The State of Applicant Tracking System - 2019 · The State of Applicant Tracking Systems 2019 7 How Prevalent Are Applicant Tracking Systems? Finding: Nearly 77% of organizations

The State ofApplicant Tracking System - 2019

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The State of Applicant Tracking Systems – 2019

Contents

How Effective Is Talent Acquisition Today? 6

Executive Summary 3

How Prevalent Are Applicant Tracking Systems? 7

What Do ATS Do Well and Not So Well? 13

What Is the Candidate Experience Like? 20

In What Ways Do High-Performing and Lower-Performing TA Firms Differ? 23

What Are the Major Innovations of Today and Tomorrow? 28

Key Takeaways 31


3

Executive Summary

The unemployment rate as of September 2019 stood at 3.7%, a mark that some economists deem “full employment.” This period brings new pressures on organizations looking to grow and expand. Job openings are at historically high levels. And, the average corporate job posting yields hundreds of applicants, many of whom are simply not qualified for the jobs to which they apply.

The bottom line is that qualified candidates are hard to find. Applicant tracking systems (ATS) have become more important tools than ever as recruiting teams look for qualified candidates among the flood of applicants.

But are recruiting teams seeing their technology tools yield better talent acquisition (TA) results? To learn more about the state of ATS in terms of adoption, effectiveness and possible futures trends, HR.com’s HR Research Institute surveyed the human resources (HR) community during the summer of 2019. We’ve summarized the key findings below.

About this Survey

The survey, called “State of Applicant Tracking Systems 2019,” ran in the summer of 2019. There were usable responses from 511 HR and recruitment professionals. The study was conducted by HR.com through its HR Research Institute.

The participants are HR professionals representing a broad cross-section of employers by number of employees, ranging from small businesses with under 50 employees to enterprises with 20,000 or more employees. The large majority of respondents represent organizations with more than 100 employees, and about a third represent organization with 1,000 or more employees.

Below are key findings from our analysis:

Key Finding One: Most organizations have an ATS and many more are considering one.

• A substantial majority of HR professionals (77%) say their organizations use an ATS. Forty-five percent use stand-alone solutions, and 32% use a solution that is part of a larger integrated system such as an HRIS.

• Nearly three-in-four of those without an ATS are either planning or thinking about acquiring one.



Key Finding Two: The data suggests that firms that use ATS have advantages in the area of talent acquisition.

• Only about half (52%) of HR professionals say that talent acquisition in their organizations is good or excellent.

• But those organizations that say they’re good at talent acquisition (i.e., high-performing TA organizations) use an ATS at a higher than average rate: 90%. In contrast, only 61% of those with lower-performing TA functions use an ATS.

• A majority of respondents describe their ATS as being good at tracking the progress of candidates through the process and at customizing the process based on the needs of specific jobs. Most respondents also say their ATS is good at routing offers and postings to executives for approval.

• Reducing time-to-hire is the most widely cited reason (62%) that organizations adopt an ATS. Another significant driver, cited by 59%, is the need to improve the candidate screening process. Key Finding Three: Despite the utility of ATS, most HR professionals still say that, for now,their systems suffer from a number of weaknesses.

• Just 30% of respondents say their ATS is good or fair at automatically matching candidates to the right job postings and then alerting the recruiter. Only 33% are good or fair at offering candidates a personalized experience. • Most respondents do not view their ATS as being good at integrating with other systems. They integrate best with human resource information systems (HRIS) but are poor at integrating with workforce planning, video interviewing and advanced sourcing tools. • Few participants agree that their ATS is good at locating internal talent (32%) or helping reach candidates who are passively looking for jobs (30%). • When asked to identify what they like least about their ATS, the most common response is that their system does not have enough of the features users need. • Almost half (47%) say their ATS offers no way of gauging job candidate experiences. Among those with systems that can gauge such experience, 58% describe that experience as good or excellent.




Key Finding Four: In terms of their ATS usage, organizations with high-performing TA functions tend to differ from lower-performing firms in several ways.

