Choosing the Best ATS: The Ultimate Guide

Recruiting is a demanding job, especially when dealing with high mental load and time pressure.

Without a good ATS, finding the ideal candidate for a position within the given timeframe is nearly impossible. The right ATS is a software that saves time and effort while ensuring that only qualified and relevant candidates reach the advanced stages of recruitment.

However, there is no one-size-fits-all solution, as every recruiter has specific needs. The goal of this article is to help you identify the important criteria for you when choosing an ATS and to understand the different options available on the market.

With this article, you’ll be able to customize this ready-to-fill ATS evaluation file with your own requirements.

Download the ATS Evaluation File

What is a modern ATS (applicant tracking system)?

ATS stands for Applicant Tracking System. It is software that allows recruiters to manage their recruitment processes. Today, it is much more than just an application tracking system.

Modern ATS can assist with sourcing, email sending, job posting, application sorting, and interview management. They allow you to build a significant pool of qualified candidates and leverage it for new job openings.

Some ATS even have an integrated CRM component, enabling them to manage all clients and prospects, track their interactions, and oversee the overall business relationship.

4 questions to ask before choosing an ATS

Your needs are unique, so it’s important to clearly identify what you require before starting your search.

Your type of business

The size of your company, its organization, and its industry play a significant role in choosing the right ATS.

• ATS for freelance recruiters: You might need a tool primarily focused on efficient sourcing and client relationship management. A lightweight and flexible system would likely be more suitable for your independent work.

• ATS for recruitment agencies: With a team of recruiters, you need a solution that allows smooth collaboration among team members. The ATS should handle the volume of sourcing and applications you process. The CRM component is crucial for good client relationship management and growing your agency’s business. Whether it’s for the ATS or the CRM, integrated management of email exchanges, LinkedIn, etc., can significantly boost your team’s productivity while providing precise and comprehensive reporting and tracking.

• ATS for small businesses: With a generally lower volume of applications, you might opt for a basic and user-friendly system. The goal would be to choose a solution that doesn’t strain your budget while meeting your essential needs and being easy for everyone on your team to use.

• ATS for large enterprises: In this case, you would need a robust and scalable system. The ATS should ideally integrate seamlessly with your other HR systems. The focus would be on large-scale efficiency, saving time for your entire HR team.

The origin of your talents

• Job applications or spontaneous applications: CV parsing is crucial for effective application management. Depending on your volume, quick screening features can be very useful.
• Sourcing: You need to check the compatibility of your ATS with the talent sources you use. LinkedIn is often the main source, but there are others like GlassDoor, Indeed, CareerBuilder, etc. Check the quality of profile integration (one by one, in bulk, whether you need to go through the CV, tracking InMail exchanges, LinkedIn connection requests, etc.).
• Referral programs: If you have a referral management tool in place, ensure the ATS you’re testing is compatible.

Integration with your ecosystem

You might have other essential tools for your business that your ATS needs to integrate with. Listing your existing tools and checking their compatibility with your ATS is crucial. Here are some examples of integrations that might be useful to you:

• LinkedIn
• LinkedIn Recruiter or Sales Navigator
• Google Emails / Google Workspace
• Microsoft Emails / Microsoft Office 365
• Google Calendar / Google Workspace
• Microsoft Calendar / Microsoft Office 365
• Job boards (GlassDoor, Indeed, CareerBuilder, etc.)
• Referral solutions
• Personality/technical test solutions

Your budget

Choosing a premium ATS isn’t a big deal if your business is thriving and your budget allows for it. This often means you’ll benefit from very advanced features. But be cautious, some premium tools can be very expensive and may not necessarily provide the added value you expect.

However, every dollar counts when you’re a small business with a tight budget. You wouldn’t want to spend thousands of dollars on an advanced ATS. Therefore, finding an affordable ATS designed for small businesses becomes a key factor. But be careful, if your business is growing rapidly, a limited system can quickly become a hindrance and cost you valuable time.

In other words, budget can be one of the main criteria for choosing the right ATS software. Your budget should be analyzed to identify the ATS software that can adequately fit your financial situation while meeting your recruitment needs.

24 features of a modern ATS

Here is a very comprehensive list of features offered by the best ATS software. Depending on your needs identified above, some features may be more or less important, or even completely unnecessary. You can sort through this list based on your priorities. We provide you with a ready-to-use RFP (Request For Proposal) template, containing all the elements to help you evaluate the ATS you will be testing.

Job posting management

• Multi-posting: Automatically publish a job offer on multiple platforms and job boards simultaneously.
• Application reception in the ATS: Centralizes all received applications directly in the system, regardless of their origin. Even without multi-posting, the ATS should be able to retrieve applications received in your email inbox, sent via a job board, or directly on your career site.
• Resume parsing: Automatically analyzes resumes to extract relevant information and integrate it into the database. The best ATS can extract complex information such as skills, certifications, work experiences, and even the candidate’s profile picture.
• Career site: If you are developing a strong brand image, you might need a career site. You can have a custom site that you want to integrate with your ATS, or you might prefer to let your ATS generate your career site.

