How to choose a recruiting automation system for an IT company
Automation of recruiting processes is a relevant and practical issue for both beginner recruiters and experienced professionals in their field.
So, in order to understand this issue more deeply and in practice and to investigate it completely, we decided to conduct a series of interviews with leading IT recruiters of Ukraine, who told us not only about the theory, but also about the practice of selecting and setting up an automated recruiting system specifically for an IT company.
A series of interviews about how to choose the right recruitment automation system for an IT company opens our dialogue with Olga Yurha, which turned out to be so interesting that we decided to publish it in a separate article.
Olga – Recruitment Director at Avenga Ukraine, has more than 7 years of experience in IT recruiting, and during this time has worked her way up from a trainee recruiter to a manager of a recruiting team that includes more than 20 specialists.
Throughout her time in recruiting, Olga provides career consultations, acts as a speaker at events, conducts courses and independently compiled a course for beginner recruiters, so we decided to ask her how to choose the right recruiting automation system for an IT company.
1. Olga, imagine that a new employee has come to you now and you need to describe to him the process of selecting a recruiting system. Where to start?
The choice of the system should be approached by the method of business analysis. First, you make a list of business processes and system needs. I highlight three types of needs in order of priority:
- Those that need to be configured from the very beginning and without them there is no way;
- Those that can really be adjusted in the second place;
- Those that can be implemented after tasks from priority 1 and 2.
We compile a list of needs, prescribe priorities and look for systems that meet the criteria.
There won’t be a perfect one, you have to understand that, but you need to always look for it taking into account the list of needs and according to priority.
2. What, first of all, do you recommend to pay attention to when choosing a recruiting automation system for an IT company?
The best automation system is a system that is written for company processes, but this is a very expensive investment that not every business can afford, especially a small one
When there is no money for such investments yet, it is advisable to choose software that is available on the market and adjust it to your needs on your own or with the help of integrators. I would recommend paying special attention to the possibilities of system customization, both at the current stage of your company’s development and for the future.
It is one thing – when the system can be customized for current processes, but the ideal situation will be when the system will have a reserve of possibilities even for future settings. This should be taken into account, it should be paid attention to when choosing a recruiting automation system for an IT company.
Therefore, if you currently do not have the desire and resources to create your own software, you can choose and take a ready-made ATS (in the cloud or a box solution) and adjust what is available to your business processes.
Personally, I highlight the TOP-7 main parameters that should be paid attention to when choosing a recruiting automation system for an IT company:
System speed
A researcher who waits for a long time to download certain data becomes less efficient. Speed decides everything in our work, the result depends on the speed of feedback. When testing the system, special attention should be paid to the speed of its operation and feedback.
The possibility of easy customization of the system for the business processes of your company
At first glance, it may seem that recruiting processes at IT companies are typical, but this is a misleading opinion. Each company has unique requirements that should be considered both when selecting and configuring any software.
Each company has its own “wishes”, so it is critical that the system, on the one hand, can do basic things, and on the other hand, has additional functions for flexible customization for specific business processes in a specific company.
Analytics that the system can give you
Even at the beginning of system selection, it is necessary to analyze which analytical reports you want to receive from the system, and what can be adjusted later.
Analytics is a very important option for both recruiters and managers. The analytical capabilities of any system should be tested before the system is launched on an industrial scale.
The market for which you choose the system (location)
If your company works with the Ukrainian market, you should pay attention to the presence of direct integrations with job sites (CleverStaff was very cool because of this – O.H.). If you are an international business or you have locations in at least several countries, pay attention to the possibilities of system settings specifically for locations.
Availability of an open API for the possibility of additional integrations
For a recruiter, both basic things are important (for example, system integration with mail, calendar or job site), and an API availability, thanks to which you can make additional integrations (for example, with Power BI).
If the system does not have an API or there are obstacles to such integrations, then this may limit you in further adjustments of the system to your business processes or further integrations with already existing company systems.
UI/UX design of the system and the roles of those who will use it
It is necessary to understand who exactly will use the system later. If only recruiters it’s the one thing. But if you plan to let managers or technicians in as well, you should take into account their wishes for the software.
The balance of price and quality
And whether the system covers your needs for its money. You need to make a list of needs and analyze which systems and at what price (use and configuration) cover most of them, and which ones do not suit you from the very beginning.
3. How can you “sell” to the company’s management the idea of the need for financial investment in the recruitment automation system?
In order to explain to management the need for investment in an automated recruiting system, it is necessary to operate with concrete, digital indicators.
Digital metrics are something that always works well with management as an argument, because for any business, numbers are key metrics. If you learn to calculate the benefits of using the software in the format of specific numbers, the dialogue with top management will be many times more productive.
When I was still working with “semi-automated systems or excels”, I calculated each process in detail in terms of the time we spent on specific tasks. Then, I selected the functions of the systems and calculated how much recruiter time, approximately, could be saved by having automation in these processes.
It is important to understand that the saved recruiter’s time is not only a saving of money for the company, but also specific working hours that the recruiter can devote to direct communication with candidates, which increases the efficiency of the use of human resources.
An ATS system should provide a direct benefit, i.e. either save time or save time and money at the same time.
If the business benefits from the implementation of an automated recruiting system, you will be able to support your hypotheses with facts and thus prove the undeniable need for this system in the company.
On the other hand, ATS in numbers and facts reflects the quality of work of the recruiting department, which directly affects the reputation of your company in the market and is quite critical, especially in the IT field. In our field, companies invest a lot of resources and efforts to create a positive employer brand among candidates, so automating processes will allow not only to save time, but also to lay the right, conventional bricks in the wall of the company’s reputation in the market.
4. In your personal opinion, from what number of people in an IT company is it no longer possible to use Google spreadsheets for hiring and adapting people and in time to switch to an automated personnel management system?
I would recommend it directly from the first user. Each recruiter who will be added to the team will already come to the system. You can adjust the system during use, but this is not a reason to abandon it.
In general, I personally strongly believe that the right people, united by the right goals, lead companies to success. People are the most important thing in a company.
It is necessary to select the right people and set them the right goals. Then, it will be a little easier.
A recruiter is valuable for his base, if the recruiter is fired, and he had everything in his own “excels”, where can his successor or whoever comes after him look for this information?
The question is, of course, rhetorical.
That is why I would recommend automating and adopting a personnel recruiting system from the very first recruiter – this will definitely bring value to the company.
Conclusion
So, summarizing all of the above, we can safely say that recruiting automation software helps manage all recruitment and candidate search tasks, creating talent pools and improving communication processes.
It’s easy to become overwhelmed with the information and challenges that recruiters face today. And when professionals are assisted by tools ranging from a resume parser and automated job listings to interview scheduling, recruiters can focus their energy on connecting with the best candidates and growing their recruiting brand.
