The Importance of ATS (Applicant Tracking System) In Recruitment and CV Screening

22‏‏/10‏‏/2022

If you can be in the top 25% of candidates when you apply for a job, would you do it? 

Then optimizing your CV for the Applicant tracking system can help.

  • But first, let me tell you what “ATS” is

ATS (Applicant tracking systems) are software used by companies to manage all the candidates applying for positions. 

It’s used by over 90% of large companies and the majority of Medium and Small companies.

  • Why do employers use Applicant tracking system?

Every organization is unique, but each thrives on attracting, hiring, and maximizing top talent. Many businesses face major challenges at some point in the hiring process. 

An ATS can help the organization find, hire, and retain the best candidates.

Top employers hire for several jobs and receive hundreds of resumes. Because applying for a job online is way easier now, many of these applicants can be unqualified and figure out, “ It was worth a try’’.

‘’Applicant tracking systems’’ were the solution for this issue as most of the companies who hire people now can put on the system keywords they are searching for that must be in their CVs. 

Most large corporations utilize applicant tracking systems. It’s way more organized and will help recruiters and hiring managers save more time. 

Systems also save time by automatically surfacing and highlighting top candidates and choosing among them who is more qualified.

How Applicant tracking systems work

Applicant tracking systems collect and store resumes in a database for hiring professionals to access. 

Companies recruiters or hiring managers can then search for keywords and sort through the resumes in several ways, depending on the system they’re using.

Viewing applications: Some recruiters still choose to glance at every job application that comes through their applicant tracking system. In this case, most take a quick glance at the applicant’s past highlights, job titles, and companies. It’s critical to ensure your top skills and qualifications are easily identifiable.

Automatic Rankings: 

Some applicant tracking systems can automatically compare your resume to the job description. Instead of reviewing each and every application, the recruiter can focus squarely on candidates the ATS has identified as a great match.

Keywords Searches:

This is a common way that Recruiters use to filter CVs in an applicant tracking system by searching for key skills and titles.

For example, if a recruiter is hiring a Digital marketer out of 300 other CVs. their first step will probably be a search for some keywords that may be related to the field of a Digital marketer or they are searching for in their company.

A search can contain multiple terms. For example, they might perform a complex search that contains a combination of titles and skills necessary for the job.

Candidates who can predict the correct CV keywords will have the greatest chance of being included in recruiter search results. 

But also, there is a secure and better way for the professionals who write keywords relevant to your field to pass all these things.

Difference between Online ATS and Internal ATS check

Online ATS: it’s done by different websites; it usually inaccurate as it’s more of a marketing tool. It uses more general keywords, not specific ones. 

That’s why if there is a Doctor and an Engineer, they can get the same result as online checking is extremely different from companies that do the check.

You can also do 2 ATS checks for your CV from two websites and get different results.

Internal ATS: This is done by companies as each company develops by customizing its ATS based on its needs. And this is the accurate one and the professional one that differentiates and chooses according to the company’s needs.