• The candidate experience with ATS tends to be better in the high-performing TA organizations. • Organizations with high-performing TA functions are more proactive in gauging the experience of their job candidates with their ATS, which may help explain why those experiences are often better. • In the high-performing TA firms, nearly two out of three (64%) utilize all or most of the capabilities of their ATS. In lower-performing TA firms, it is just 37%. • In the high-performing TA firms, ATS perform important TA tasks at a higher level of proficiency. • High-performing TA firms are more likely to implement their ATS for strategic reasons, compared with lower-performing TA firms.

Key Finding Five: Participants see innovations—as well as perceived challenges—in the next three to five years.

• Looking out into the next three to five years, HR professionals believe the most beneficial ATS enhancements will be: - greater personalization - greater integration of AI capabilities - improved assessment and filtering tools - greater reporting flexibility • The greatest perceived future risks are that an ATS will become too automated, complicated and invasive.



6

How Effective Is Talent Acquisition Today?

Finding: Only about half rate the overall effectiveness of their TA efforts as good or excellent

Just over half (52%) of HR professionals say their current TA efforts are either excellent or good.

Later in this report, we will use the answers to this question to analyze differences between two survey cohorts: • High-performing TA firms: These represent respondents who indicate that their firms are good or excellent at talent acquisition. • Lower-performing TA firms: These represent respondents who say that their firms are average, below average, or far below average when it comes to acquiring talent.

Survey question: How would you rate the overall effectiveness of talent acquisition/recruitment in your organization?

Far below Average

Below Average

Average

Good

Excellent 13%

39%

36%

10%

2%


7

How Prevalent Are Applicant Tracking Systems?

Finding: Nearly 77% of organizations use an ATS A large majority (77%) of organizations now use an ATS. Most of them use a stand-alone solution (45%), with the rest using an ATS that is part of a larger HR technology platform.

The 77% usage figure represents an increase over the results of the 2018 State of Applicant Tracking Systems report, where 64% of the participants reported using an ATS. We can’t yet call the substantial year-over-year increase a trend, but the increase might be the result of the tight job market and the efforts of recruiting teams to stay ahead of the challenges of finding qualified candidates.

Survey question: Does your organization currently use one or more application tracking systems (that is an ATS)? (select all that apply)

No

Yes, at least one recruitment module ofa larger system/platform (e.g HRIS)

Yes, at least one stand-alone(that is, a point solution system)

46%

33%

21%


8

Finding: Forty-four percent of firms without an ATS have definite plans to implement one in the foreseeable future

With applicant screening systems in such wide use, it is not surprising to see so many without an ATS seriously considering acquiring one. Forty-four percent of HR professionals whose firms are not currently using an ATS have clear plans to do so, and another 30% are contemplating using one. Only 27% said they have no plans to implement an ATS. This is another area where we see an interesting change in the data from the 2018 report. In last year’s report, 19% said they planned to implement an ATS within a year, while 28% of the participants in this year’s survey say the same thing. There is a similar increase in plans to implement in more than a year, from 10% in 2018 to 16% in this year’s survey. And, in this year’s survey only 27% say they have no plans to add an ATS compared to 34% last year.

Again, two years’ of data does not let us see a real trend, but it looks like ATS usage could continue to rise as more firms conclude that ATS can benefit the talent acquisition process.

Survey question: Do you plan to implement an ATS in the future?

No

We’re thinking about it

Yes, within the next year

Yes, though more thana year from now 15%

28%

30%

27%



Finding: The primary barriers to further ATS usage are budget and lack of leadership commitment

The most common barrier to ATS usage, cited by 40% of HR professionals, is cost. No other single reason for not using an ATS was selected by even 30% of the participants. Only a lack of leadership commitment was selected by more than one-in-four, with 29% citing such a lack of commitment.

In 2018, cost was cited by 57% of the firms without an ATS and a lack of leadership support by 23%. So, we might be seeing the emergence of a trend where cost concerns diminish but gaining leadership support gets more challenging.

