But when it comes to recruitment tech, setting up for future success has never been more important.

As we begin the year, we’re excited to launch our brand-new report: TargetRecruit’s Staffing and Recruitment Tech Trends for 2025. Focusing on insights that will keep you aligned with your goals throughout the year, we’ve identified the key tech trends set to transform the recruitment industry in the months ahead.

From AI-powered virtual assistants that streamline resume reading, to composable technology that helps you build a flexible and effective tech stack, our report explores the significant shifts coming in 2025.

This isn’t about fleeting trends. It’s about equipping yourself for success in an industry where AI and technology are rapidly changing the way we work.

What’s inside the report?

• AI agents: Your very own personal assistant that will play a crucial role in automating routine tasks and improving candidate interactions.
• AI-powered CRMs: They’re smarter than your inbox filter. Learn how predictive insights can make your recruitment process smoother than your morning coffee.
• Predictive analytics: It’s like a crystal ball, but without the fog. Discover how historical data can forecast your hiring future.
• Composable tech: Build the recruitment tech stack of your dreams, without the tech headaches.
• And much more!

Why you need this report

Technology is advancing rapidly, and staying ahead is crucial. This guide is designed to ensure you’re not left behind using outdated methods. Our checklist will help you implement these trends effectively.

Download the full report now to discover how these trends will shape your recruitment strategy. Plus, gain access to a practical checklist to guide your progress throughout the year.

Make sure you’re prepared for 2025—the future of recruitment is here!

The post New Year, New Recruitment Tech Trends appeared first on TargetRecruit.

Large recruitment firms often grapple with the challenge of integrating multiple tools, apps, and technologies to form one system. This complex web of connections can frequently break down, hinder scalability, or leave evolving business needs unfulfilled. This can lead to fragmented business operations and siloed data systems – a source of significant pain and frustration for long-term business growth. This is why understanding native integrations is so important in choosing the right ATS/CRM solution. In this blog, we’ll break down what native integrations are, why they matter, and the many advantages they can bring to your business.

Breaking Down Native Integrations

There are two types of native integrations to become familiar with. The first is built directly on a platform, so we call it “platform”. TargetRecruit is an excellent example of this, as we are a platform solution because we are built on Salesforce, leveraging their objects, reporting, workflow automation, admin tools, and more. Built seamlessly into the platform, this native integration ensures flawless communication between systems, eliminating compatibility issues and operational inefficiencies.

The second is built on a native connector, which can be referred to as a “native integration”. Using developer components and toolkits, this integration is embedded directly into the platform. This integration allows the third-party software to seamlessly adopt the platform’s appearance and functionality. As a result, the embedded solution feels like a natural part of the platform, providing a cohesive and intuitive experience for users who interact with it. Essentially, this makes the third-party software operate as if it were originally built as part of the platform itself.

Native integrations provide a unified user experience, allowing data to live in real-time in the host environment and significantly reduce overhead by using the platform’s own development tool. By simplifying the integration puzzle, you can empower your recruitment firm to harness the full power of technology working together without headaches.

Now, let’s dive into the advantages of native integrations:

Enhanced Efficiency: With native integrations, your team can work more efficiently, as they no longer have to navigate through multiple platforms or deal with interruptions caused by integration breakdowns. This translates into streamlined processes and improved productivity.

Unified Data Management: By centralizing data within a unified ecosystem, native integrations enable recruiters to access real-time information without switching between different systems. This not only saves time but also ensures data consistency and accuracy.

Reduced Complexity: Native integrations simplify the technological landscape for recruitment firms, reducing the complexity associated with managing multiple tools and applications. This allows recruiters to focus on their core tasks without being bogged down by technical hiccups or challenges.

Seamless Communication: Native integrations ensure that all systems within your recruitment ecosystem communicate flawlessly, eliminating the need for manual data transfers and minimizing the risk of errors or software compatibility issues.

Enhanced User Experience: Recruiters can enjoy a smoother user experience, with intuitive workflows and minimal disruptions. This fosters higher engagement and satisfaction among users and promotes stronger adoption across teams.

Scalability and Flexibility: Native integrations are designed to adapt to the evolving needs of recruitment firms, offering scalability and flexibility to accommodate growth and changes in your business. Now your recruitment software can grow alongside your business.

Cost Savings: By streamlining native integrations and minimizing the need for custom development or third-party API solutions, native integrations help recruitment firms reduce costs associated with software implementation, scaling IT departments, and the costly ongoing enhancements and maintenance behind custom builds.

