Why We're Thankful for a Great Applicant Tracking System

Thanksgiving is here! During our employee lunch today, we went around the table and talked about memorable Thanksgivings and what our favorite part of Thanksgiving was. For me, its not Thanksgiving without cranberry sauce, and when I say cranberry sauce, I mean the stuff straight out of the can. A few employees talked about their favorite pies, or being thankful for time with their families, while others mentioned being thankful for their job (smart employees).

All this talk about being thankful really got me thinking about how grateful I am for a good Applicant Tracking System. Other than the obvious reason I'm grateful for an ATS, I'm grateful because as I travel around I often hear from Hiring Professionals who don't really like the applicant tracking system they're using, and it tends to be because the system isn't that great. Whether ATS is not user friendly, or it's just not performing as well as they would like, there are a lot of applicant tracking systems out there that are simply not working right - making me especially grateful for a system that is doing exceptionally well.

If you're one of those people who really don't love your hiring software, don't write off all systems quite yet! Instead let me tell you what people who have a great Applicant Tracking system are grateful for, so you can see what other systems are capable of.

Video: Thankful for ATS

Applicant Tracking Systems Thankful List:

1. Reduction of time spent posting jobs.

If you have a great applicant tracking system that's functioning the way it should be, it is managing the posting of jobs to all sources of applicants! That means posting to more than just a couple of free job boards like Indeed, but all possible applicants sources like employee referrals, social media, and your company career website.

2. Number of applicants received from posted jobs.

Its been said that an applicant tracking provides anywhere from three to eight times more applicants than jobs posted without an ATS.

3. A great candidate experience.

This is one that not only will you be grateful for, but also your candidates will be grateful for. An ATS makes it easy for someone to apply, could help shorten up the application process and makes it easy to apply on mobile. Remember, a good application experience also boosts your employer brand.

4. An automated applicant screening process.

As we already discussed a great applicant tracking system will provide you with more applicants which can be overwhelming if you don't have automated screening questions set up. With an ATS you can automatically disqualify applicants who don't meet certain requirements leaving only the top most qualified candidates for you to filter through.

5. Easy distribution of applicants to hiring managers.

Once you've filtered through all the most qualified applicants, you need to get their applications out to the hiring managers to see. A good ATS allows for easy collaboration amongst hiring managers as there is one place for everyone to log into and view candidates.

6. Provides transparency to team.

To go right along with number five, a great ATS provides transparency across teams by creating one central location for all the managers to go to review applicants, leave notes, applicant status or even reject candidates.

7. Easy applicant reporting.

If you have an affirmative action plan, or even just a highly metrics driven company you know how important it is to keep reports readily available. With a great Applicant Tracking System all your reports are in one place easy for you to pull with just a few clicks of your mouse.

8. Awesome ATS support team.

This may be the last on my list but it's probably the most important element of a good applicant tracking system. A dedicated support team of hiring aficionados on call to help you through any system glitch or hiring question can really make or break a good ATS.

If you're currently not experiencing all these things it may be time for you to start looking for a new Applicant Tracking System. With the new year right around the corner, lets make it a New Year's Resolution to find the right Applicant Tracking System for your company.