While we did not delve into any connections between cost and leadership commitment, these two reasons for not pursuing any type of strategic initiative can be closely related. For initiatives that leadership supports, organizations nearly always have sufficient budget. When senior leadership does not endorse or support an effort, funds are usually much harder to find.

The lesson in this is that while cost can be a barrier, it may be incumbent on recruiters and HR practitioners to build stronger business cases for ATS use by illustrating the bottom line business benefits of ATS adoption.

Survey question: What are the most important reasons your organization does not currently use an ATS? (select all that apply)

Cost or expense

Leadership will not commit to investment in ATS

Other projects/products are a higher priority

Recruitment is working fine without one

Don’t understand the benefits of ATS for us

Don't need one for our purposes

Lack of internal skills to effectively use one

Cannot find an ATS we like

40%

29%

22%

17%

13%

13%

9%

6%


10

Finding: High-performing TA firms are more likely than other organizations to use an ATS Among high-performing TA firms, 90% currently use an ATS, compared to just 61% of their lower-performing counterparts. The data does not prove a causal relationship between recruitment excellence and using an ATS, but it does suggest the data are correlated for some reason.

Survey question: Does your organization currently use one or more application tracking systems (that is an ATS)? [By high-performing and lower-performing TA firms]

Lower-performing TA firms

High-performing TA firms

Stand Alone Integrated

90%

61%

41%49%

31%30%



Finding: The primary reason for using an ATS is to reduce the time to hire

The reasons for using an ATS in the first place appear to represent a broad need to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the talent acquisition process. Time to hire is the most frequently cited need, selected by 62% of the participants. More than half of the participants identify three additional reasons:

• a need to improve candidate screening – 59% • managing the volume of applications and resumes – 55% • the need for better TA metrics – 53%

Only 41% say that the need to make better hires drove the decision to adopt an ATS. Therefore, respondents are more likely to view applicant tracking systems as a way to increase recruitment efficiency rather than effectiveness.

Survey question: Of the following capabilities, which five do you consider most essential for your organization’s ATS? (select up to five)

Wanted to reduce the time to hire

Needed to improve our candidate screening process

Cannot manage the current volume of applications/resumes

Wanted better talent acquisition metrics

Wanted to improve the ability to assess

Wanted to optimize our recruiting spend

Needed greater volume of applicants

Needed to make better hires

Needed compliance reporting for hiring practices

Wanted to reduce scheduling time

62%

59%

55%

53%

46%

45%

41%

41%

40%

34%



Finding: Organization and collaboration capabilities are most essential in an ATS

The most essential capabilities of ATS are consistent with the primary reasons participants use an ATS. That is, the capabilities of well-organized communication (67%) and collaboration (64%) support two key objectives: reducing time to hire and enhancing the screening process. An ATS can accomplish this by allowing the hiring team to use a cohesive and unified virtual environment. Integration with other systems can improve efficiencies, but, as we will see below, most current ATS are not very good at this.

Survey question: Of the following capabilities, which five do you consider most essential for your organization’s ATS? (select up to five)

67%

64%

60%

59%

49%

42%

41%

35%

35%

28%

Send and organize emails/messagesto candidates

Allow easy collaboration for hiring team

Integrate with other neededsystems and applications

Easily add and export candidateinformation (e.g. resumes)

Permit scheduling and calendaring

Permit enhanced search and matching

Distribute job ads

Allow for employment branding

Create or use a mobile app

Consolidate and show authorizedinformation on a given candidate


13

What Do ATS Do Well and Not So Well?Finding: ATS perform three tasks pretty well

Today’s ATS are most likely to carry out the following tasks well:

• tracking candidates as they move through the recruitment process • customizing the application process to the specific needs of jobs • routing jobs and offers for executive approval

These are important tasks. Accurate tracking, for example, facilitates timely communication and allows internal stakeholders to monitor the progress toward filling open positions. It also helps recruitment experts organize candidate movement through stages such as assessments and screenings so they can bring the most qualified candidates to the forefront more quickly.