Native software integrations offer recruitment firms a multitude of advantages, from seamless communication and enhanced efficiency to unified data management and cost savings. Imagine the time saved when you no longer have to manually transfer data between disparate systems or troubleshoot technological gaps in your business. Your team can redirect their focus to what they do best – recruiting – rather than wrestling with systematic inefficiencies.

It’s time to embrace a seamless ecosystem that enables your firm to thrive in today’s competitive landscape. To discover how native integrations can help simplify your tech stack, contact TargetRecruit to get started today!

The post Simplifying Integrations: The Advantages of Native Software Integration appeared first on TargetRecruit.

As technology continues to reshape recruitment, organizations are investing in cutting-edge tools and platforms to streamline business. However, the age-old question remains: How do we get our recruiters to actually use the technology we invest in?

What’s in it for them?

The answer to this dilemma lies in understanding the needs and motivations of your recruitment team and providing them with user-friendly, intuitive, proactive, and automated tech solutions that enhance their productivity and job satisfaction. In this article, discover how to create a recruiter-centric approach to utilizing technology that mobilizes user-adoption by making tech work for your recruiters, not against them.

1. Empowering Recruiters with User-Friendly Technology

One of the most significant barriers to technology adoption among recruiters is the complexity of the tools which they are asked to use. Clunky, slow and confusing interfaces can quickly deter even the most tech-savvy professionals. Fear not, it’s not impossible to address this, there are solutions out there which offer a user-friendly platform that is easily customizable, not just for your business needs, but for the needs of recruiters as well.

With a user-centric interface, seamless integration of essential features, and intuitive navigation, you can make it simple for recruiters to embrace the platform, get started without a massive learning curve, and maximize their productivity from day one.

2. Integrating Social Channels for Enhanced Connectivity

In today’s digital age, social media is playing a pivotal role in recruitment. Recruiters need to stay connected and engage with candidates and clients across various online platforms. To support this, offer built-in social media integrations, allowing recruiters to seamlessly interact with their external network without leaving your platform.

This type of integration not only saves time but also ensures that recruiters can harness the full potential of their online presence. When recruiters can leverage their own social networks without friction, this leads to better candidate and client engagement, ultimately enhancing their ability to build strong relationships and an even stronger pipeline to make successful placements.

3. Proper Onboarding and Training

To ensure successful user adoption, proper onboarding and training are absolutely essential. The technology may be user-friendly and intuitive, but it still requires recruiters to understand how to harness its full potential. Planning a comprehensive onboarding program that covers all aspects of the software’s functionality is crucial. Providing hands-on training sessions, instructional materials, and access to support resources empowers recruiters with the knowledge and skills they need to effectively use the technology. A good provider will tailor the training to address a customer’s specific needs and workflows, ensuring that they are well-equipped to make the most of the tools at their disposal.

This commitment to their growth and development not only boosts their confidence but also reinforces the idea that the technology is an asset, not a hindrance, to their daily tasks. By prioritizing proper onboarding and training, you set your recruitment team up for success, enabling them to embrace the technology with confidence and unlock its full potential, ultimately leading to improved user adoption and the enhanced performance of your agency.

4. Proactive and Automated Solutions

Recruiters often find themselves buried under administrative tasks that consume valuable time. Focusing on enabling proactive and automated features takes the burden off their shoulders. Streamline repetitive tasks and manual tasks, allowing recruiters to concentrate on high-value tasks, like building meaningful relationships or making strategic placements, that drive revenue and business success.

5. Motivating Recruiters Through Empowerment

Embracing a recruiter-centric approach is now key for organizations, so when perception of technology shifts, and is understood to be a tool to enhance recruiter abilities and contribute to their success, motivation increases. Being willing to use the technology consistently also not only increases user adoption and product ROI; it also cultivates a team that prioritizes business productivity and builds lasting, meaningful relationships with fellow recruiters, candidates and clients.

Getting recruiters to embrace and utilize the technology you invest in requires a recruiter-focused approach that puts their needs at the forefront. When recruiters see the value in the technology and how it enhances their workflow, user adoption becomes a natural outcome. It’s not about forcing adoption or usage but rather about providing the right tools that align with both your business needs, and team goals. You’re not just investing in technology; you’re investing in your recruitment team’s success and the long term growth of your agency.

The post Empowering Recruiters to Unlock Technology Adoption appeared first on TargetRecruit.

The 2024 staffing and recruitment landscape promises exciting advancements in recruitment technology. Bringing forth a paradigm shift in recruitment software, rigid out-of-the-box or one-size-fits-all applicant tracking systems (ATS) are falling behind in the market as customization, flexibility, and cutting-edge integrations begin to take center stage.

