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June 25, 2020

8 reasons why using an ATS benefits job candidates as well

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All articles Recruiting

When a company is evaluating the purchase of an ATS (Applicant Tracking System), it naturally tends to focus on the benefits it brings to the work of the recruiter.

But there is another key protagonist of the selection process who would also benefit from its use: the job candidate.

Thanks to the support of an ATS, one can design easier and more interactive candidate journeys which favor a meritocratic process.

As a result, candidates are more satisfied with the experience and the interaction with the recruiters, regardless of the outcome of the process.

Let’s take a detailed look at the main advantages of using an ATS from the perspective of job candidates.


Job ads are easier to find

Thanks to the multiposting system offered by recruiting software, the vacancies you write are published instantly on a wide network of job meta-search engines, job boards and social media accounts.

As a result, it is easier for candidates to find them and apply through the search channel they prefer.


Quick applications, including from smartphones

The time available to look for work and send applications is becoming more and more fragmented. It is no coincidence—as evidenced by the data from our career sites—that applications are being sent mainly during the first few days of the week and via smartphones.

Thus, candidates are happy to encounter simplified application forms that are easy to fill out in a few minutes, made possible thanks to the ability of ATS software to extract the information that is useful for recruiters directly from the CV and cover letter.


Control over personal data

Those who apply through a professional career site get their own personal account. Through this account, they can update their data and CV, set up job alerts or request the deletion of their profile.

The guarantee that the rights of the candidate are being respected is one of the greatest items of added value delivered by ATS solutions such as Altamira Recruiting, which, through an automatic deletion system, are able to delete the candidate profiles that have been kept longer than the company’s data retention period and whose owners have chosen not to renew their consent for the processing of their data.

As a result, the applicant can be confident that their information will only be processed for the period of time indicated in the privacy policy they have accepted.


Long-term presence in the company database

Companies that choose an ATS have every interest in cultivating their own database of candidates. A candidate who is not chosen for a certain position has the possibility to be considered for new job openings without the need to submit any new applications (although that is always advisable).

Furthermore, an ATS helps companies track all the interactions they have had with a candidate, thus building a deeper relationship with them over time.


Increased attention

Thanks to the time saved in many other activities, recruiters who are using an ATS have more time to dedicate to reading CVs, interviews and video interviews.

The purpose of an ATS is precisely to free up time for what is the most important activity for a recruiter: getting to know the candidates!


More frequent feedback

One of a candidate’s worst nightmares is not knowing whether their CV has even reached its destination. When very many applications have been received, it becomes difficult for a company to respond to all of them if they don’t have an automatic mailing system.

A good ATS allows you to send automatic and/or manual communications with ease, often using templates tied to the various steps of the selection process.

As a result, candidates receive constant feedback, which is the foundation for a good candidate experience.


Not only CVs

One of the latest features offered by ATS solutions—whether internally or via integration—is an on-demand video interview system. This feature allows recruiters to add an intermediate selection step between CV screening and the in-person interview, collecting short video interviews from the most interesting prospects.

In this way, more candidates are given the opportunity to express themselves beyond just their CV.


Meritocracy at the center

Candidates tend to associate ATS solutions with an automatic CV screening system, which is one of their many features.

There are horror stories circulating on the web about the use of these systems and how they supposedly penalize candidates who submit highly personalized CVs, but generally speaking, the reality is quite the opposite. ATS solutions have no problem reading any CV correctly, as long as it hasn’t been saved as an image (and sometimes even in those cases).

Moreover, an automatic screening tool is only used when the company has received a large number of applications, to ensure that they can be read starting with the most promising candidates, not in random order.

As a result, they favor meritocracy and avoid a situation in which CVs are read simply in the order of arrival, stopping when one has reached a sufficient number of suitable candidates.




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