Meanwhile, a customized application process is key to moving beyond a “one-size-fits-all” approach, and that represents a significant competitive advantage for recruiters. And, being able to easily route jobs for approval can reduce the time to hire, a key objective in today’s recruitment environment.

Participants are less likely to be enthused about the ability of their ATS to perform more quality-focused tasks, such as building meaningful dashboards, tracking performance indicators, or offering candidates a personalized user experience.



Finding: A majority say their ATS helps organize the recruiting process and saves them time

Most HR professionals agree that their ATS helps them stay organized and save time. Perhaps even more encouraging, three-quarters say their systems are easy to use. High ease-of-use scores are always a good sign for powerful and potentially complex technologies.

However, only 32% say their ATS helps them identify internal talent, and just 33% agree their ATS helps them make recruiting budget decisions. Even fewer say their systems reach candidates who are passively looking for jobs.

Such tasks are apparently outside the purview of most ATS systems and are perhaps more of the purview of other types of technologies, such as recruitment marketing systems.

Survey question: How good is your organization’s ATS at the following tasks? [% very good and good only]

Very good Good

Tracking candidates as theymove through the process

Customizing the application processto specific needs of different jobs

Routing jobs and offers for executive approval

Tracking key performance indicators (e.g. quality of hire, time to fill)

Building meaningful and useful dashboards

Reporting mandatory compliance datain a format that is easy to understand

Giving the candidate a customized,personalized and good experience

Engaging or re-engaging thecandidate via digital tools

Automatically matching candidates to the right job postings and alerting the recruiter

72%31% 41%

61%39%22%

58%21% 37%

44%32%12%

44%32%12%

44%31%13%

43%12% 31%

42%28%14%

30%23%7%


15

Survey question: To what extent do you agree with the following statements for the ATS in your organization?

Strongly Agree Agree

It helps us stay organized

It is easy to use

It saves us time

It provides a positivereturn on investment

It has good customer service/support

It helps set and manage interviews

It results in higher applicationcompletion

It helps us understand how we spendour recruitment budget

It enables us to locate internal talent

It helps us reach candidates who arepassively looking for jobs

75%52%23%

72%47%25%

70%42%28%

63%42%21%

58%39%19%

54%36%18%

47%35%12%

33%25%8%

32%24%8%

30%21%9%

Finding: Only about half say they make use of all or most of their ATS functionality

We asked participants whether they make full use of the features and functionality of their ATS. Only 53% say they do. More than one-third stated “No,” and another 12% didn’t know. We can safely infer that if the participant didn’t know, the likelihood they are making full use of their ATS is fairly low.

These findings make us wonder if some ATS are as limited as the previous question indicated. Perhaps more systems do have the capability, for example, of setting and managing interviews, but their users are not making use of—or even fully aware of—those capabilities. We believe organizations should at least be aware of the full capabilities of their systems, even if they don’t always use them.


16

Survey question: Does your organization utilize all or most of the capabilities of its ATS?

53%35%

12%

Yes No Don’t know

Finding: ATS are not very good at integrating with other systems

We live in a world where applications must increasingly communicate and integrate with other applications. But ATS are not generally strong in this area.

With which other systems is an ATS most likely to integrate? More than half of participants say their ATS is good or fair at integrating with just two other applications: HRIS (53%) and assessments (52%). Almost half (48%) say their ATS is good or fair at integrating with social media applications.

In some cases, though, other applications come as a built-in component of an ATS. The most common built-in components involve:

• assessments • drug screening • E-verify (which determines a candidate’s eligibility to legally work)

Greater integration with other components could bring strategic advantages. For instance, workforce planning is a process by which organizations prepare employees, managers and organizational structures for success in the future. Having an ATS that integrates with workforce planning applications might help employers to better identify internal candidates and match the skills and experience of external candidates to specific internal needs. However, only 31% say their ATS is good or fair at integrating with workforce planning tools.