Navigating the future of recruitment tech requires a strategic approach, embracing the demand for advancements within your tech stack while answering to the evolving expectations and standards of clients, recruiters, and talent.

By staying informed and proactive, staffing and recruitment firms can position themselves ahead by enhancing the core of their recruitment software to meet the exact needs of their business. As the labor market tightens, the ability to stay ahead of the competition will be a defining factor for recruitment growth and success this year.

AI-Driven Innovations in Recruitment

AI is 100% at the forefront of transforming recruitment software. From sourcing candidates to reviewing resumes and scheduling interviews, AI is enhancing the efficiency and objectivity of the hiring process. For example, with TargetRecruit’s Copilot– advanced algorithms can be employed to summarize resumes, create candidate summaries, and even craft interview questions that align with exact job descriptions- constantly learning from the data to push forward candidates who are the best fit. 

Although this is one example of AI leveraged in recruitment tech, by incorporating AI, companies can streamline their processes, boost productivity, reduce biases, explore new avenues of AI automation, and make smarter, data-driven decisions at a quicker speed.

Predictive Analytics for Informed Decision-Making

The integration of predictive analytics into recruitment software is not new, but this year it’s in the spotlight to be taken more seriously by enterprise firms looking to stay ahead of the curve. Predictive analytics adds a layer of data-driven decision-making by leveraging historic and current data so recruiters can make informed estimates about future hiring outcomes. For example, with Salesforce Einstein Prediction Builder– generate predictions without any requirement for machine learning expertise or coding, expanding your business with future vision insights.

Predictive analytics can identify applicants more likely to be interviewed, hired, and stay with a certain company. This feature is especially invaluable in high turnover roles, allowing recruiters to anticipate cultural fit, position flexibility, and long-term engagement to maintain a healthy candidate database.

Leverage Core Data to Track Trends with AI

Leveraging AI to track trends in large sets of data in recruitment software has evolved beyond conventional methods. Modern tools now utilize advanced algorithms and data analytics to monitor and identify emerging trends that your organization might not be noticing amongst candidates. For example, with Salesforce Einstein Discovery, augment your business intelligence with statistical modeling and machine learning to identify, surface, and visualize strategic insights into your business data.

Quickly operationalize data analysis, predictions, and improvements around trends that encompass various factors, such as job market demands, candidate preferences, and industry-specific requirements. By making custom predictions about what happens next in your business, this holistic approach significantly enhances the ability to identify trends that impact the recruitment process, providing valuable insights for making informed decisions on what matters for your business.

Recruitment Marketing & Social Media Integration

Recruitment software is evolving to incorporate strategic features that support more robust recruitment marketing strategies for the digital age. Building a compelling employer brand and showcasing unique aspects of company culture is crucial in attracting top candidates across social channels. Social media integrations will play a pivotal role in amplifying employer brand messages while expanding recruiters’ outreach capabilities.

Social media integrations provide real-time insights into candidate behavior, allowing recruiters to adapt their strategies based on the evolving landscape of the job market. Recruitment software with popular social media integrations, like LinkedIn for example, enables social prospecting to remain connected to the CRM, so opportunities don’t get lost in the digital wind. In essence, the integration of social media enhances the visibility of job opportunities, fosters proactive candidate engagement, and empowers recruiters to have a full view of the talent landscape.

Automation for Streamlined Processes

Automation technology is taking a front seat in recruitment tech, with approximately 67% of companies using it to streamline day-to-day tasks. Automation not only expedites mundane processes but also significantly reduces the likelihood of human error.

By leveraging algorithms and artificial intelligence, automation tools can analyze vast datasets to identify patterns and predict candidate suitability more accurately. For example, with Salesforce Flowbuilder access a robust set of development tools that take automation to the next level. This is why having your data all in one place is critical so it’s accessible to be automated.

As companies prioritize automation, recruiters, unburdened from repetitive tasks, can optimize workflows and redirect their efforts toward building meaningful relationships with candidates, gaining a deeper understanding of company needs, and contributing to greater organizational success.

The year marks a pivotal moment in the evolution of recruitment technology, where advanced features and innovations are taking recruitment tech to new heights. From AI-driven enhancements to predictive analytics and automation, upgrading your ATS and CRM will be essential for long-term growth and success. It is not just a matter of modernizing; it is an investment in the efficiency to scale effortlessly as your business grows. By embracing these trends, recruitment firms can not only elevate talent acquisition strategies but also harness technology for sustainable business growth. Staffing and recruiting firms that seize the opportunities presented by these innovations are poised to redefine the future of recruitment tech, setting the stage for a more agile, data-driven, and successful approach to recruitment.

