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ATS Evaluation Handbook

Written by: Corey Milloy

Article Overview: Finding the right applicant tracking system that meets all the needs of your organization can be an overwhelming task. It can be a challenge even knowing where to start and how to compare each solution. You will find important areas to investigate, questions to ask and responses to analyze during the evaluation process that will serve as a useful tool. This document is designed as an educational tool to guide your company in the search for the proper solution. This guide is organized into the following sections: • Identify Decision Makers • Identify Requirement • Vendor Assessment • Summary • About iCIMS

ATS Evaluation Handbook

Identify Decision Makers

It’s important for a company to organize itself internally before starting any evaluation process.
When preparing to evaluate an applicant tracking system it is essential to form a collaboration of
stakeholders and give these decision makers time to arrive at an informed decision. Your selection
committee should be prepared to assess the strengths and weaknesses of each vendor. The
selection committee should include:

• Selection Executive: This is usually a SVP or VP of HR that can empower the other
members with a clear directive and vision. The person should also have the ability to explain the
vendor selection in terms of Return on Investment (ROI) to his/her counterparts.
• Selection Manager: This person must have a full understanding of hiring process and the
company’s pain points in order to create proper search and selection tactic.
• Committee Member: To ensure the user’s voice is represented and a successful
adoption of the chosen solution.
• Committee Contributor: These are members from other departments that provide
additional input to the selection process. Those with financial expertise can give input on the
financial stability of the vendors or compare the total cost of each system in relation to the project budget. IT contributors can education committee members on the technical capabilities of the vendors’ system and help compare each solution to your current system.

The selection of committee members should be people that can recognize the value of technology
tools, process optimization, and customer service as it relates to your corporate vision of talent
management.

After you have assembled your committee, your first assignment is to create a document that tracks
the process of the requisition, the hiring manager, the recruiter, and the candidate to complete a
hire. Then your committee should discuss why the step is necessary and what would happen if it
were eliminated. We advise you to simplify and make sure each step is adding value and
producing quality results. This will allow your committee to compare the needs of your process with
the capabilities of each ATS.

This evaluation is a great opportunity to learn about best practices, review and optimize your current process.

Identify Requirements

Now that you have clearly identified your company’s process, your committee is fully prepared to
identify your company requirements. Bear in mind you want to have a clear-cut answer to the
following questions: Why are you buying this system at all? Is your current process aligned with
your company goals? Keeping this in mind will help your committee make a strong case to
purchase a solution. In order for the ATS you choose to have a strong connection to the ROI, your
committee must create clear expectations of what you want in an ATS. Your ATS should build a
better relationship between recruiters and hiring managers; streamline your requisition creation and approval process, and improve your quality of hires. Your ATS should streamline the recruitment
efforts of Human Resource Professionals through automation, creating a more efficient and
cost-effective hiring process.

This is perfect time to address common HR challenges, such as:
• High volume of resumes with no effective way of accepting, reviewing and managing.
• High volume of job opportunities with cumbersome internal communication.
• Inability to access information quickly and report on all recruiting metrics.
• Losing qualified applicants due to haphazard storage of resumes.
• Duplication of recruiting efforts between various branch offices and divisions locally
or abroad.
• Excessive IT maintenance and support expenses with homegrown technology.
• Ineffective tracking of EEO-OFCCP compliance data.
• Struggling to get proper attention from IT for technology upgrades and
enhancements.

Also take this opportunity to consider the value of improvements from new processes and
technologies such as avoiding using different modules, improving communication, and addressing
global issues.

To keep this manageable you need to identify essential “must haves” in order to “knockout”
unqualified vendors. For instance, as a fundamental “knockout” factor your committee may decide
that you will only consider vendors that provide a web-based solution as opposed to an installed
system, as the hosted solution eliminates any burden on your IT team.

Identify Requirements

Identifying clear business goals will connect your priorities to your requirements. It is imperative that
your committee stay focused on its initial system requirements and avoid being distracted by system
elements that are not inline with your company’s priorities. We have recognized some important
business goals and key requirements to consider when forming your own objectives.

Business Goal Key Requirements to Consider

• Process efficiencies • Allows candidates to quickly and easily apply to our
o Centralizing a process can improve a variety of organization for salary and hourly hire without going tasks including, but not limited to, through multiple pages of questions. job requisitions, tracking, manage employee referral and transfer programs.

• Can facilitate high-volume recruiting while remaining cost-effective.

• A highly configurable, scalable solution that can configure to our unique hiring management process and capable to accommodate our evolving needs as our organization grows or our processes change.

• Improved reporting capabilities • Allows recruiters to search the database on all
o Many organizations are challenged with information, and by specific parameters.
determining their total spends on vendors, sourcing, and comparing metrics. Coordinating through a single source will allow for accurate centralized reporting.

• Includes a Reporting Center that enables users to run ad-hoc reports and save criteria for future use, as well as run industry standard reports, including cost-per-hire, time-to-fill, source effectiveness, and more.

• Build Brand Identity and Awareness • Branded Career Center web pages accessible
o Creating a connection between an applicant through our company’s website. and a positive employment experience will craft recognition of the brand. A strong brand can generate
trust that will drive applicant traffic.

• Allows recruiters to easily post career information to the company website.
and enhance your talent pool. • Provide multi-language capabilities for global support.

• EEO/AAP Compliant • Capable of capturing, tracking, and reporting
o The ability to maintain an accurate measure of voluntary EEO data, while remaining in compliance
such information will keep in agreement with with the guidelines set forth by the EEO/OFCCP.
federal regulations and avoid any legal actions

• Capable of pre-screening candidates with “knockout” against the organization. It will also help to questions in order to indicate those who meet basic establish applicant quality. qualifications for the position.

