Job applications are now more accessible to applicants all over the world because of the internet. This also allows companies to have access to a massive pool of applicants but there’s a disadvantage. A massive pool of applicants doesn’t mean they’re all qualified or top-tier talents. Now, recruiters need to jump in there and find the needle in the haystack. On the bright side, there is a high likelihood of finding that needle in there unlike before.

Fortunately, there are now various types of recruitment software that can help recruiters. Applicant tracking system , CRM, and interview software can all help streamline your company’s recruitment process. A comprehensive system can eliminate duplicate data entries and siloed information in emails. It will greatly improve the recruitment methods that HR uses to gather talent pools.

Hence, choosing the right recruitment software for your agency or company is important! It can be a tech stack that complements your company’s needs instead of one software. Keep in mind that each type of recruitment software has its specialty. That’s why you need to understand what your company needs to succeed!

What is the Difference Between Recruitment Software and ATS?

Generally, the terms recruitment software and applicant tracking system are interchangeable. However, while ATS is recruitment software, not all recruitment software is ATS. It’s just another recruitment platform among many that can help simplify your hiring process. However, the best applicant tracking system has most of what you need to streamline your recruitment process.

Recruitment software is more of an umbrella term for different kinds of software for that purpose. Aside from ATS, candidate relationship management is another example. It specializes in building meaningful relationships with candidates. 

Another type is resume spiders which is a sourcing software that looks for resumes online. All of these count as recruitment software and you can use any or all of them depending on your needs.

The question is how do you know which of these you need and how will you choose? We’ll discuss the different things you should consider when choosing a good recruitment software. That way, you’ll have an idea of how you can choose a good recruitment software for your agency. 

Let’s face it, there are several good recruitment software out there but they’ll only shine if you use them right. 

What to Consider When Looking for Good Recruitment Software?

1. Understand the Challenges Your Recruitment Team Faces

Recruitment teams usually consist of a mix of recruiters, hiring managers, and clients. All of them have different responsibilities, perspectives, and priorities. On one end, that can be greatly beneficial in choosing the best candidates. On the other hand, they can also run into different challenges that will need to be addressed.

There are a few challenges that modern recruiters encounter, like struggling to streamline the process. With the mix of people in the team, you’d want the system to be smooth. A streamlined recruitment process makes every stage of the hiring pipeline. 

Recruiters also spend a lot of time on manual and repetitive tasks like resume parsing. Screening and manually posting job positions on job boards are also tasks that can be automated. This results in a slower recruitment process and missed opportunities to procure top talent.

Lack of automation leads to poor candidate experience which can make your company look bad. Automated processes will allow you to update your candidates about their progress. If a candidate is disqualified, you can share the interviewer’s feedback and send updates. Candidates appreciate it when you don’t ghost them even if they failed the interview.

The last challenge that recruitment teams encounter is poor analytics and a lack of data. If you can’t see the full picture, it’ll be difficult to make big decisions accurately. How do you know what to improve if you don’t have the figures in front of you? How will you know which tools to get if you can’t accurately find the source of the problem? Luckily, good recruitment software can make automated reports for data-driven decisions.

2. Identify What Software Features You Need

If you’re trying to work more efficiently, you’d value software that automates many tasks. These are posting on job boards and accomplishing the tedious recruiting activities. That kind of software has high user adoption rates because it’s also user-friendly. It should be able to give you clear and visual data points about your hiring process. Another feature is having excellent customer service so your issues will be resolved quicker.

We advise talking to your team early about what they think your company needs. Ask them about their daily operations, core requirements, and key tasks they accomplish. That way, you can avoid buying bloated recruitment software filled with unnecessary features. That will only put an unnecessary dent in your budget and add to your team’s challenges.

Ideally, you’d want your recruitment software to have the following features:

• Job boards and social media integration
• Talent pool collection
• Sourcing extension
• Automation
• Analytics
• Advanced search capabilities
• Fast customer support

3. Implement a Budget for the Software

Recruitment software costs vary and to have a better background, you’d want to do some research. Collect data and screen through different recruitment software to set a budget. To give you an idea, however, most software offers pay-per-recruiter models. This means you’ll need to pay per user every month, ranging from $50-$150.

As a precaution, make sure there aren’t any hidden charges with the software. Only pay for features that you’re getting, so if there’s a fine print, you need to read it. Other than that, it’s simple to implement a budget for your recruitment software.