Explore our Powerful AI Suite, TR Intelligence

Learn more about TR Intelligence

The post Top 5 Staffing & Recruitment Technology Trends 2024 appeared first on TargetRecruit.

Innovation is pivotal in the recruitment technology landscape. Today’s recruiters understand the significance of leveraging state-of-the-art solutions to keep ahead of the curve. One of the standout innovations in recent times has been the integration of Advanced AI frameworks into staffing and recruiting software. Such integrations have the potential to redefine the recruitment approach, enabling an amalgamation of human intelligence and machine capability set to transform the way we approach recruitment through advanced AI Integration.

Understanding AI in recruitment software

AI-based features in recruitment platforms can significantly elevate user experiences by providing real-time text generation based on provided context and inputs. In essence, recruiters can utilize AI to assist in drafting precise job descriptions, formulating emails, and even auto-generating interview questions. Such an AI “assistant” can craft content specifically suited to recruitment needs, expediting processes and ensuring relevancy.

The true essence of these AI features lies in their adaptability. With an overarching framework, these systems can integrate multiple AI models, ensuring they remain updated and attuned to the ever-evolving landscape of AI technology. Such a model ensures that the recruitment software remains progressive, always harnessing the latest in AI capabilities.

Bespoke customization for recruiters

In recruitment, customization is paramount. Each recruiter or firm has unique requirements, and AI tools embedded in recruiting software offer the advantage of customizability. With user-friendly configuration settings, these tools can be adjusted to match specific contexts or job roles, ensuring that the software aligns seamlessly with diverse recruitment strategies.

Moreover, the ease of integration ensures that recruiters can have the AI tools accessible effortlessly, complete with templates and fields that auto-populate with relevant information.

Driving innovation: AI-generated text suggestions

Central to the appeal of AI in recruitment platforms is the AI-driven text suggestions. As users engage with the software, AI tools proactively generate recommendations based on the provided context. The versatility of these suggestions ensures that they can be promptly applied, be it for job descriptions, emails, or any text-based tasks, effectively making recruitment communication more efficient.

Harnessing the AI integration framework

The bedrock of such advanced AI tools is the AI Integration Framework. Designed to smoothly integrate with various Generative AI APIs, this framework can accommodate different types of models with minimal developmental inputs. The future-ready design ensures that as AI models and providers evolve, the framework remains robust and versatile, ready to integrate newer advancements.

The inherent potential of this framework is its universality – not being tethered to specific AI providers. This adaptability means recruitment software can remain at the forefront of AI advancements, always harnessing the latest innovations.

Looking ahead: The evolution of recruitment software

In summation, the integration of AI frameworks into recruitment platforms marks a monumental evolution in the domain of recruitment technology. By harnessing the power of AI, recruiters can streamline operations, make more astute decisions, and optimize their recruitment strategies.

The future of recruitment beckons a greater integration of AI, and as technology continues to progress, so too will the tools at the disposal of recruiters. In this era of rapid technological advancements, recruitment stands poised for a transformative journey, underpinned by the symbiosis of human expertise and artificial intelligence.

Explore our Powerful AI Suite, TR Intelligence

Learn more about TR Intelligence

The post The Role of AI Frameworks in Enhancing Staffing and Recruiting Software appeared first on TargetRecruit.

TargetRecruit is excited to introduce a groundbreaking addition to our latest product release – Copilot, an advanced AI Integration Framework. This innovative framework marks the first step in a series of forthcoming AI capabilities designed to revolutionize the efficiency of sales and recruiting teams.

The first of Copilot’s immediate and impactful features is its ability to effortlessly generate highly tailored job descriptions. By seamlessly integrating Copilot through a simple configuration process, users can harness the power of AI-generated content with just a few clicks. This game-changing feature empowers teams to save valuable time and effort, as Copilot crafts comprehensive job descriptions that precisely align with your specific requirements.

At the core of Copilot lies the robust ‘AI Companion Framework,’ an expansive architecture that seamlessly interfaces with a diverse range of REST-based AI APIs. This architecture minimizes development efforts and unlocks a world of potential capabilities, providing customers with limitless opportunities for exploration and innovation.

Copilot’s initial integration showcases compatibility with OpenAI’s ChatGPT, encompassing the text-davinci-003 and gpt-3.5-turbo models. However, the true strength of Copilot lies in its extensibility—thanks to its underlying architecture, it stands ready to integrate with an array of AI models in the future. With Copilot, users will gain unprecedented access to seamlessly integrate their preferred AI services, setting the stage for unparalleled productivity enhancements through AI.