Finding: Over half are satisfied with their ATS, but there is much room for improvement

A majority (61%) say they are satisfied with their current ATS. This leaves, however, about two-fifths who are not satisfied, implying there is much room for improvement. Moreover, a mere 13% are very satisfied.

Survey question: How good is your organization’s ATS at integrating the following? [% good and fair]

Good Fair

Human Resource InformationSystem (or similar)

Assessments

Social media applications

Advanced sourcing tools

E-Verify/Determine eligibilityto legally work

Candidate satisfaction data

Drug screening

Workforce planning

Automated reference checking

Video interviewing platforms

53%23%30%

52%26%26%

48%27%21%

40%24%16%

39%15%24%

33%19%14%

31%14%17%

31%20%11%

27%17%10%

24%11%13%


18

This study shows why there is fairly widespread (if tepid) satisfaction as well as why many are not yet satisfied. On one hand, ATS programs bring various benefits such as time savings, organizational aid, and ease of use. On the other, there are still concerns about areas such as integration with other systems, the inability to find internal talent, or problems reaching passive job seekers.

Survey question: Overall, how satisfied are you with your applicant tracking system (ATS)?

Very satisfied

Satisfied

Neutral

Dissatisfied

Very dissatisfied

13%

48%

25%

10%

4%



Finding: A lack of ATS features is the most problematic aspect for HR professionals

Almost half (47%) of the participants say their ATS does not have enough of the features they need. However, we should reiterate that only 53% of HR professionals say their organization makes use of all or most of the features of their ATS. That said, the reality remains that many practitioners believe their ATS lacks important features.

The only other dislike identified by more than one-third of the participants is that their ATS lacks good reporting or analytics capability. It is, of course, difficult to make good decisions without good data, so this may well be an area where ATS vendors could improve on in the future.

Survey question: What do you like least about your ATS?(choose all that apply)

It does not have enough ofthe features that I need

It does not have goodreporting/analytics functionality

It can't be used to effectivelycommunicate with candidates

It provides a poor candidate experience

It is difficult to use

It is too complicated

I like everything about our ATS

It is buggy

It has bad customer service

It wastes my time

47%

37%

23%

22%

19%

18%

18%

16%

15%

12%


20

What Is the Candidate Experience Like?

Finding: Nearly half say they have no way to gauge the quality of the candidate experience Another old adage that generally holds substantial elements of truth is that you cannot improve what you do not measure. Almost half (47%) say they have no way to gauge the candidate experience. As troubling as this appears, this actually represents a modest improvement over last year’s survey in which 52% said they had no way to gauge the candidate experience.

Survey Question: Which of the following broad areas are included in your organization’s recruitment marketing process? (select all that apply)Survey question: How does your organization measure whether candidates are having a positive experience using the ATS? (select all that apply)

We have no way of gauging their experience

Candidate surveys

Written feedback from candidates

Abandonment rates

Other

47%

33%

23%

16%

5%



Finding: A sizeable majority believe the candidate experience with their ATS is good or even better Among the subgroup that can gauge candidate experience, 59% say their ATS delivers a good or excellent candidate experience. Although this sounds impressive, the truth is that this is only 31% of organizations with an ATS that are able to say candidates have a good or excellent experience with them.

In today’s job market, many candidates may have a number of social media driven interactions with a company before they take the step of completing an online application. But it is at this stage where the candidate gets introduced to the first internal system of the company. As the old adage says, “You only get one chance to make a first impression.” So, the candidate experience with the ATS represents this chance.

Survey question: Based on feedback and/or usage data, how would you describe the overall experience of applicants/candidates with your ATS system?

Excellent

Good

Average

Below average

Poor

12%

47%

33%

5%

3%



Finding: Even with so many having no way to measure the experience, a significant majority have taken steps to improve the candidate experience in the last two years We find this data to be encouraging, even in the face of a generalized lack of quality information about the candidate experience. Well over two-thirds (70%) say they have tried to improve the candidate experience recently. It is hard to believe organizations would make such an effort if they are completely blind to the need for such improvement. So, whether most organizations are measuring the quality of the candidate experience or not, most are involved in some effort to improve it.

