- 6 Steps to Build the Best Recruitment Tech Stack - May 22, 2024
Thanks to recruitment software, the process of hiring staff can now be more efficient. Your recruitment team no longer has to trawl through job applications and recruitment for hours on end. Specialized software streamlines the process, automating tasks and tracking the entire hiring process.
In fact, 76% of companies say recruiting automation allows recruiters to focus on more important tasks.
But, different tools have different features like applicant tracking, AI talent matching, and interview scheduling. So, it can be difficult to choose the right tools and build a recruitment tech stack.
To help with that, we will break down the process of building your ideal tech stack into six simple steps. But first, let’s establish what exactly an efficient recruitment technology stack is.
What is a recruitment technology stack?
A recruitment technology stack is a combination of tools used to source, attract, and hire high-quality candidates. Your tech stack should streamline the recruitment process, enhancing efficiency and effectiveness in all areas.
As there are a lot of repetitive, time-consuming tasks involved in recruitment, specialized tools are highly beneficial. For example, in a recent study, 71% of recruiters said they need intelligent tools to manage data. This is just one of the areas where recruitment teams need help.
Thankfully though, there are tools available to enhance all aspects of the recruitment process. For example, applicant tracking and analytics tools can be used to manage recruitment data more effectively.
You can automate resume screening, candidate communications, and interview scheduling. You can even use AI to source more quality candidates.
However, the difficult part is finding the right combination of tools, as there is a wealth of options for each type of recruitment technology. It is helpful to think of your recruitment tech stack as a recipe. You need the right ingredients in the right combination to achieve the desired result.
6 Steps to Build the Best Recruitment Tech Stack
Now let’s go through six steps to help you build your ideal recruitment tech stack.
1. Assess your needs
First, you must establish the specific recruitment requirements of your business. To do this, assess your current processes and identify recruitment challenges you are currently facing.
For example, if you review applicants manually, the initial screening process may take too long. As shown below, over-relying on a human recruiter is one of the most common candidate selection pitfalls.
Applicants expect a swift hiring process nowadays, so you may miss out on potential candidates who move on before you get to interview them.
While this is a relatively easy issue to spot, other problems may require more in-depth analysis. For example, if you struggle to find a good fit for roles, there could be several explanations.
Your job descriptions may not be attracting enough high-quality applicants in the first place. Or an overly elaborate interview process for applicant pre-screening could be putting the best applicants off.
In some instances, the causes aren’t even directly related to recruitment. Maybe your SaaS company isn’t attracting the best applicants simply because no one even gets to read your optimized job descriptions. In such a scenario, the problem lies in your SaaS website visibility, not in your lack of relevant recruitment tools. By partnering with a good SaaS link-building agency then, you can easily solve the problem.
This is why it is essential to do a thorough analysis. Don’t stop at identifying the problems. Go further and identify the real cause. This will help ensure you don’t waste your time and resources looking for a recruitment tool that won’t actually help you solve the problem.
2. Identify key features
Now that you’re done with your needs assessment, it’s time to identify the key features you’ll require in your recruitment tech stack.
Match relevant needs with features that will enhance the key aspects of your recruitment process. For example, if you struggle to find qualified candidates, top talent-sourcing software would be useful. These tools use analytics to source suitable candidates on career sites like Indeed and LinkedIn.
You can also look for recruiting tools with optimization features. Ongig, for instance, uses artificial intelligence to generate job descriptions that are optimized to ensure that your online job postings reach the right types of candidates. Although there may be risks with generative AI tools like this, there are measures you can implement to counter them. For instance, your own recruiters can fact-check your final job ads to guard against potential AI hallucinations.
Artificial intelligence talent matching tools can also help. They assess resumes to find the best match on paper for your job description, eliminating any biases.
Here are other recruitment tool features you might consider, depending on your findings from your needs assessment:
Automated interview scheduling: As manual scheduling can be time-consuming, having it automated can free up a lot of extra time for other important tasks.
Resume review: This is a similarly repetitive task that can slow down the screening process if done manually. Applicant tracking software has this feature. It provides profiles of individual candidates as well as a hiring flowchart of the ongoing process as shown below.
It can help you review applicants individually and keep track of the overall hiring process as it develops.