The configuration experience offered by Copilot is designed to be intuitive and user-friendly. Customers have the freedom to define prompt templates, prompt fields, and mapped fields on a per-object basis, tailoring Copilot’s behavior to the unique context and requirements of each task. Additionally, seamless integration into Lightning Record Pages ensures that end users have access to Copilot’s capabilities, complete with a predefined prompt template that auto-populates with relevant record information.

Central to Copilot’s utility is its AI-driven text suggestions. As users interact with the system, Copilot engages the AI model to generate text recommendations based on prompt input and context. These versatile suggestions can be effortlessly applied to record fields for immediate and practical application.

Flexibility remains a cornerstone of Copilot’s design. System administrators possess the authority to activate or deactivate specific configurations, providing dynamic control over Copilot’s presence. This control extends to refining prompt templates to ensure optimal results aligned with the unique needs of each user or use case.

In essence, Copilot transforms text generation into a harmonious collaboration between users and AI. Its robust architecture, flexible configurations, and AI-generated suggestions open a new era of possibilities for customers, propelling text generation into an age of unparalleled ease and innovation.

Prepare to embark on a journey where the boundaries of what’s possible are pushed further than ever before. Discover the future of artificial intelligence and recruitment software with TargetRecruit’s Copilot.

Copilot: Our New Artificial Intelligence Tool

Learn more about Copilot

The post Introducing Copilot: Elevating Recruitment Efficiency with Artificial Intelligence appeared first on TargetRecruit.

Choosing an applicant tracking system (ATS) for your staffing agency is an important decision to make. An ATS is crucial for your hiring process; it may be the most important tech investment for your organization.
Due to the significance of the ATS, it is crucial not to make a hasty decision. Picking the wrong solution for your team can waste months as you reassess and repeat the evaluation process.

Taking too long to make a decision isn’t optimal, either. If the decision-making process continues for a long time without ending, it’s more likely that you won’t make a decision. Instead, you will keep doing things the same way as before.

How can you compromise and find a solution? What are the best practices for selecting an ATS for your staffing agency? Let’s look at the things you should consider as you begin your ATS evaluation process:

Check Your Bias

This isn’t the time to play favorites. When you’re choosing an ATS, it’s important that you put any personal feelings or previous experience aside.

Even if you have previously employed a specific solution with a different company, that same solution may not be suitable for your present organization. Even if you possess extensive knowledge about that platform, it may not align with the operational needs of your organization and team. Functionality and adoptability should be the key contributing factors to your decision — not how much you like it.
If you have a strong preference during the assessment phase, you may try to influence others towards your preference. You will focus on the flaws in other solutions and ignore any potential issues with the platform you prefer.

Keep in mind that what may be optimal for you may not necessarily be optimal for your organization. Look at each potential software solution with fresh eyes and an open mind.

Fight the Urge to Overanalyze

Occasionally, the burden of a choice – or the anxiety of selecting the incorrect one – can halt the process of decision-making completely.

Think of it this way: Your kids ask you to pick up a box of cereal on your way home. You stop by the grocery store, walk to the cereal aisle, and you’re hit with the sudden realization that sometime between your childhood and theirs, 300 extra varieties of cereal were created, and it’s up to you to pick the right one.

Do you panic? Do you run screaming from the store?

Do you stand there in the aisle for thirty minutes looking at ingredient lists and cartoon mascots? Picking one ATS from all the options out there isn’t all that different. (Though we do think it would be easier if cartoon mascots were involved.)

Most people don’t realize that a software company’s biggest competitor isn’t another software company. Forrester found that almost half of lost sales opportunities in the internet technology industry were due to “no decision.” The company in question simply chose not to choose anything and remained with the status quo.

Realizing that your solution can greatly improve a business can be scary. The process of deciding and making changes may still feel overwhelming. Some companies find it easier to stick to their old ways, even if those ways are not effective.

The enemy of progress is not regression — it’s stagnation. Do not allow information overload or an intimidating number of options overwhelm you. Remember that there was a reason you started shopping for other options. Don’t go back to the status quo just because the decision grew more difficult than you expected.

(Read about the other 5 things to consider when selecting an ATS for your staffing agency by downloading our eBook!)

The post 7 Things to Consider When Selecting an ATS for Your Staffing Agency appeared first on TargetRecruit.

Technology may be one of the greatest growth accelerators for a staffing business. In today’s increasingly digital world, there are literally hundreds of options available. In an incredibly challenging labor market with so many employers competing for talent, technology that delivers a game-changing candidate experience might be a smart choice.