Survey question: Has your organization embarked on a project to improve the candidate experience in the last two years?

Yes No Don’t know

6%

70%

24%


23

In What Ways Do High-Performing and Lower-Performing TA Firms Differ?

Finding: High-performing TA firms appear to provide a better candidate experience More than two-thirds of the high-performing TA firms (68%) say they provide a good or excellent candidate experience. In contrast, just 36% of the lower-performing TA firms say the same thing. Just as striking are the percentages of these cohorts saying they provide a below average or poor experience. In high-performing TA organizations, a scant 2% say they provide a below average experience and none of them said the experience is poor. In the low-performing TA firms, 18% say their candidate experience is either below average or poor.

Survey Question: Which of the following broad areas are included in your organization’s recruitment marketing process? (select all that apply)Survey question: Based on feedback and/or usage data, how would you describe the overall experience of applicants/candidates with your ATS system?

Excellent Good

High-performing TA firms

Lower-performing TA firms

52%16%

32%4%



Finding: The ATS programs in high-performing TA firms perform more of a variety of tasks at higher levels than those in lower-performing TA firms The high-performing TA firms get higher levels of performance from their ATS across the board. Seventy-five percent of the high-performing TA firms say their ATS is good at customizing the application process, compared to 36% of the lower-performing TA firms. The high-performing TA firms also say their ATS offers candidates a personalized experience at a much higher rate than the lower-performing TA firms—58% to just 20%. More than half of both cohorts say their ATS is good at tracking candidates through the process. But that is the only task that more than half of the lower-performing TA firms say their ATS performs well. Conversely, there is only one task that fewer than half of the higher-performing TA firms say their ATS performs well: automatically matching candidates to the right job postings (32%).

Survey Question: Which of the following broad areas are included in your organization’s recruitment marketing process? (select all that apply)Survey question: How good is your organization’s ATS at the following tasks? [% very good and good]

Tracking candidates as theymove through the process

Customizing the application processto specific needs of different jobs

Routing jobs and offers forexecutive approval

Engaging or re-engaging thecandidate via digital tools

Building meaningful anduseful dashboards

Giving the candidate a customized, personalized and good experience

Tracking key performance indicators(e.g. quality of hire, time to fill)

Reporting mandatory compliance datain a format that is easy to understand

Automatically matching candidates to the rightjob postings and alerting the recruiter

High-performing TA firms Lower-performing TA firms

80%

61%

75%

36%

66%

48%

59%

23%

59%

30%

58%

20%

53%

33%

53%

31%

32%

22%


25

Finding: High-performing TA firms make greater use of their ATS capabilities

As we just saw, applicant tracking system programs in the high-performing TA firms are more likely to perform every task at a higher level than in lower-performing TA firms. While we can’t say for certain the data are clearly related, 64% of the higher-performing TA firms say that they utilize “all or most” of the capabilities of their ATS, compared to just 37% of the lower-performing TA firms. It seems fair to infer that the firms utilizing more of the capabilities of their ATS would see better overall performance, and the data supports such an inference.

Finding: High-performing TA firms adopt ATS programs more often to improve the strategic aspects of their TA efforts

The foundational strategic goal of TA efforts is usually to make the best hires possible. There are a variety of recruitment factors that influence the quality of hires, ranging from the candidate screening process to assessments and metrics. The high-performing TA organizations appear to place a stronger emphasis on these and other strategic TA elements that make hiring better candidates possible.

Survey Question: Which of the following broad areas are included in your organization’s recruitment marketing process? (select all that apply)Survey question: Does your organization utilize all or most of the capabilities of its ATS?

