7 Prominent Benefits of Using an Applicant Tracking System

1. 7 Prominent Benefits of Using an Applicant Tracking System

2. The U.S. Department of Labor reports that the average amount of time workers stay with a particular employer is 4.6 years. Considering the span of a professional career, 4.6 years is a startlingly short amount of time. Add to that the fact that, among workers 25 to 34 years of age, the figure drops to just 3 years, and it becomes clear why talent sourcing remains a top priority for thriving organizations.

3. According to a recent DHI Group survey, 74 percent of hiring professionals in 2015 indicate that sourcing talent is more important than it was just a year ago. In the same survey, 45 percent of hiring managers say that the time it takes to fill an open position has increased since last year. When queried as to why it takes longer to fill a position than it previously did, 53 percent of hiring managers listed the reason as an inability to find qualified professionals. The way to meet the challenge presented by the gap left when professionals seek other opportunities is to have a healthy pipeline of qualified professionals ready when a position becomes available. An applicant tracking system is an ideal tool to accomplish this. It is that time in the recruitment sphere to have streamlined and agile processes that enable recruiters to concentrate and spend more time on what matters the most when it comes to attracting top talent. It is time for recruiters to use an automatic mechanism that assists in digitalizing and centralizing all the information of the candidates in a single platform. It should even assist in conducting an initial screening of the upcoming applications and selecting the best candidates.

4. How Does an ATS Help Staffing Agencies and Recruiters? An ATS is primarily designed to help with staffing and recruitment. Here’s how: • It Saves Time – An ATS helps recruiters filter through the waves of talent pouring in without spending extra time on manually screening candidates. It can save about 20% of the time needed for hiring! • It Saves Energy – Recruiters breathe easy when an ATS does the sifting and sorting for them, and the feeling of “resume overload” is avoided. The software scans and separates top candidates with a grading system, or even custom filters! • It Saves Money – Investing in a good ATS will greatly cut down the cost of posting job advertisements and agency fees. It also reduces the resources for hiring and recruitment needed within the company. • It Saves Resources – When you have cloud-based recruitment software set up in your company, your team can work from anywhere and at any time. As long as they have access to the Internet, they could even use their smartphone to work! If you are still not sure about employing an applicant tracking system for streamlining your recruitment process look at some of the benefits of using an ATS which will surely change your stand and help you make the wise decision.

5. Screens quality resumes in the least possible time Every recruiter would agree to the fact that it becomes overwhelming for them to manually screen every incoming application for an open position. It has been estimated that each job offer receives on an average 250 applications. It is, therefore, a heavy workload for the recruiters as they have to shortlist 4 to 6 candidates that end up in the face-to-face interview. An applicant tracking system (ATS) automates this process by initial screening of all the applications with the help of algorithms that match candidates as per the job requirement. Those resumes that do not meet the job requirement are rejected and the rest are ranked according to the qualification for the open position. This ensures that the recruiters do not waste time in screening unsuitable candidates and getting too tired in shortlisting the right resumes.

6. Screens quality resumes in the least possible time Every recruiter would agree to the fact that it becomes overwhelming for them to manually screen every incoming application for an open position. It has been estimated that each job offer receives on an average 250 applications. It is, therefore, a heavy workload for the recruiters as they have to shortlist 4 to 6 candidates that end up in the face-to-face interview. An applicant tracking system (ATS) automates this process by initial screening of all the applications with the help of algorithms that match candidates as per the job requirement. Those resumes that do not meet the job requirement are rejected and the rest are ranked according to the qualification for the open position. This ensures that the recruiters do not waste time in screening unsuitable candidates and getting too tired in shortlisting the right resumes.

7. Promotes collaborative hiring An applicant tracking system (ATS) comes with amazing features that promote collaborative hiring. It is possible for HR teams to share notes and candidate ratings quickly and easily with other team members of the recruitment team. This makes it easier to take collective decisions where every recruiter in the team has their say. One of the benefits of collaborative hiring for organizations is that it ensures that there is a more diverse and successful hiring team which ensures the hiring of the right talent. Improves the quality of hire Using an applicant tracking system (ATS) can improve the quality of hire. There are various reasons for that to happen. For example; with the help of the automated screening of resumes, recruiters can concentrate on getting involved with only talented candidates that are perfect for the open position. An ATS can automate the administrative tasks of recruiters that gives them enough time to select the right talent. This means that they have enough time to collect more information and make comprehensive assessments of the candidate before taking the final hiring decision.

8. Creates an efficient workflow for the recruiters An ATS has all the information pertaining to the candidates in a centralized location and organized in a single platform. This gives enough opportunity for the recruiters to get faster access to the information for the quicker hiring process. It even automates the communication which makes it easier for the recruiters to have quick follow-up and to move the candidate to the next hiring steps. Overall, an applicant tracking system (ATS) ensures recruiters are able to develop and execute a more efficient workflow. Boosts employer brand The key to strengthening the employer brand of your organization, it is important to have a consistent and engaging recruitment process. With the help of an ATS, it is possible for you to attract and engage more candidates. With the features like fully integrated career pages in ATS, it is possible for you to impress the candidates and improve your talent pipeline.

9. Improves the candidate experience On top of making the hiring process efficient, an applicant tracking system (ATS) ensures that candidates have a positive experience during the hiring process. This is done by providing shorter and easier ways to apply for the open position on mobile devices, having a career page which provides useful information pertaining to open positions that is simple to apply by containing easy search options for the positions and very simple and short application process. Also with the help of email communications, a recruiter can easily send follow-ups to the candidates during the interview process, thereby keeping them in the loop regarding the open position. This way an applicant tracking system improves the candidate experience during the entire hiring process. Onboarding Aid After a candidate has been selected for hire, most applicant tracking systems make it easy for companies to transfer information from the application or resume to a new employee file without the need for double entry. This can help to prevent errors and can allow hiring managers to spend their time on more meaningful tasks, like beginning the training process. Seamlessly integrated systems may allow employees to move right from the hiring phase into the onboarding and training phase with ease.

10. The Bottom Line With all these advantages in mind, integrating ATS solutions into your hiring processes could help strengthen your recruitment processes and attract and hire quality employees. It is no doubt those organizations that are using this automated software for recruitment purposes are improving their hiring efficiency by making better and faster recruitment. If you are looking for an efficient applicant tracking system (ATS) for your recruitment needs and think no further than TalentNow’s RecruitX. It is a SAAS based ATS product that has been developed specifically for recruitment agencies and staffing companies.