To improve your business and prepare for growth, invest in foundational enterprise technology systems that increase efficiency and enable scalability. These could address critical operational functions in the front, middle or back office. To find your way at the beginning of your search, you must answer some basic questions before continuing.

Investing in an Exceptional Candidate Experience

Finding good people is the number one challenge for CEOs and for staffing firms. Millions of jobs go unfilled month after month. At the same time, a rising number of the employed have made the decision to quit one job for another.

Investing in a good candidate experience is important when many workers are looking for jobs. It should be easy and convenient for job seekers to connect with potential employers. Using new technology and a chatbot could greatly improve a staffing agency’s mobile process and have a big impact.

Attracting and retaining candidates requires more than a great candidate experience, however. It is the first step in the employment journey. If you are not prepared to follow through with what are quickly becoming non-negotiable expectations for today’s workforce, you may quickly get candidates in the door who will just as quickly exit if they are not satisfied with what they find once they are on your payroll.

It is important to understand that technology is an enabler. It cannot replace traditional contributors to a great candidate – and employee — experience. For example: 

• Are your pay and benefits competitive?
• Does your company culture embrace and involve?
• Is your workforce diverse, equitable and inclusive?
• Do you provide the training and career development opportunities employees want?

There are many apps to improve the candidate experience. There are numerous apps available to enhance the candidate experience.

The crucial question is whether the technology you are considering can meet the current expectations. Additionally, it should be able to easily incorporate new features as expectations evolve. If not, you might want to consider building a customized solution that meets your exact needs today and tomorrow.

Setting the Stage to Scale for Growth & Operational Excellence

In the staffing industry, it is important to find and hire talented people. It is also important to keep them engaged and satisfied. This is crucial for success. We know that employee engagement can be a key contributor to productivity and profitability. When employees believe in your mission and values, they are more likely to be engaged.

Job satisfaction is more basic. It relates to more elemental factors, such as pay and benefits, workplace amenities, safety, and the tools, equipment and systems needed to do the job. In the staffing industry, the number one priority is pay. If employees don’t get paid, it may be game over.

That is why the systems that underlay basic business operations and connect front office to back are so crucial. Candidates don’t care how time records connect to payroll; they just want to know that however it happens, they get paid accurately and on time.

If they don’t, everything else in the business can come to a standstill as everyone turns their focus to getting out the payroll by whatever means possible. Although not as visible externally, all the other steps in the pay-bill process are equally critical to your ability to operate your business efficiently and profitably, to say nothing of your prospects to scale your business for growth.

Should Your Focus Be External or Internal?

If you don’t have the ability to attract the right candidates to fill client orders, it may not matter how efficient your back office is. If your operational systems cannot support current business operations, let alone expansion, you will be unable to take advantage of market opportunities.

How can you focus on candidate experience if basic processes and systems are duct-taped? Is there a way to move forward on both tracks simultaneously? There may be.

Start with Your ATS

There is no question that the ATS is the workhorse of the staffing industry. Originally created for organizing candidate records, it has become a valuable tool for managing talent and fostering connections with promising candidates. Today, it can do far more, providing end-to-end system capabilities. It can help you: 

• Manage and accelerate the customer and candidate lifecycle
• Source, engage, and place the right candidates in the shortest possible time
• Bridge the gap between the front-office and back-office payroll and accounting systems, with centralized visibility, speed, and control

Where to Next?

Understanding the importance of a good ATS allows you to focus on researching whether to buy or build one. This research will help improve your talent pipeline and operational abilities. To choose the best option, seek advice, assess supplier expertise and outcomes, watch demos, and explore features of other solutions.

There is no shortage of options available to you. New solutions and apps seem to hit the market every week. So let the search begin.

Here’s a good place to start: “The future of ATS solutions isn’t buy…” a new eBook that offers insight into this mission-critical decision about the most important technology investment a staffing firm can make.

If you have any questions, we’d love to provide answers that can help you in your exploration. Contact us at sales@targetrecruit.com.

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The Future of ATS Solutions isn’t Buy…

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The post Where to Invest Your Technology Dollars appeared first on TargetRecruit.

Years ago, while working for a previous employer, I started using a sales automation tool called Outreach.io. I was part of the team who evaluated this tool along with SalesLoft and Yesware. I really liked Outreach because it structured my prospecting efforts and automated various tasks.

However, a major issue I found was the less-than-desirable integration with Salesforce. The integration was bi-directional, and I never knew what to put in either system or why. As a result, data always ended up in the wrong place.

Fast forward a few years and here I am at TargetRecruit, selling a Salesforce-based ATS. I’m also back to using Salesforce as my internal CRM.

