What is an ATS (applicant tracking system)?
In short
An ATS (applicant tracking system) is software for recruitment and selection: you post vacancies, receive applications in one place and follow each candidate through the selection steps. The team assesses candidates in the system, and communication with applicants runs through it too.
What does an ATS do?
- Posting vacancies on your own careers page and, with one click, on job sites.
- Collecting applications in one overview, instead of in the recruiter's mailbox.
- Selection: moving candidates through the stages of your procedure, recording colleagues' assessments and scheduling interviews.
- Communication: sending acknowledgements, invitations and rejections from the system.
- Reporting: how many applicants each channel brings in and how long a vacancy stays open.
More and more systems use AI to read CVs or rank candidates. Read in AI in recruitment what that delivers and where the risks are.
When do you need an ATS?
An ATS pays off when you have several vacancies at once or several colleagues are involved in decisions. Otherwise candidates quickly get lost in a mailbox, receive no reply or nobody knows who takes the next step.
What should you look out for?
Applicant data falls under the GDPR. According to the Dutch Data Protection Authority, it is customary to delete rejected candidates' data no later than four weeks after the procedure, or to keep it for up to a year with the candidate's consent. Choose an ATS that monitors those periods automatically. Also look at the integration with your HRM software, so a hired candidate does not have to be entered again.
Which software helps with this?
An ATS is available as standalone recruitment software and as a module of an HRM package. Look at the integration with job sites and whether the system deletes rejected candidates' data on time.