Candidate relationship management: Seamless communication throughout the candidate experience is key. However, replying to each applicant individually can take up a lot of time. Luckily, with a candidate relationship management feature, you can automate communication with the right candidates at each stage of the hiring process. You can keep them engaged throughout.
Make a list of all the recruitment features you need. This list will come in handy in the next stage.
3. Research and evaluate options
Having identified your key features, you must search for recruitment solutions that have these features. It is essential to research thoroughly. That’s the only way you’ll find the right recruiting technology for your specific needs.
Look for at least three tools for each feature on your list. But how do you decide these top three per feature? Just check out online reviews like the one below.
Articles that review and compare different tools can also help you decide. These articles tell you the specific areas each tool excels in compared to similar pieces of software.
Overall, the tools with the feature you’re looking for AND with good user feedback and reviews should make it to your Top 3 Per Feature list.
You could then avail of a free trial of all these tools on your final list. There’s no better way to evaluate a piece of software than to use it and explore it yourself.
4. Choose final core tools
Now it’s time to choose the main tools that will make up your recruitment tech stack. Use the online reviews mentioned above AND your experience of using different tools to make your final decision. Ideally, you should choose one final tool per tool feature you identified as a requirement for your business (unless you find a recruitment solution that already has everything you need).
Although each business will require different recruitment tools, there are some tools that are key to streamlining every single recruitment process. That means these will likely figure across all company lists of required recruitment tools, including yours. These tools include:
- Applicant tracking software
- Job description solutions
- Candidate engagement tools
Unless you find a solution that has all the features you’re looking for, when choosing your final tools, make sure you also look at integrations. For your tech stack to be effective, you will need to combine all these tools into one efficient system. Going from one tool to another kills efficiency and can lead to mistakes and lost data.
5. Integrate systems
Let’s assume you had to choose multiple recruitment tools to address your specific recruitment needs. Now how do you integrate these different technologies to create your own hiring tech ecosystem? The answer to that question will depend on the tools in question, of course. In most instances, you’ll find what you need to do for integration on your chosen tool providers’ websites.
For instance, Ongig displays a list of its ATS integration partners on its ATS Partners page:
On the same page, you can just sign up for a demo for the integration. Essentially, Ongig integrates with ATS solutions through multiple “integration points” provided by that ATS’ Application Provider Interface or via web fetch. Once the integration is successful, recruiters can easily post internally approved and optimized Ongig job descriptions to the chosen ATS for the best candidates to see.
If you can’t find relevant resources on your tool providers’ sites, reach out to their customer service department. They should give you specific instructions to follow to ensure your tech integration is seamless.
6. Train employees, implement, and monitor
Your recruitment staff must be trained to use the new technologies. Most software solutions provide a run-through of all of its features and how to use them. So, make sure the staff completes the onboarding sessions for each tool.
For the best results, you may want to create your own guide book. It should institutionalize, not just the relevant instructions to maximize use of your entire tech stack, but also the don’ts to guard the system against potential threats and ensure a seamless recruitment process. Have your old employees and new hires read and understand the guide book as well.
As you implement your recruitment strategy using your latest tech ecosystem, do your due diligence and monitor. Evaluating the effectiveness of your new recruitment tech stack is just as important. Chances are, the system won’t be perfect right from the start. Monitoring will allow you to make changes as needed to ultimately ensure smooth hiring processes and the best results.
Wrap up:
A recruitment tech stack can be beneficial for a business’s recruiting process. By following the steps in this article, you can build an effective tech stack and significantly enhance your recruitment operations.
Just establish your needs. Then, identify the key features of your ideal recruitment tech stack based on your findings. With your preferences in mind, do your research and assess your options.
Now you can choose the core tools that will make up your tech stack and work on integrating these different systems. Finally, train your employees to use your tech stack efficiently. Make sure you evaluate your tech stack’s performance so you can make adjustments, if needed.
Put these steps into action. You’ll soon have a great recruiting tech stack that will enhance your talent acquisition and yield the best talent for your business.
James Westfield is the Marketing Manager for Writer, an AI writing platform designed for teams. He has over 10 years of experience in the industry. When James isn’t in the office, you can find him on the golf course.