• Improved Communications • Includes a Communication Center to facilitate
o Establishing an environment that effectively communication among recruiters, hiring managers,
informs, will unify all the users and streamline and candidates. Also allow users to schedule
the organization’s operations. appointments, leave notes and interview feedback, to
send mass messages, and auto-respond to applicants upon receipt of resume.

• Customer Support
• Readily available support team, dedicated to
o Full user adoption depends on the level of manage company and user issues while employing
customer support provided by the vendor industry Best Practices.
during and after implementation.
• Highest level of support available at no charge to our company.

Vendor Assessment

It is recommended to ask for a Request for Proposal (RFP) from potential vendors your committee
has decided to consider. This is your opportunity to gain clarification on any topic to help your
committee determine whether the software can do the required job. Your committee should consider
the following major issues to devise an effective RFP:

• Does the system support the main concerns of your committee?
This ties into the previous part of the evaluation process; you must know your process
completely before you can determine what features you need. Your committee can not be
distracted by solutions that may offer functions that are not your main priority. While they
may seem attractive, many flashy features and functions will not create any value to your
organization if they will not be adopted by your users.

• Has the vendor installed the system in another organization of a similar size?
Your committee should have access to references that can give you insight on issues
such as customer satisfaction and follow up, the implementation process, and hidden
fees. Remember, features are of no value without strong user adoption.

• What does the implementation process entail?
Having a successful adoption rate begins with the proper implementation. You want to be
sure that your chosen vendor does not leave your users without proper training and
continuous support. The implementation should be centered on your organization’s
recruitment process, not learning how to accommodate to their system. You should never
get the feeling that your implementation program will leave you feeling lost and unsure of
the vendor’s capabilities. During the evaluation process your committee should have the
impression that based on your department priorities and business goals; your
implementation will create a strong foundation for a long partnership with your ATS
provider. Remember that high user adoption to the ATS will generate a higher ROI.

• What is the vision and growth strategy of the vendor?
The vendor must demonstrate leadership and foresight as a market leader. In order to
present a comprehensive solution, the vendor should take into consideration your specific
needs and prepare for change and growth in the future.

Does this solution contribute to the overall business plan?
In the end, the Selection Executive will likely need to display an expected ROI in order to
make a strong case for the solution. The Selection Executive must look for savings on
such things as recruitment advertising, and employee value the use of search firms, and
process optimization provided by the vendor. The company should also save on
employee retention and candidate quality.

It can be very overwhelming to create a fully detailed document of inquires that will encompass all
the necessary topics to evaluate an ATS. Feel free to contact iCIMS at 1-800-889-4422 to request a
sample RFP and ROI Chart.

Vendor Assessment

Beyond features and functions, your committee should be sure to discuss the vendor’s ability to
serve as a long-term partner to your organization. As your committee conducts its vendor
assessment process, you want to be sure to consider such factors as:

Financial Stability
Conduct due diligence on the financial statements of all prospective vendors under review. You will
find this is a perfect topic for your financial committee contributor to guide you through.

Qualities of Strategic Partners
To offer a complete solution some vendors will partner with other service companies in order to
offer their clients a more comprehensive suite of services. Your committee should be aware of any
partnerships that are involved with the competing vendors. The information can provide an insight
into the possible partnership between your company and the vendor.

Recruitment Capabilities
Regardless of your company size, we advise that the vendor have the capability to support the full
employee life cycle, from applicant tracking, on-boarding, succession planning to off-boarding. This will prevent your company from growing out of its solution, which would likely result in aggravation, a new evaluation, and costly implementation fees.

Future Product Development
Be sure that the vendor conveys a strong understanding of the challenges facing recruitment now
and in the future. The vendor you choose must be on the pulse of technology and industry news in
order to adjust to your changing needs and ensure that the solution’s configurations are being used
to its fullest potential.

Integration with HRIS
Although you may want your IT committee contributor to provide input on this
matter, it should not sway your committee into using an ATS that will not adequately serve the entire department. Any vendor worth considering should provide the capability to move key information from its Talent Platform into your HRIS system with minimal difficulty.

Summary

The timeline for vendor selection process can range from a month to six or more to complete. The
following is a suggested timetable the will allow your committee to project a timeframe. Please be
advised that this is subject to change based on a preferred implementation date.

Keep in mind that the main goal of an ATS is to empower your users. Committee members should
be able to recognize and place a value upon technology tools, process optimization, company vision
and customer support in order to strategically narrow down the vendors into a short list of real
possibilities. It is likely that your short list may not have many distinguishing functional differences; therefore it is important to keep the less tangible elements of that vendor in mind.

We suggest your committee should look to sources of information such as the vendor’s website, newsgroups, Human Resource portals and tradeshows. Connect with colleagues at other companies that are similar in size, needs and industry to learn from their experiences. Partnering with a service-oriented vendor that is the most compatible fit with your organization’s vision and goals for the future will prove invaluable for all key players in your ATS Evaluation.

Task Time
Form a selection committee 1 week
Identify company needs 1-2 weeks
Objectively assess vendors against the
identified company needs with the following:
• Create a long list of possible vendors 1 week
• Request RFPs to provide clarification on any
topic or concern
4 weeks
• Create a shortlist using your key evaluation
criteria
1-2 weeks
Finalize a vendor 3-6 weeks
• Demos ASAP
• Sale Presentations ASAP
• Site visits TBD


About iCIMS
Please see our bio for more information about us!

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Article Tags: applicant tracking system, committee member, corporate vision, current system, decision makers, education committee members, financial expertise, financial stability, hiring manager, hiring process, process optimization, project budget, proper search, requisition, return on investment, selection committee, selection process, strengths and weaknesses, technical capabilities, vendor selection



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