When I joined the team, my main goal was to find a sales automation solution. A previous customer recommended Groove to me. During my first evaluation of Groove, I immediately noticed a considerable difference.

It had all the same functionality as Outreach, but it also had a native integration with Salesforce. I didn’t have to worry about the data transferring between Groove and Salesforce whenever I made a change. It was seamless and instantaneous.

This situation has led me to think, “How many others out there aren’t familiar with native integrations and their benefits?” Over the next few years, this level of integration is only going to gain demand. Therefore, it’s important to break down the difference between API integrations (which is the current state for most) and native integrations.

API Integrations

Today, most of us use integrations created through an API, or Application Programming Interface. This was the next generation of integrations before native integrations came along. The major issues with API integrations include:

• Security – API Integrations can be vulnerable to malicious attacks and are often targeted by hackers. Once compromised, this potentially leaves the door open to other apps/systems.
• Latency – The system needs to transfer data changes in order for them to be reflected immediately. API calls are usually set to be made intermittently
• Duplicate Data – The age-old question is, if I’m using both systems, which system do I put the information in? Is it one-way or bi-directional? This can wreak havoc on your data if you don’t have solid processes and people who abide by them
• Heavy Tax – API calls can burden a system and be expensive for vendors. They may charge more for extra calls or limit the number of calls, resulting in less data syncing
• Additional Overhead – Maintaining an API is time-consuming. For example, if something in the API changes, these updates must be carefully coordinated with the consumers of the API. Any communication breakdown can cause integrations to break
• Slow iFrames – Since every time a page that requires an API call opens it must call to a server elsewhere, it will slow your page load times. Also, the graphic and functionality within the iFrame will slow page load times as well
• iFrames Look Bad – iFrames generally don’t flow with the aesthetic of a page. They might have different color buttons, different fonts, and a less-than-desirable scrolling functionality

I don’t think API integrations are all bad. More than 75% of the partners in our ecosystem use them. It’s important to know the advantages and disadvantages of native integrations to understand their power. With that said, I also think it’s important we cover the different types of native integrations that are out there.

Types of Native Integrations

Before we dive in, we need to identify what a true platform solution is. It’s a software solution with developer tools that can be expanded and built upon. If you want more information, read the article exploring what a “platform” is vs. a “point solution”.

So, there are two kinds of native integrations. One is built directly on a platform, so we call it “platform”. The other is built on a native connector, which some call a “native integration”.

1. Platform

TargetRecruit is an example of this. To call us an integration with Salesforce would be slightly misleading because in essence, we are Salesforce. We use their objects (like the Account and Contact), their reporting, their workflow automation, all their admin tools, etc. Other examples of tools built on the platform in our partner marketplace are Isimio (scheduling), Accounting Seed (General Ledger), BiznusSoft (HR/Payroll), CloudComp (Commissions), DataTrim (Duplicate Checking), Mogli (SMS), 3B Onboarding (Document Generation and Onboarding/Credentialing) and KonaSearch (Deep Search).

Here are the characteristics of a platform solution:

• Allows for a more seamless user experience since you don’t have to manage a separate login and all your data lives in one place.
• Easier for end users since they only need to interact with a single user interface vs. learning multiple.
• The common object model allows the merging of objects. This makes for smoother information sharing between native apps because the common data is not replicated. For example, TargetRecruit (ATS) and Salesforce Sales Cloud (CRM) both share the Account and Contact objects. Thus, any data entered on an Account record in Sales Cloud will be seen by a TargetRecruit user because both solutions share that common object. With an API integration there would have to be a mirrored object or data set sitting on the other side to pass the information to.
• A lower cost because if you’re using an integration through an API you have to double up on licenses since there are no common objects. Users would have to have a license for each solution. On the flip side, an organization using Salesforce Sales Cloud for their sales team could just buy TargetRecruit licenses for their recruiting team because both will still be able to see what’s happening on the Account and Contact/Candidate objects.
• Security. Simply put, the fewer places your data is housed, the less susceptible you are to a security threat. Having it centralized in Salesforce, which has clients like the US Navy and Department of Defense, makes it pretty secure!

2. Native Integration

A native integration is the most intriguing integration solution to me. This is also a topic I rarely find that tech folks are familiar with. This will gain popularity because it doesn’t inexorably tie your technology to that platform (like building on platform) but it’s a much better user experience than a regular API integration.

As a 3rd party vendor integrating with a platform solution (like Salesforce), you can use developer components and toolkits to embed your solution within that platform. In other words, the 3rd party vendor’s software now takes on the look and feel of that platform solution, and the functionality is essentially built-in so your end users can live on the platform solution. Some examples of applications with native connectors are the aforementioned Groove (Sales Automation), Able (Onboarding), and Essium Xenqu (Onboarding).

