill key positions throughout their corporations.
What are the misconceptions about applicant monitoring techniques?
When you’ve been within the expertise acquisition house for a while, you may already know the whole lot there’s to learn about ATS—or so that you assume! In actuality, you may need been misled by these ATS myths, however no worries—we’ve busted them for you.
- Synthetic intelligence (AI) dictates which candidates TA specialists interact. Whereas AI-powered ATS can display screen and rank candidates based mostly on their {qualifications}, the hiring group will nonetheless see all choices, that means they’ve the ultimate say and might attain out to anybody they deem appropriate.
- Recruiters attain out to prospects in bulk. ATS doesn’t bypass the resume evaluation step altogether. As a substitute, it permits hiring groups to tailor private, focused communications extra effectively.
- The only purpose of an ATS is to serve recruiters and TA professionals. In actuality, candidates have loads to realize from utilizing an ATS. ATS permits employers to nurture and join with candidates, making the method extra significant and fascinating for everybody concerned.
- Solely Fortune 500 corporations want an ATS. An ATS can profit all organizations, from small companies to multinational firms. You simply want to seek out the answer that greatest enhances your price range, wants, hiring fashion, and technological prowess.
Advantages of a super applicant monitoring system
For hiring groups
1. Unifies candidate knowledge and particulars
Reliance on disparate instruments and spreadsheets to retailer candidate info is a typical ache level for expertise acquisition groups worldwide. That stated, the fitting ATS is usually a single supply of reality and declutter your group’s workload.
The greatest ATS centralizes all knowledge factors and data associated to potential hires. This helps recruiters simply discern who’s who of their database and, thereby, know which prospects are price partaking for sure roles.
2. Streamlines and automates duties
Not each recruiting exercise might be placed on “autopilot” by way of automation. Nonetheless, you might be shocked by simply what number of of your group’s day by day duties might be automated, eliminating a lot of the tedious handbook labor concerned. As an example, ATS can robotically ship communications, remove duplicate knowledge, and schedule interviews based mostly on candidate availability.
An amazing ATS offers a contented medium between overly automated and overly handbook, ensuring you don’t compromise your human contact or useful time. Main ATS suppliers like Lever assist recruiters implement guidelines and workflows and, in flip, streamline their requisition, job posting, and supply approvals.
3. Improves communication and collaboration
Poor communication and a scarcity of communication between recruiters and hiring managers can result in missed objectives and frustration for group members all the best way as much as the C-suite.
That’s a central cause that the ATS got here to be. It ensures expertise specialists can liaise intently with different hiring stakeholders to remain on the identical web page about the whole lot, from which roles are prime precedence at a given second to the place candidates of curiosity are of their hiring funnel.
For candidates
1. Improves transparency
Always reaching out to unresponsive hiring groups (whether or not they’re slowed down with work or just have an outdated ATS) can really feel like pulling enamel for candidates and makes them much less more likely to settle for a proposal out of your group. Offering clear communication channels permits hiring groups to contact candidates extra simply, making all the course of extra clear.
2. Enhances position matching
Some candidates resolve to use to your group due to your values or popularity earlier than they even know which roles can be found. When you obtain normal purposes or a candidate applies for a number of positions, an ATS can match them with the perfect positions given their {qualifications}.
3. Is accessible on-the-go
Candidates are normally navigating a number of totally different utility processes directly, on prime of the opposite tasks they’ve of their on a regular basis lives. By utilizing an ATS that’s accessible on the go, candidates can conveniently keep up to date on the method and attain out to your hiring group with no need to place their cellphone down.
What options ought to a super ATS have?
Whereas ATS are thought-about important options for recruiters and hiring managers to make use of of their joint efforts to transform premier prospects into new hires, not all ATS are the identical.
When you’re trying into onboarding a number one ATS—ideally, one which additionally provides strong candidate relationship administration capabilities (CRM)—to exchange your present recruitment platform, you’d be sensible to put money into one that gives the under options and options.
Intuitive person interface (UI) to assist monitor duties/candidates
Any software program supplier, no matter their goal person base (e.g. recruiters, entrepreneurs, or gross sales representatives), is aware of the worth of a easy and navigable UI. It goes a great distance in serving to customers simply discover the screens, filters, and data that they should thrive with their duties. And but, not all of those distributors supply such an intuitive UI.
Any ATS you contemplate getting will need to have an intuitive, visually compelling UI constructed with recruiters in thoughts. You possibly can gauge an ATS UI by requesting a demo to expertise it your self or studying software program critiques from unbiased third events.
Job utility and resume evaluation function
As a hiring skilled, lots of your day by day actions revolve round reviewing resumes and matching candidates with the perfect position match. Your ATS ought to make the resume evaluation course of as simple and easy as attainable, serving to you advance candidates sooner whereas not compromising hiring high quality.
For instance, Lever’s ATS + CRM provides Quick Resume Assessment. This function permits recruiters to arrange expertise based mostly on whether or not the employer desires to skip them, archive their info for later, or advance them effectively with no need to pore over each element.
Potential to universally publish to key job boards
Many ATS join with common job boards like LinkedIn, Glassdoor, and Certainly, in addition to area of interest job communities like AngelList and GitHub. Nonetheless, not all ATS allow common posting to every of those platforms in a couple of easy clicks like Lever does.
Interview-scheduling and monitoring capabilities
Managing the interview schedules for each candidates and interview panelists was a nightmare for each recruiters charged with organizing the interview cycle and the candidates themselves.
