How to Select Applicant Tracking Systems
There are hundreds of Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) to choose from. Human resources professionals, business owners and recruiters can face a difficult decision when trying to implement a new ATS system for their business or department. As you research various ATS products and services, you may get bogged down with information and find that making a decision becomes more difficult with every new system you investigate. The following steps can help simplify the process.
Other People Are Reading
Instructions
-
-
1
Decide what you need from your ATS. Do you need the system to compile resumes, filter out applicants who are lacking certain required qualifications, such as an advanced college degree, or prescreen applicants by creating specialized questions and evaluating answers? Or you may need a system that automatically administers personality profile tests, runs live updates for candidates to review the status of their application or keeps track of interview progress.
-
2
Create a detailed list of what your ATS definitely must do and a list of what you would like it to do.
-
-
3
Define your budget for your ATS. Knowing how much you can spend on your ATS will help narrow down your choices. This is especially true if you have a small budget.
-
4
Begin to research potential systems. You may choose to do research on the Internet. This option allows you to find user reviews, get professional product reviews and visit the official websites of the systems you are interested in. Or you may choose to call companies and get your information from a sales representative.
-
5
Narrow your choices down to three potential systems that meet all of your needs, some or all of your wants and your budget.
-
6
Schedule a product review and demonstration. Learn how the system works firsthand to evaluate if it will meet your needs.
-
7
Select your ATS and have it installed.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
When you are scheduling your product demonstrations, take note of how the company works and whether or not you feel they will take care of you after the sale. Some companies treat potential customers well but do not have great customer service or IT/software support staff once someone has purchased its product. You want to work with a company that has great software and takes care of its clients.
Make sure that the company has a way to back up their system or that you have the ability to back up the system once it is installed.
