Our Pre-Employment Background Screening practice requires that we work closely with our client-partners. As a result of that close relationship, we are able to observe many of the trends which influence hiring practices that affect employers across the country. One significant trend we have begun to notice is the adoption of an Applicant Tracking System (ATS). A significant and growing proportion of our client base has deployed an ATS to help during their hiring process.

Interestingly, this trend did not stop or even slow as we entered the current recession, as the adoption of an ATS provides the means to alleviate unnecessary expenses previously embedded within the hiring process. Winning those cost savings was essential in securing approval to commit company resources during difficult financial times. An ATS can greatly streamline the hiring process, multiply the efforts of a small recruitment staff, and give performance feedback to managers.

Still, with the many favorable reasons for adopting an ATS, there remain many companies which have not yet taken this step. Several reasons are offered for why they have not yet adopted ATS, with the leading 3 reasons as follows:

1. An ATS is expensive – While this was once a very valid reason for many small and medium-sized businesses (SMB), that is no longer the case. ATS vendors have realized that one size does not fit all and have thus developed several versions (or tiers) of service in their ATS to address the unique needs of SMB’s, as well as provide a growth path as these companies scale their operations.
2. Integration Costs – This also was true, however ATS vendors have worked together to create and support industry standards like HR-XML permitting software systems and packages to exchange information more easily and thus reduce integration costs.
3. Hiring Needs are Cyclical, ATS costs don’t coincide with business needs – Fortunately, a number of ATS vendors have enhanced their product/service offering to the point where they can offer their service on a basis other than an annual subscription. There are now a number of vendors who can fill your business needs on per-use basis, thus giving you the freedom to use the ATS when you need it, without worrying about subscription costs when you don’t.

Once companies have done the math of the value equation of an ATS, the project typically gets the green light. Here are just a few of the reasons why the recent adopters are delighted with their decision to do so:

1. Job applicants today use job portal sites such as Monster.com and CareerBuilder.com heavily in their job searches. Having an ATS that interoperates with job portals helps to put SMB’s in a better position, when competing for top talent.
2. Cost per hire drop immediately and significantly. The pre-ATS average cost-to-hire was averaging just over $7,100. The post-deployment average cost dropped approximately $2,800. In even good times, savings like that are sure to make even the most difficult CFO happy.
3. Not only were cost savings significant, but so were the time savings. Two weeks were shaved off the process making recruitment and on-boarding much more efficient.
4. Many of the new ATS systems are web applications which are easy to use and do not require software installation or internal IT support. Web-based ATS systems can also scale with a company as it grows, adding more capacity and features proportionate the needs of a changing organization.
5. HR professionals love the streamlined process. The workflow of the hiring process is modeled by the ATS and can schedule tasks, auto-generate email and postal mail, as well as pop-up reminders when tasks are due. These features allow HR professionals to focus on value-adding activities they alone can perform, rather than the mundane time-killing tasks before the ATS.

Explore and discover what an ATS can do for your organization. Core features include:

1. Corporate Career Center
2. Proprietary Resume Databank
3. Job Requisition and Posting
4. Integrated Add-On Modules
5. Affirmative Action Compliant
6. Automated Recruiting
7. Effective tools for On-boarding New Hires
8. Track and Report for Superior Performance
9. Reach Passive Candidates
10. Streamline the Hiring Process

Organizations that adopt the use of an ATS are reporting costs savings of 40%, time savings of 66%, and a noticeable improvement in the quality of candidates entering the system.

As the economy stabilizes and we prepare for the coming upturn in the economy, smart companies are now laying the foundation today for their hiring plans tomorrow. They are determined to be ready for the economic improvement and will catch and ride that wave when it arrives. Companies which are less well prepared will miss the first wave and have to contend with the smaller second or third wave, while they prepare their belated hiring programs.