…ideas from Jeffery Giesener – SourceMob.com – CEO
One of the biggest complaints we get from candidates is that they hate to fill out long applicant tracking system (ATS) forms when applying for jobs. This becomes a bigger issue when candidates are applying to multiple employers (the norm these days) with each organization using a different ATS system. These systems may help employers stay organized (questionable), but they also hurt the candidate experience and can even scare away good applicants.
When your candidates want to communicate with you on their mobile or tablet devices, can you take their applications directly into your ATS?
If you are trying to attract candidates in computer science, engineering, and allied health, you can bet that these folks will most likely forgo applying to your organization if they perceive difficulty with your application process and will take one of the many offers that are already being put in front of them.
Here are some factors to consider when “selling” candidates on applying to your organization:
Use simple online forms: Don’t force your candidates to jump through hoops to apply for your positions. Don’t ask them for repetitive information. Don’t require them to fill out silly information or information not needed before taking the next step in the apply process. Help them easily navigate through the apply process by removing any roadblocks. Better yet, try filling out your own ATS application and see how you do and whether you would complete or defect. Time yourself from start to finish.
Offer ATS integration. As an organization, you’re most likely using two or more media partners (like LinkedIn or Facebook) to attract and source candidates. If so, offer the ability for your vendors to integrate with your ATS in order to provide a seamless application process for users. A good ATS will offer tools for third-party vendors to pass candidate information to them. If the media vendor is able to integrate with your ATS and pass candidate information seamlessly, make sure you have an ATS that is willing and able to integrate. The burden should be on your ATS or on your media vendors to do the work. Don’t put the burden on the back of your candidate.
Enable Candidates to Apply on a Smartphone or Tablet device. It is critical in today’s marketplace for you to enable your ATS to accept applications from candidates on their smartphones and tablets. This means enabling candidates to easily apply on a mobile or tablet device. Nothing can be more frustrating than trying to apply on a bad mobile platform. Did you know by 2015 Morgan Stanley estimates there will be more than 3 Billion mobile connections? Computer Science, Engineering, Medical and other specialized positions are using mobile heavily to apply for jobs today. Now to test your mobile candidate experience, try and apply to your organization on your mobile or tablet device.
Career fairs and info sessions. These on-campus venues are very popular with students, and are two of the top ways students like to connect with employers.. When meeting students, especially top prospects, offer to accept their resume on your tablet right there and then. Then drop these candidates into your Talent Community. The worst thing you can do is tell them to go online later and submit their resume via the ATS. If you’ve put in the effort to show up on campus, you should take those resumes online, stat and make sure they go where they need to go.
Even in a soft job market, competition for top college talent remains fierce. You need to make it easy for college students and grads to apply to your jobs. First impressions count, so make your application process a welcoming experience.
Stop Defection with Good Analytic Visibility. Knowing where your defection is within your ATS will save you tens of thousands in lost campaign spending, applications lost, cost of missed applies and hires. Unfortunately, it seems that bad analytics visibility is the dirty little secret in the ATS world that no one wants to talk about. Why is this? I think the answer is obvious. Accountability. When was the last time you asked your ATS vendor to be accountable for defection or your cost per apply/hire?
Why not check out SourceMob’s Mobile ATS and Mobile DirectApply. Now candidates can submit application on desktops, laptops, smartphones and tablet devices seamlessly and easily. There is also a tablet career fair solution included, plus a solid set of analytics to prove ROI.
When you are ready to talk about what is new in the mobile ATS and candidate experience, including mobile apply using your existing ATS, simple give me a call. Just ring me up at 612-349-2740 or email me at jeff@sourcemob.com
Best,
Jeffery
Jeffery Giesener
CEO/Founder
SourceMob. Om
612-349-2740
Twitter: @sourcemob
http://www.linkedin.com/in/jefferyjeffgiesener
Credit: Roberto Argulo