Back when your essential laptop used to be considered a pen and pencil, there was no such thing as an ATS (Applicant Tracking System). Candidates would have to print out their resume and cover letter and present an application completely handwritten. This wasn’t the easiest thing for recruiters. They had to compile the information from each application and develop a sense of where they believed each candidate should be placed in the recruiting process. As the ideal way of managing the recruiting process became more difficult and technology began to catch up with ideas most people could only dream about, businesses began to shift in the direction of the ATS.
Time management is everyone’s concern throughout the week. Becoming overloaded with work causes an overwhelming increase in work hours. An ATS can fix the problem. With the use of an applicant tracking system, recruiting efforts for filling job positions is easier than ever.
Businesses can post open positions to job boards and customized career pages, organize and review incoming resumes and cover letters, schedule interviews, contact candidates through email and text message, develop job specific pre-screened questions and run reports for review-all while using one software system. So the real question is, why wouldn’t companies begin using an applicant tracking system?
Candidates applying to companies using a quality ATS also have an advantage. When filling out an application, candidates are typically registered into the applicant tracking system by creating an account using an email or phone number. Applicants providing this information are then granted a connection with the company, giving them avenues of communication and access to application status updates. Another important feature is applicant support. Pereless Systems, a provider of a specialized applicant tracking systems, offers applicant support for companies using Pereless hosted and managed career page sites. Candidates can submit a ticket if requiring assistance during the application process, which are then pushed immediately to the support team where they are answered efficiently and precisely. With this, organizations can be sure that all of the best candidates are receiving the support they need to successfully submit an application to fill open positions in a timely fashion.
Another important feature of an applicant tracking system is the ability to search candidate resumes for skill keywords. Recruiters use the ATS to develop and post an appropriate job title and description to grab the attention of prospective candidates. Then, the ATS user can search for specific keywords matching the description, singling out specific applicants who have the experience for the position and appear to be the right fit overall. For example, a recruiter is looking for a candidate who has applied for the position of being a full-time chef for a particular restaurant. Keywords for this job may include chef, restaurant, cooking, etc. If an applicant’s resume states that he has knowledge elsewhere such as in engineering or computer science, he obviously isn’t a qualified candidate for the job, and therefore won’t show up in the keyword search. This simplifies the recruiter’s process of sifting through new applicants and makes it easy to narrow down the search to the most qualified, practical choices.
Once you hire a new employee, a great way to welcome them to your company is by using an ATS offering an Onboarding Portal. Onboarding allows you to send new hires to a designated portal, introducing them to your company and allowing them to complete any necessary documentation. The Onboarding portal is a custom field which has the capability of containing reports such as company information, certain benefits, social media sites linked to the company’s account, training videos to enhance the employee’s knowledge, company policy, and messages relaying dress code, office hours and organizational tips. Current employees also have the chance to welcome new hires through message boards making them feel comfortable, appreciated and open to new faces. Finally, new hires have the ability to update EEO information if there has been any updates to their personal profile or contact. Even though this process does not apply to candidates and only employees, we see the reduction of cluttered files in the desk and an increase in organized files through the Onboarding Portal.
Applicant tracking systems have been around long enough that the regular apply process is now considered outdated. The more secure, steadfast, and dependable system of a recruitment software such as an applicant tracking system is the most reasonable way to bring in new hires. As technology becomes more advanced, the business world will see many improvements and changes to their ATS. As recruiters begin to shred all of those useless applications and feel bad about all the trees they might have killed, remember that the future with an ATS looks clearer than ever.
Written By: Nolan Pereless