What Exactly is an Applicant Tracking System?

If you own a recruiting firm, you’re tracking your candidates in one way or another. But which way it that? Is it manually?

According to information supplied by research company Software Advice, over half of prospective buyers in the market for an applicant tracking system are using manual methods for tracking candidates. What kind of manual methods are we talking about? Here are just a few:

• Excel spreadsheets
• Email
• Index cards (I’m not making that up.)
• A filing cabinet (I’m not making that up.)
• Paper and crayons (I’m making that up.)

This means that if you’re in the market for an applicant tracking system, there’s at least a 50% chance that you currently utilize manual methods for candidate management. And if you are using manual methods, you might be asking yourself this question: “Just what exactly is an applicant tracking system?”

Simply put, an applicant tracking system is any software application that allows a recruiting firm owner to track and manage candidates more quickly and efficiently for the purpose of recruiting them more effectively and making more placements.

Does it matter whether or not the software application is web-based or not? Technically, it does not. When they were first introduced, applicant tracking systems were downloaded to your computer, either from a disc or from the Internet, where they resided on your hard drive. These days, though, more and more applicant tracking systems (if not most of them) are web-based applications.

A web-based applicant tracking system

Remember, though: what’s important is that you have a system that works the best for you when it comes to tracking candidates. After all, if you’re currently using one of the manual methods listed above, using an application that resides on your computer’s hard drive is certainly a technological step up. However, if you’re looking to leverage the full power of an applicant tracking system, taking the leap and opting for a web-based version is advisable.

Below are a few reasons why it’s advisable:

1. You don’t have to mess around with installing software on your computer, which takes time and can be cumbersome if you’re not technologically savvy.
2. You don’t have to worry about updates; they happen automatically, usually while you’re asleep.
3. Let’s say your computer crashes. (We’re not jinxing you, just speaking hypothetically.) Since you’re using a web-based application, you would NOT lose access to any of your information, including candidates and clients. They would still be safe and sound and just a click away . . . although it might be the click of another computer’s mouse as opposed to your own.

Are you in the market for an applicant tracking system? Do you still utilize manual methods of tracking? Would a web-based applicant tracking system be the best option for you and your firm?

Conduct research, figure out what is more important to you and your firm, and choose the application that makes the most sense for you.