Talent pool management and utilization

• LinkedIn sourcing: Allows you to directly import profiles from LinkedIn into the ATS. Ideally, this operation is almost instantaneous and does not require a resume. Some ATS also allow you to import your LinkedIn network with a single click.
• LinkedIn Recruiter / Sales Navigator sourcing: Allows you to import LinkedIn Recruiter projects or Sales Navigator lists into the ATS.
• Resume database sourcing: Facilitates the search and import of profiles from various resume databases like GlassDoor, Indeed, Apec, etc.
• Advanced search in the talent pool: A talent pool is only useful if it is easy to utilize. Advanced search features are therefore essential. Think of Boolean searches, filters on skills, experiences, education, etc. Also, the ability to tag/segment your talent pool to make it more relevant and easier to use.
• Duplicate management: Automatically identifies and manages duplicate profiles to maintain a clean database. Additionally, when a candidate applies multiple times to different job offers, it is important that the ATS does not create multiple profiles but consolidates these applications into a single profile.
• Excel / CSV export: It is important that you can easily export your profiles to integrate them into other tools, share them with clients, partners, etc. This also ensures that your data remains in your possession and that you are free to take your data with you as is.
• Excel / CSV import: Facilitates the bulk import of profiles from Excel or CSV files. It is convenient to be able to import profiles obtained in the form of an Excel file, for example, to integrate them into your talent pool.

Recruitment process

• Customization of recruitment processes/steps: Allows you to create and adapt recruitment steps according to your needs or those of your clients.
• Structured and personalized interviews: The interview with the candidate is a crucial step. Some ATS allow you to customize interviews, making them more structured and personalized.
• Automated actions: It’s common to want to trigger automated actions based on recruitment process events. For example, when you reject a candidate, you could trigger an automatic action to send them an email explaining why their application was declined. Or when you schedule an interview, you could trigger an automatic action to remind your candidate of the appointment date.
• Statistics, metrics, KPIs, reporting: Provides analysis and reporting tools to track recruitment performance and improve your team’s productivity.

Communication / outreach

• Email integration: Allows you to send and receive emails directly from the ATS. Note that some ATS only handle sending emails, while others only handle receiving. Many ATS do not support attachments, so you cannot send resumes via email. Be sure to check this feature if it is important to you.
• LinkedIn messaging: Being able to send LinkedIn invitations or messages from the ATS saves a lot of time and increases the level of personalization. It’s also important to note that response rates are higher when recruiters send a LinkedIn message rather than an email.
• LinkedIn Recruiter and/or Sales Navigator messaging: LinkedIn Recruiter and Sales Navigator messaging allows you to contact profiles outside your LinkedIn network via InMails.
• WhatsApp, Telegram, SMS messaging, etc.: More and more candidates are using these communication channels. This creates greater proximity and responsiveness, helping you stand out from other recruiters.
• Follow-up automation: Scheduling and automatically sending follow-up messages to candidates can significantly increase your response rate (by an average of 100%).
• Integrated appointment scheduler (e.g., Calendly): Makes it easier to schedule appointments with candidates.
• Internal team communication: Offers internal collaboration tools, such as reminders, action and interaction history, etc.

CRM: customer relationship management

• Company management: Integrating your clients into the CRM part of your ATS allows you to avoid double entry between two tools and link clients, recruitment projects, and candidates.
• Integration with a company database: Entering all your client’s information can be tedious. Some ATS/CRM systems integrate a company database (like LinkedIn, Pappers, etc.), which automatically provides numerous details (name, logo, contact information, website, industry, number of employees, legal information, company site locations, etc.).
• Contact management: Beyond companies, you’ll likely want to manage the contacts (recruiters, business owners, managers, etc.) you interact with. Some ATS systems allow you to integrate these contacts into the CRM, tracking the history of exchanges, emails, calls, meetings, etc.
• Integrated prospecting: Integrated prospecting enables you to find new clients from prospect lists, contact them directly from your ATS and CRM, track them in your prospecting pipeline, and convert them into clients.
• Client/manager sharing: Sharing features allow you to push candidates to clients while choosing the information you want to share. This saves time and provides an opportunity to transparently share the work done and highlight your company’s value.

3 mistakes to avoid

Even if you’ve clearly defined your needs and listed the key features for your business, you can still encounter unpleasant surprises. Here are the pitfalls to avoid:

Not testing the software in real conditions

Evaluating an ATS solely during the sales demo can be misleading. Demos are often designed to showcase the software at its best, but they don’t always reflect the specific challenges you’ll face. It’s crucial to test the ATS in real conditions, using your own data and processes. This will allow you to see if it integrates well into your daily workflow and truly meets your needs.

Not measuring the responsiveness of support

Customer support is often overlooked when purchasing an ATS, but it’s essential. Even a high-performing ATS can encounter bugs or require customizations. If customer support isn’t responsive, it can quickly become a nightmare for your team. Make sure to test the support before committing, for example by asking technical questions or requesting help with specific cases. The speed and quality of the responses are important indicators of the service quality.

Forgetting to plan for migrating your existing data

When switching ATS, data migration is often overlooked or addressed only after signing the contract. However, it can sometimes be a complex operation, and in such cases, the ATS provider may charge for it. Poorly prepared transfers can lead to the loss of valuable data or inconsistencies in your talent pool and history. Before deciding to sign with your new ATS, make sure to confirm:

• the cost of migration
• the migration timeline
• the details of the information that will be migrated
• ideally, ask the provider to connect you with a client who has migrated from the same ATS as you, to gather their feedback.

6 solutions to consider for your recruitment activities

Among the most considered solutions by independent recruiters or agencies are: Bullhorn, Gem, Jarvi, Loxo, RecruitCRM, and Zoho Recruit (listed alphabetically).

However, solutions that are less tailored for recruitment agencies might also be suitable. Don’t hesitate to expand your search if you haven’t found the right fit among these suggestions.

Download a ready-to-use RFP template

To assist you in your search, we have created a ready-to-use RFP (Request For Proposal) template. You can use it to make a more precise evaluation of the different ATS you will be testing. Feel free to adapt it to your specific needs. In particular, you can remove features that are not relevant to you or add others as needed.

Download the ATS Evaluation spreadsheet