Here are some characteristics of a native integration:

• The integration’s architecture is built on a managed package which allows your data to exist in real-time in the platform environment so there is no data latency
• This also eliminates the need for a bi-directional sync
• It allows you to use the specific platform developer tools to build within that platform’s confines in your instance. For example, Salesforce has its own developer tools and languages they’ve created to allow customizations to live more in harmony within a data set, or ‘Org’ as we say in Salesforce-land.
• Prevents API surges that push you over your Salesforce limits
• Lowers compliance risk for GDPR, CCPA, and other global privacy laws

So What?

Today, out of the 3,900 apps in the Salesforce AppExchange, there are 417 that are natively integrated with Salesforce. If you click on that link, you can click the checkbox for “Native” on the left-hand side to see what they are. 

Although Salesforce is known to have by far the largest partner ecosystem, it’s not the only one of its kind. For example, Microsoft is known to have a platform solution and has invited some to build technology on top of their stack. I’ve even heard of one or two applicant tracking systems being built on top of Dynamics CRM.

In conclusion, when building a tech stack, consider how to reduce logins and make the experience for your end users as seamless as possible. Avoid unnecessary, multiple logins. What’s the best way to do this? Strongly consider a true platform technology.

The post What is a Native Software Integration and Why Does it Matter? appeared first on TargetRecruit.

The Problem

When talking to staffing organizations, the most common pain is that their technology stack is not able to deliver real-time insights into critical aspects of their business. The results of this are obvious: executives can’t make fully informed decisions about their business. When staffing leaders still struggle to find true activity metrics for what their recruiters are up to in a given time period, actuals for gross margin on a deal, profitability for a certain time period, or strong forecasting insights, business growth is continually stunted.

Some of the main reasons why this issue is so pervasive are as follows:

Data Silos

Many companies their CRM/ATS, onboarding, scheduling, time capture, invoicing, core accounting and financial systems, and payroll/HRIS basically all living in silos. This requires them to either integrate all these systems into a BI (Business Intelligence) tool to aggregate their data into one place but this is very difficult because in most cases, the majority of these systems won’t have a pre-existing integration with a BI tool. If this is your reality though, I would recommend trying to find a tool like Power BI or Tableau for data and insights.

Lack of Integration

Building on the previous point, if you have a true “System of Record” with strong reporting capabilities, then your best bet would be to tightly integrate the systems around it. Bi-directional integrations with ERP solutions like Peoplesoft, Netsuite, Oracle, Dynamics, or even Quickbooks, are not common or easy to build. When evaluating solutions, make sure to ask vendors if they have references from customers using a bi-directional integration with your current or future general ledger/core accounting solution.

‘Out-of-the-Box’ Reporting

Most systems have reports that come standard with their offering, and some can even be tweaked on some level. These reports tend to be quite generic and limiting though. Even if the reporting suits your needs from a recruiting standpoint, you will also most likely need to be reporting on information from your GL, onboarding, timekeeping and invoicing solutions for true metrics. Don’t settle for a tool that cannot report on all facets of your business without having a BI tool as a backup solution or you will be in Excel hell.

The Solution

Begin with the End in Mind – When constructing a technology stack, staffing organizations often take a reactive approach instead of a proactive approach. It is most common to try to solve the problem directly in front of you rather than looking at the bigger picture. This creates something we call ’technical debt,’ and with too much debt, one can get themself in a lot of trouble. You need a big picture plan. Whether it is having a really powerful ‘system’ or ‘platform’ of record, like Salesforce, that has strong ad hoc reporting capabilities as a standard feature, or landing on a BI tool or data warehouse that you plan on being the final resting place for all your data, make sure you pick one or the other. Just recognize that you will always need new reports, dashboards, and ways to look at data, so having a strategy around how to do that will be critical in being able to make agile decisions in your business, and not driving your team insane with trying to figure out how to get 10 excel reports into one that makes sense.

Buy an Ecosystem

People get so caught up in the minutiae when evaluating systems that they easily lose sight of the bigger picture. If an ATS or system of record has all the gadgets you’d ever want and a solid API to integrate with, none of this will matter if there’s not a solid ecosystem of options for you to take advantage of. It will be near impossible to get that data on your own from those systems into a centralized place. If you’re interested in seeing what some of the categories are that a system of record should integrate with, then take a look at the categories drop-down on our partners page. It should give a strong idea as to what categories your vendor should be offering options for so you can keep your systems integrated and your data centralized.

The post How to Improve Business Insights appeared first on TargetRecruit.