The digital age has reshaped how hiring works, leading to an improved candidate experience and optimization of the recruitment process, making it smoother and easier for both recruiters and candidates. As a recruiting specialist, I am lucky to be part of this evolution. In this post, I review the tools I use and share insights with peer recruiters and sourcers.
I will also touch on candidate sourcing, interviewing, and tracking, and how AI can assist recruiters and relieve some of their headaches.
My background
The tools I discuss here are influenced by my career path. I started as a lead generator and sourcer. For a long time, I was involved in identifying and attracting prospects, initiating contact, and fostering communication to convert them into clients. During that time I was exposed to many tools that, as I came to realize, can still be useful after I pivoted from lead generation to recruiting. My rapid transition to recruitment happened quite unexpectedly, and I mostly relied on self-taught methods at first. However, knowing the advantages of specialized software, I started exploring technology and tools that could benefit my new field of work.
Candidate sourcing
Social media
I believe identifying potential candidates is a pivotal aspect of the recruitment process, and social media sourcing plays a key role here by providing me with a wide pool of professionals and ways to interact with them. Almost any social media platform allows recruiters to connect with potential candidates and showcase their company’s culture and job opportunities. Let me walk you through some examples.
- GitHub is widely used for sourcing and recruiting tech professionals in the software development field.
- Instagram can be utilized for employer branding, demonstrating company culture, and attracting talent.
- Facebook groups and company pages are used for job postings and networking.
- Twitter gives space for job postings, hashtags, and engagement with industry professionals.
- Review websites, such as Glassdoor, serve as a platform for job postings and employer branding.
The one I stick with is LinkedIn – the most widely used tech tool for social media sourcing in recruitment.
Strategies involving active networking, sharing content, and participating in groups on LinkedIn became my common recruitment tactics and also allowed me to engage with potential candidates on a more personal level. I use LinkedIn to search for talent, post job opportunities, connect and engage with candidates, represent my company, and post content to attract potential employees.
The platform enables sourcing through its basic filters and provides additional advanced paid search engines like LinkedIn Recruiter and Sales Navigator. My personal hack is using Sales Navigator instead of LinkedIn Recruiter. I discovered this tool during my work as a lead generator in sales where it proved to be handy, so I continued using it.
Despite its name suggesting a focus on sales, Sales Navigator serves well in recruiting. While having many filters in common with LinkedIn Recruiter, it offers more filters and access to 3rd party connections, meaning I get a broader database of potential candidates.
Although Sales Navigator seems to cost less for the wider range of options, I recommend researching both LinkedIn Recruiter and Sales Navigator, considering subscription variations like Lite, Core, and Advanced to understand their differences. It’ll be easier to choose the one that best suits your specific needs when you know all available options.
Candidate tracking
An Applicant Tracking System (ATS) lies at the heart of recruitment efficiency. ATS is a software application that is designed to handle and automate various aspects of hiring, from collecting and sorting resumes to scheduling interviews. ATS simplifies recruitment workflow by organizing candidate data and making it easier to track applicants and communicate with them.
Although most ATS share core functionality, they differ in features, interface, analytics options, integrations, and, of course, price. Some platforms may even offer to customize their ATS to align with the unique requirements of your company. Several solutions to consider are Greenhouse, Workable, Bullhorn, CleverStaff, and a Ukrainian software called HURMA.
Clever Staff
My go-to ATS is CleverStaff which offers a comprehensive candidate database and more than 30 software-integrated tools for search and selection.
The software’s algorithms can suggest candidates from your database who fit the current vacancy criteria the most. It is adapted for working with many users at the same time, handles heavy loads, and ensures increased security. Plus, CleverStaff caters to different industries like Government and Finance, adjusting well to diverse needs.
CleverStaff allowed me to manage applicants more efficiently and easily move them through different stages. I could dedicate saved time and energy to discovering potential candidates and connecting with the right talent.
Candidate interviewing
The space for conducting online interviews, especially with the rise of remote work, is equally important for me. Video interviews break down geographic barriers, make the hiring process more inclusive, and save time and resources compared to in-person interviews. Moreover, they offer flexibility in scheduling.
There are different types of video interviewing tools. The ones I am personally most familiar with are popular video conferencing platforms Zoom and Google Meet. They are widely used for video interviews, providing real-time communication between candidates and interviewers.
For not-so-classic video interviewing, I consider Spark Hire. This software allows candidates to complete one-way video interviews on their own, meaning candidates record responses to pre-set questions and the recruiter later reviews them. Of course, the video platform is not limited by this function and also offers over 40 ATS integrations, making the workflow even more efficient.
Another solution for one-way video interviews is HireVue. They incorporate Artificial Intelligence (AI) to assess candidates’ skills and analyze and score candidate responses. They initially used to use AI to analyze facial expressions during interviews but later removed these facial recognition tools.
AI assistance for recruiting
Artificial Intelligence adds to recruitment dynamics. Aside from video interviewing platforms, there are many recruitment software that contain AI-related elements.
AI chatbots
AI-driven chatbots are becoming sophisticated and are being used to engage with candidates at various stages of the hiring process. For instance, Olivia by Paradox is an AI assistant that interacts with candidates through text messages and helps with pre-screening, scheduling interviews, reminding about upcoming meetings, and answering frequently asked questions.
Another interesting example of an AI-driven recruiting solution I encountered is Wade & Wendy. They provide a duo of AI chatbots focused on both sides of recruitment: Wendy assists candidates, while Wade engages with hiring managers, helping with screening resumes and scheduling interviews.
AI-assisted sourcing
I greatly value automated sourcing as AI algorithms refine the candidate selection process and contribute to maximized efficiency. For example, Entelo is a talent acquisition platform that automates candidate sourcing and matching by using AI and machine learning. It scans various online sources to find potential candidates and provides recruiters with a list of potential matches based on specific job requirements.
Another option is a marketplace for tech talent called Hired. It is not a primarily AI-driven platform, but Hired does incorporate some AI-related features in its operations. It uses automated sourcing to match companies with candidates based on skills, experience, and preferences, boosting both the sourcing and hiring processes.
Bottom line
During my ongoing exploration of recruitment practices, I’m witnessing a notable impact of technology on the hiring process. From the structured support of Applicant Tracking Systems to the integration of Artificial Intelligence, each technology significantly improves the hiring experience for both camps – hirers and hirees.
As a recruiter, I appreciate these advances. The incorporation of AI and other solutions not only streamlines and automates tasks, saving precious time, but it also encourages a more personalized approach. I can concentrate more on identifying candidates and building authentic connections, making the recruitment process more meaningful.