Yes

No

I don’t know

64%

37%

23%

48%

13%

14%




Nearly two-thirds of the participants in the high-performing TA firms (65%) say they adopted their ATS to improve the candidate screening process, compared to half of the participants in the lower-performing TA firms. In high-performing TA firms, 60% want better TA metrics and 55% want improved ability to assess. In contrast, just 41% in the lower-performing TA firms want better metrics and 33% want to improve candidate assessments. We believe that each of these reasons for adopting ATS directly affects the quality of hire. As we’ve seen, high-performing firms appear to make better use of the capabilities of their ATS, have ATS that function at higher levels, and connect the adoption of their ATS with the more strategically oriented aspects of the talent acquisition process.

Survey Question: Which of the following broad areas are included in your organization’s recruitment marketing process? (select all that apply)

Survey question: What are the reasons your organization implemented an ATS? (choose all that apply)

Needed to improve our candidatescreening process

Wanted to reduce the time to hire

Wanted better talent acquisition metrics

Wanted to improve the ability to assess

Cannot manage the current volume ofapplications/resumes

Wanted to optimize our recruiting spend

Needed to make better hires

Needed greater volume of applicants

Needed compliance reporting forhiring practices

Wanted to reduce scheduling time

65%

50%

63%

58%

60%

41%

55%

33%

53%

55%

50%

39%

46%

37%

43%

42%

42%

31%

40%

20%




Finding: High-performing TA firms gauge the quality of the candidate experience at much higher levels than their lower-performing peers

Why do high-performing TA firms provide a better overall candidate experience? One key factor may be that they bother to measure that experience, with only 39% saying they have no way to gauge the candidate experience. In contrast, 61% of the lower-performing firms have no way to gauge the candidate experience.

Survey question: How does your organization measure whether candidates are having a positive experience using the ATS? (select all that apply)


39%

61%

35%

21%

27%

15%

14%

15%

6%

3%



What Are the Major Innovations of Today and Tomorrow?

Finding: Most participants say the most important recent ATS innovations relate to integration with other systems or online applications One of the chief complaints about current ATS is their inability to integrate effectively with other key systems or applications. This is slowly changing as vendors respond to user needs. In fact, HR professionals say improved integration with the onboarding process and social media sites are the two most important recent innovations in their ATS. Other widely cited innovations are related to smart phones and other mobile devices. Fifty-five percent cite mobile ATS features as an important innovation, and 51% cite text-messaging capabilities. Fifty-one percent also cite the improved ability to autofill applications. Such enhancements may help reduce abandonment rates. According to a study conducted in 2018,1 60% of online applications are abandoned because the application is either too complicated or too lengthy. When three out of every five candidates walk away from online applications, organizations are likely losing the opportunity to even see resumes from qualified candidates. Having an ATS that can “read” resumes and online applications and autofill the application holds the potential to substantially reduce the complexity and length of the application. This, in turn, likely means employers will have a chance to see more qualified candidates than they see today. 1 Smart Recruiters. (2018, November 27). Seven things we learned

after applying for 1000+ online jobs, and what recruiters need to

know. Retrieved from https://www.smartrecruiters.com/blog/8-

things-we-learned-after-applying-for-1000-online-jobs-and-what-

recruiters-need-to-know/



Survey question: What are the most important recent improvements and innovations in ATS? (choose all that apply)

60%

59%

55%

51%

51%

41%

39%

34%

24%

13%

Finding: Participants say they expect to see even greater personalization and artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities

Internet users experience an astounding amount of highly personalized experiences every day. As users spend more time searching, search engines refine results based on behaviors and interests. Social media sites deliver highly personalized content and ads based on behaviors, shopping sites, music sites and applications. And, news sites deliver content to users based on known interests and behaviors. So, it makes sense that applicants expect to see similar levels of personalized content and information in their job search and application process.


30

Artificial Intelligence is already an emerging part of many ATS applications and may help advance the personalization trend. For instance, the ability to “read” a resume —regardless of format—is an illustration of AI in action. And, this type of capability is just scratching the surface. Participants appear to appreciate the power and potential of AI, with 55% saying that integration of even more AI features into their ATS is coming.

