It’s always a good idea to periodically assess the state of any technology or system that your organization relies on to function efficiently. Widespread access to broadband has revolutionized how companies present job offerings as well as how individuals discover new jobs and apply to them.
HR professionals have found that applicant tracking systems make their workflow much easier. However, does this convenience come at a cost?
One often overlooked question is whether the online job application experience has been improving for job seekers.
Consider that many industries have taken to using online intake forms to make things easier for their clients and customers. It’s worth noting, then, that 60 percent of respondents to a survey conducted by Kelton Global and Jibe indicated that online job applications are harder to complete than other typical online applications, including health insurance as well as student loans and mortgages, according to a recent post at the Fox Small Business Center. About 80 percent of those surveyed also said that their job search was stressful and took too much time.
You should take those sentiments to heart and make sure that you go with an online job application system that is easy and fast for your applicants to fill out. Completing an application shouldn’t have to amount to a technology test when you are trying to fill some vital positions in your organization. This will not only improve the quality of the incoming candidates, but will also ensure that those that are turned down for the job don’t leave with a sour taste about your brand.
New cutting-edge ATS solutions such as Newton Software’s Cloud Apply, help small-to-medium sized businesses offer applicants a convenient way to upload their CVs, storing their resumes in a secure cloud site, while letting the data auto-populate into an online job application when the time comes to fill it out. Most applicants will be quite satisfied when they learn that they don’t need to fill out another long application, especially after they’ve already answered all the pertinent questions in their resume. The addition of support for mobile devices, such as with Newton’s ZenApp, gives applicants even more flexibility, enabling them to apply for positions while they’re on the go.
It’s clear that you need to select the best online job application system for your budget while also taking into account the fact that job seekers are growing weary at the amount of time they sometimes have to spend submitting their details over and over. The more efficient your online application process is, the better chance you have of recruiting promising new talent and promoting a positive image for your company’s brand.
Despite high unemployment rates, many HR professionals and recruiters are still finding it difficult to attract talented candidates to fill open positions at their firms. HireRight’s 2013 Employment Screening Benchmarking report notes that 52 percent of respondents said their biggest challenge is hiring and keeping talented employees. In fact, employers may actually be discouraging excellent candidates from applying, writes Kathleen Davis in an article about the report and its detailed infographic at 
