The thought of overhauling your applicant tracking system (ATS) is potentially overwhelming, never mind expensive. In reality, your existing Enterprise Resource Planning software often comes with an ATS. Complicating matters, it's not uncommon for technology contracts to expire at different times.
Fortunately, it's possible to transform your existing ATS into something more powerful whether you use Workday, Taleo, Kenexa, Infor or another platform to deliver a top-notch candidate and recruiter experience, one that incorporates all data and actions in a single dashboard, increasing visibility, continuity and ease.
Where do you start?
With a technology overlay that pulls everything together in a single, unified dashboard. When done right, doing so can create a seamless application, nurturing and hiring process across all touchpoints. When SFX, for example, is overlaid atop your current ATS and candidate relationship management (CRM) software, while incorporating jobs as well, candidates encounter a personalized experience that conveys your Employer Brand, as well as data-fueled personalization that carries throughout the application process. The result is a boost in applicant completion rates and a decrease in candidate drop-off.
Improve the recruiter experience
It's not just candidates who benefit, though. On the recruiter side, there's clear visibility into the largely automated process. This bolsters productivity and transparency while informing hiring decisions with facts facts from built-in analytics. In the event a candidate starts the application process but fails to finish, a recruiter will know and can follow up with a templated but personalized-feeling Ñ email. Those nurturing capabilities coupled with a baked-in ability to remarket to job-seekers helps warm candidates up to your organization. It also helps to convert them to employees and lays the groundwork for employee activation since everyone feels good about the process and ultimately your brand.
Avoid the disadvantages of disjointed systems
This isn't to say there's anything wrong with your ATS or, as the case may be, your CRM software. They may just need a helping hand. Disjointed systems can end up being a black hole, causing you to lose or overlook valuable data. They can also fail to offer the kind of data-driven visibility that drives informed hiring and business decisions. As for the potentially poor candidate experience that ensues, it has the potential to damage your employer brand, waste recruiters' time and negatively impact your bottom line.
A final thought
At the end of the day, it's alright to appreciate your ATS platform for what it does best. The question is, does it deliver an effective, engaging experience for recruiters, internal candidates and external candidates alike? Because it can, and it should.
A single, unified portal streamlines and scales hiring workflows. It can also help bring your current ATS into the decision-making stream, while providing flexibility to add or update additional technologies without affecting integration to the ATS.