Survey question: What do you believe will be the most beneficial ATS enhancements over the next three to five years? (choose all that apply)

62%

55%

54%

51%

28%

Greater personalization

Integration of features that harnessartificial intelligence capabilities

Improved assessment and filtering tools

More flexible reporting capability

Gamification of assessments orother application activities



Key Takeaways

Adopt a marketing mindset. The high-performing talent acquisition organizations do many things more effectively and efficiently than lower performers. A general theme to their success is that their talent acquisition efforts reflect a strategic marketing approach. That is, it seems they are more likely to approach potential candidates as marketing experts approach prospective customers. They tend to work harder than others to provide excellent candidate experiences. They gather data about their candidates and, using that data, they strive for continuous improvement. Other recruitment experts might have greater success if they adopt similar mindsets.

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Maximize the features and functionality of your ATS. Once you implement your ATS, the hard work really begins! The data in the report shows that high-performing TA organizations tend to get greater use out of their ATS across the board. So, commit to a process of continuous learning and improvement with your ATS. Conduct continuous training. Engage more deeply with your ATS vendor to keep abreast of enhancements, changes, best practices and tips. Find user communities that have the same ATS program and then learn from others in those communities.

2

Gather data on the candidate experience. This can include application completion rates (the rate at which people who start your online application actually complete it) and the rate at which applications are completed without errors. It can also include items such as the top sources of quality candidates and good hires. Did they find you through social media? Did they use a job board, and if so which ones? You can also survey applicants and candidates, and you might even gather feedback through candidate interviews. The data you gather in each area can serve as a starting point from which you can benchmark the organization’s progress.

3



Find passive job seekers. Many of the very best candidates are not actively pursuing new jobs. This is an area where most ATS and TA operations may be improved. The best candidates are likely on LinkedIn, use Twitter and enjoy Facebook. LinkedIn in particular can be a valuable platform for searching for hard-to-find skills or qualifications. But you won’t find these candidates unless you are actively engaged on the platform. Be ready and able to attract the attention of top candidates. Again, think like marketing! Publish engaging content to create leads (meaning qualified applicants!). Some ATS applications have the capability to effectively download social media profiles into your system. Consider running key word searches on those profiles. When you find matches, you may want to send those people direct messages with a link to your online application or a job posting and encourage them to apply.

5

Pay close attention to reporting functionality in ATS. When making purchasing decisions or deciding whether or not to update a current system, make sure you examine reporting capabilities. It is also a good idea to reach out to your current ATS customer success team. Ask questions about both current and future reporting capabilities, and make sure you are using all of the data reporting tools at your disposal.

6

Find ways to improve the candidate experience. Once you collect candidate experience data, seek ways to leverage it to improve the candidate experience. In some cases, this means improving existing processes and technologies. One important factor to evaluate thoroughly and objectively is your online application process. Candidates get frustrated with the length of applications, so make sure you are asking for just the key information you need to successfully complete a first stage screening. Use your ATS to track the amount of time it takes from start to finish and watch those application abandonment rates! If your candidates are dropping off at specific places, make adjustments.

4

Examine integration capabilities. Based on this research, it’s important to consider the integration capabilities of any ATS when making renewal, purchasing or implementation decisions. For instance, your organization may use an automated drug screening and reporting tool. Test whether your ATS can integrate with these tools so results can be attached to candidate records in real time.

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Look for systems that help meet strategic and not just tactical needs. Strategic talent acquisition goals may include improved quality of hires, greater employee retention, greater engagement with passive job candidates, and acceleration of the organizational learning curve for newly hired employees. For example, let’s assume the organization needs to hire skilled employees in a specific job category to meet strategic corporate goals. This may require improved candidate screening and improved matching of resumes and qualifications to job openings. With these two specific features in mind, you can evaluate ATS capabilities and, if they are not satisfactory, look for ways of upgrading the current system or seeking new systems that meet organizational needs better.

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Documents

The State of Applicant Tracking System - 2019 · The State of Applicant Tracking Systems 2019 7 How Prevalent Are Applicant Tracking Systems? Finding: Nearly 77% of organizations