The Benefits of an Online Applicant Tracking System While Working Remotely

Remote work, for many, is here to stay. While some may be returning to their physical office spaces, most are continuing to work remotely in what has become the “new normal” since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. Having an online applicant tracking system (ATS) has never been more vital to recruitment firms than now  – keeping employees, candidates, and clients engaged and involved in the recruiting process despite the differences in locations and work environments. 

A key component in any recruiting firm’s remote work strategy should be a cloud-based, online applicant tracking system. With a solid recruitment platform in place, the business can adapt to the changing landscape and continue providing key services to their clients, even if the team is working remotely. 

That said, here are three benefits of using an online applicant tracking system while working remotely.

Cloud Access

One of the main benefits of an online tracking system while working remotely stems from the ability to access your ATS or CRM from anywhere in the world, at any time. By using a cloud-based recruiting system, your team can conduct meetings, interview candidates, build client relationships, and track all of these actions from a centralized platform. This ensures that no information is lost while the entire team is working from home or any other location.

Without a cloud-based system, recruiters may not be able to access all important information from home or away from their main workstation. This could cause delays in placing candidates, following up with clients, or reporting key metrics about the business. An online ATS helps continue all of this work from anywhere, so there is little or no downtime. 

Improved Collaboration

Working remotely doesn’t have to mean a decrease in productivity. Another one of the benefits of an online tracking system while working remotely is that the entire team can continue the entire recruitment process together even when they are away from the office. Building on the cloud-based system, an online applicant tracking system brings the entire team together on one platform, so everyone is looking at and using the same information across the entire business. Even when recruiters are not sitting next to each other in the office, they can still work together to fill jobs and build client relationships.

For example, when moving a candidate through the recruiting process, recruiters may wish to communicate important information about that candidate for the entire team to see. Rather than send an email, message to your team, or speak to them directly as you would when working together in an office, add a note on the candidate’s record, which will be visible to everyone who views that record. This helps the team still work together on placing that candidate even when working remotely. 

Single Source of Truth

One of the most important parts of a successful recruitment process is efficiency and accuracy. Without these key components, the candidate and client experience may suffer, which can impact the organization in general. However, with an online applicant tracking system, the business can work together on a single platform that houses all of the data being used by anyone at the company. Put simply: everyone in the business can work with the same information in real-time. 

A single source of truth ensures each recruiter is using the most up-to-date candidate information, each account manager has insight into client status, and each operations team member can accurately track and report on the entire recruitment process. Without this, that vital information could get lost, important clients could fall silent, and metrics would be disjointed between systems. 

By incorporating an online applicant tracking system into your tech stack, the entire business can access a single source of truth and continue providing great service even when working remotely.

Want to take a deeper dive into the world of online applicant tracking systems? Check out the ATS Buyer’s Guide for everything you need to know to make a worthwhile investment in your staffing firm’s future.