That’s not the case anymore—so long as you’ve a top-rated ATS. As an example, Lever clients can use Straightforward E-book, which allows prospects to choose days and instances for interviews that align with openings in interviewers’ schedules, because of a direct sync with their digital calendars.
Analytics capabilities to trace all the funnel
Recruitment dashboards don’t should be overly granular and conceptual. Dashboards powered by the highest ATS monitor real-time progress for quite a few sides of the method, resembling pipeline development, job listings, open requisitions, operations, interviews scheduled, and provides prolonged/accepted.
Candidate expertise and DEI survey instruments
You already understand how vital range, fairness, and inclusion (DEI) is for recruitment and total organizational success, however placing DEI into observe by negating ingrained biases might be difficult.
Nonetheless, the fitting ATS might help you perceive the variety of your prospects by utilizing Bias Blocking expertise and amassing suggestions from candidates about how one can higher combine DEI into the hiring course of.
Constructed-in nurturing with customizable templates
As our talent-nurturing eBook for recruiters explains, “Properly-timed, bespoke communications with candidates has confirmed to be a aggressive differentiator for expertise acquisition groups.” However it’s solely a major differentiator with an ATS that has built-in nurture performance and pre-set templates you possibly can edit and reuse for a number of roles and groups.
Direct integration with different recruiting instruments
The perfect ATS combine with prime recruiting instruments that enable you to conduct background checks, gather e-signatures from new hires, liaise with interviewers, report video interviews, and execute different very important recruiting duties. As an example, Lever integrates with lots of the prime recruiting instruments in the marketplace to offer a seamless expertise on your group.
Learn how to choose an applicant monitoring system
Now that you just perceive why having a top-tier ATS is vital, you is perhaps questioning how to get began. Comply with these steps to seek out the perfect match on your group’s hiring wants.
1. Determine your necessities
You is perhaps tempted to decide on the ATS that has essentially the most options, however investing in additional options than you want can current challenges to your hiring group. To maintain your prices low and your workflow optimized, you want an answer that intently adheres to your wants. Earlier than you make any large shopping for selections, sit down along with your group and resolve:
- Your price range
- The time you’ve accessible for implementation
- What number of seats you’ll want
- What options are crucial based mostly on hiring priorities
- Person expertise
Nailing down your nonnegotiables from the outset lets you keep targeted and discover the fitting resolution effectively. That stated, making certain group cohesion is equally vital. Seek the advice of all vital events through the planning course of, together with your hiring group, center managers, and even the C-Suite, so that you get well-rounded views of what it is best to prioritize.
2. Take into account integration capabilities
Your ATS will turn out to be a significant element of your day by day operations, so it ought to slot in seamlessly with the construction and instruments that work greatest on your hiring groups. That’s the place software program integrations come into play. When you’ve got present instruments that work effectively, the perfect ATS ought to combine with them so that you don’t should spend intensive time transferring knowledge between techniques.
To search out details about integration potential, go straight to the supply on the supplier’s web site. For instance, right here’s how yow will discover out if Lever integrates along with your instruments utilizing their recruiting instruments information:
- Navigate to the Companions web page. That is the primary search web page for all of our integration companions.
- Use the collections and classes tabs. These tabs assist you to sift by way of the whole database, filtering to the instruments you want. Use key phrases to categorize outcomes by normal standards, resembling options or reputation, or recruitment-specific classes.
- Analysis the device. Earlier than you make any selections, completely evaluation every device’s integration course of, licensing phrases, and capabilities, so that you choose the fitting one.
- Learn activation directions. When you resolve on a recruiting device, you can begin the activation course of. Click on the “Be taught Extra” button in every integration’s itemizing to evaluation detailed activation directions.
Each ATS is totally different, however they need to have the same market search device—if not, they may not have an intensive integration catalog.
3. Request demos
No person is aware of your group’s preferences and strengths higher than you, which makes making an attempt the system by way of demos one of the vital vital elements of the decision-making course of. You’ll doubtless both have a guided demo or a trial interval to check the system. Regardless, it is best to intention to reply the next questions on person expertise:
- Are the reporting dashboards simple and helpful?
- Are workflows customizable to funnel place?
- Are you able to simply search and filter by way of candidate data?
- Are you able to talk effectively with group members?
- Are candidate-facing components responsive?
When you’ve answered these questions, it is best to have a good suggestion of whether or not the ATS is practical on each your finish and your candidates’.
4. Learn critiques and search exterior suggestions
Whereas company-provided sources and demos are extraordinarily vital, they may not inform the entire story or communicate to your group’s distinctive scenario. Flip to your friends to get trustworthy, holistic critiques in regards to the resolution, drawbacks and all. You possibly can both ask your connections in your trade for his or her suggestions or use a software program evaluation web site like Capterra.
5. Take into account safety, scalability, and assist
These options deserve their very own part due to how vital they’re to your long-term success. Earlier than signing any contracts, guarantee your resolution can develop with your corporation, defend vital info, and supply assist sources so you possibly can simply prepare new group members. Actually, it’s price asking the gross sales group or demo chief straight if the ATS provides these options so you already know if it’s an excellent match indisputably.
Adopting an ATS can really feel like an amazing choice, however for those who comply with the following tips, you’ll discover the perfect resolution on your hiring objectives and challenges. Obtain our full ATS Purchaser’s Information to get insights into the eight particular steps you and your group should take to pinpoint the fitting recruiting platform on your expertise group.
