How to Choose Recruiting Software and What to Avoid

There has never been as much recruiting software available as there is right now. 

With a record amount of venture capital flowing into Recruiting Tech and job openings hitting new highs, you can only expect more software to arrive in the coming months.

But more options can also mean more noise with influencers coining new buzzwords and software vendors creating new categories. 

Balancing your software research with actually recruiting people may make it feel like your head is spinning. That’s OK!

The good news is that you do have options and the right software is out there. 

Here are some questions we ask ourselves to find clarity when evaluating new software. We hope they help you make the best choice too.

Does it solve a problem?

Before you shortlist a group of software options, make sure you can articulate the problem you want to solve. Be as specific as possible, rank for priority, and describe the end goal.

Here are a few examples of recruiting goals:

1. I need more qualified candidates for my jobs.
2. I need to improve my candidate experience. 
3. I need to automate workflows to save time.

Many popular job boards and advertisement services may promise more impressions, clicks, and candidates, but does that really lead to more hires? Ensure that the candidate quality coming from the technology is as high as the number of people.

This step may seem obvious, but you might be surprised at how easy it is to forget your priorities when sitting through a polished sales demo.

In every step of the evaluation process make sure you are identifying how the technology will help solve your recruiting challenges.

How will it impact the candidate?

Once you have chosen a few options, it’s time to put yourself in your candidates’ shoes. Consider how this technology is going to impact the job seekers and candidates thinking about jobs at your company.

Whether it’s applying, staying connected, or going through the hiring process, the people you want to hire might use this technology just as often as your recruiting team.

Recruiting chatbots and conversational AI have emerged as one way to automate early-stage candidate screening and scheduling. This technology can save you a lot of recruiter hours but could it also be immensely frustrating for the candidate?

Put yourself in the shoes of the candidate and consider what would be most helpful.

If the candidate viewpoint isn’t already included in your software demo walkthrough, be sure to ask that it gets added. That way you can think through how this new step will fit into the bigger candidate experience.

Will we use it?

82% of companies struggle with adoption so understanding how new software will be implemented is key.

An important question to ask is will this software create a new job or will it help me do the one I already have?

If you picture yourself having to carve out time from your schedule to use your new software, chances are that it is going to work against you over time.

Many of the new candidate relationship management (CRM’s) and recruiting marketing software are so feature-packed and customizable that most of the technology will never get used.

Smashfly’s Recruitment Benchmark Report finds that of the 43% of employers with talent networks, only 10% automate email reminders to complete a job application and only 8% send content other than jobs. 

In many cases, the setup process may take months or even a full year which includes training where your team must invest their valuable time.

Find software that can be almost 100% automated and integrated. In a perfect world, you would have time to test and optimize your recruiting technology on a regular basis, but we all know this isn’t always the case.

Recruiting software should deliver results and enable you to do your job better without adding extra work and time.

Can I trial it?

The way pricing is structured for recruiting software can vary wildly. Some vendors only offer annual and multi-year contracts, others will offer their software month-to-month or give you a trial.

Choose software that offers a month-to-month contract or a trial period.

If a provider offers you a way to opt-out within a month they probably feel confident they can have an impact in a short time period. They also probably have built a product that can be learned easily without hours and hours of training.

A software vendor that requires you to commit to a year or more has 11 months before they have to show any return on investment. 

Over this time you may have to work through user training, integrations, legal approvals, and other unforeseen challenges before ever knowing whether the product will work.

Be sure to get some hands-on experience with the recruiting software before making a purchase.

About Dalia and how we can help

Dalia makes it easier for people to find jobs. By doing this well, we also help employers hire more efficiently. 

Employers use our candidate experience platform to automate talent nurturing and connect with job seekers faster. We hear firsthand from job seekers about the ups and downs of their search and use that feedback to keep making it easier for them to find a job.

If you’re searching for a job – sign up, and if you’re hiring – get a tour.