Concluding thoughts…

Good recruitment software will help simplify your hiring process to make it easier for your team. It also automates different tasks that you’d normally do manually as screening and parsing resumes. Software like an applicant tracking system will centralize and organize applicant data for you. No duplicate entries and fewer human errors that can make the data confusing.

It’s important to identify the challenges that your team encounters during the hiring process. Do they need better communication or a more streamlined system? Are they too inefficient and lacking in automated processes or need better analytics? Once you’ve identified the issues, you can look for the perfect recruitment software for your agency.

“Hiring is the most important people function you have, and most of us aren’t as good at it as we think. Refocusing your resources on hiring better will have a higher return than almost any training program you can develop.”  –  Laszlo Bock

The ongoing pressure to fill positions while setting new goals for the upcoming year can certainly dampen your New Year’s celebrations.

The never-ending cyclical nature of different professions requires recruiters to apply some novel solutions. There are many obstacles to overcome from not meeting the candidates’ expected remuneration to juggling with the long notice periods.

On top of all that, taking weeks to complete the in-person interviews makes the recruitment process tediously long. The best companies develop a world-class talent acquisition process with a high degree of professionalism and a clear set of protocols.

Let’s take a look at some of these smart recruitment hacks:

1 – Brand yourself – The simple concept is if you don’t let people know your story, they will make it for you. Before the candidates make a story of your business, take the lead and narrate one. The whole idea is to give candidates an insight into your professionalism and position in the marketplace. This is somewhat similar to representing yourself as a leading brand in your domain. Having an intuitive website’s career page was the approach taken around a decade ago. Now, it’s about taking the initiative and sharing your business profile and corporate videos with the candidates to give them a clear idea about your business.

2 – Make the process transparent – You need to keep the candidate engaged and confident in the recruitment process. This can be done by joining hands with an IT recruitment firm like sourced.nz or others. This way, you can keep an intermediate between two parties (you and the candidate), making communication swift and smooth for both. The best part is that the recruitment process does not hamper your overall operational proficiency.

3 – Develop networks – The ultimate key to recruiting the best talent is to develop a solid and widespread network in relevant markets. This happens when you scale up your networking skills and learn to create new relationships in the industry. One of the easiest ways is to create and join communities. There are several online communities on social networking channels. Such networks become a great source to let candidates know about your company, background, and other valuable insights. Of course, this also helps build a never-ending pipeline of candidates to consider whenever required.

4 – Set recruitment bars and process – When it comes to setting a detailed recruitment process, you need to consider having a word with different organisation segments. Here, we are talking about a detailed discussion among the department heads, management team, and the talent acquisition department in the office. This is an ideal approach to meeting everyone’s expectations without compromising their convenience and workflow. One of the biggest examples is – HRs (human resources) sending assignments to candidates. This lets the candidate have ample time to give the best shot without getting in the way of employer’s time and work.

5 – Learn the art of predictive analytics – In this regard, Peter Weddle, CEO of TAtech.org, says, “Employers have to be able to assess the probable yield of a recruitment ad in a certain location, among a certain demographic or at one salary point vs. another, and then instantaneously measure the results and make changes to that ad placement and content on the fly”

The talent acquisition team should consider framing a series of HR metrics to decide the credibility of candidates. This can be done on the basis of parameters like salary expectations, experience, niche, project-handled history, industry type, previous employers’ and much more. The idea is to put multiple filters and keep the recruitment process short and effective for all (candidates, management, and recruiters).

A great way to facilitate the filtering process is through online Recruiting CRM software. Recruitment CRM software enables talent sourcing managers to effectively identify and isolate the best candidates for a job opening by filtering through large pools of applicants based on their qualifications, experience, and other relevant factors to select the most qualified candidates. It also helps to effectively keep track of all the interactions and negotiations with candidates, automate various tasks, and analyze the data to make more informed decisions.  Additionally, recruiting CRM software can be helpful to companies that need to keep track of large volumes of resumes and job applications and analyze recruitment data such as candidate sources, time-to-hire, and cost-per-hire, providing valuable insights to optimize the recruitment process. This software is designed to help individual recruiters or small to mid-sized businesses manage and streamline their recruitment processes and result in more hires.

6 – The personal touch – Technology has given us many tech-driven methods and approaches to facilitate the overall recruitment process. But there is nothing better than a personal touch that facilitates a sense of trust and confidence between both parties.  Above all, don’t forget that the market is overloaded with different opportunities. Minor negligence can result in losing a potential candidate forever.

7 – Simplify the job application process – Online applications are the first interaction that potential candidates have with a future employer. If you believe in creating a positive first impression, make everything as engaging and simple as possible for your potential applicants.