It’s challenging to create a sustainable job candidate pool, even though it’s what the best companies do.
Sorting through resumes can be time consuming, especially as the recruiter or HR manager tries to determine what exactly the hiring manager is looking for. By the time you figure that out and get through the stack of resumes, the best candidates may have gone elsewhere, says Michael Tucker, PHR, vice president of HR Management Systems at PayBridge.
Employers, however, can make the process more efficient with paperless recruiting and onboarding solutions, which will benefit both the business and the potential job candidates.
“When companies have an open position, they typically want that position filled yesterday,” Tucker says.
Smart Business spoke with Tucker about how to use a recruitment and onboarding system to streamline your hiring process.
What are the advantages of going paperless with recruiting and onboarding?
With a paperless system, you can enter and source keywords with the needed experience when creating a job posting. Job postings can typically be posted to multiple job boards at once, to speed everything up. The system does the work for you, while allowing you to better use your time for reviewing resumes and conducting initial interviews — and ultimately become more efficient.
Communication alerts also ensure that candidates, recruiters and managers are notified anytime the resume goes to the next step in the workflow process. Nobody is left dangling or out of the loop.
Once a candidate completes the profile or application, he or she can create a username that allows him or her to make changes later, such as a new phone number, new address or earning a degree or certification. This functionality cuts down on the calls to talent management dramatically.
With onboarding, all of the information that the candidate provided can flow into the necessary forms like W-4s, I-9s or state and local tax documents. Once a candidate accepts a position, the system can send out new hire documents, handbooks, etc., and notify the right people to set up a workspace and equipment. You also have a paper trial for accountability. By the time the new hire starts, the first day is just orientation and training, not filling out paperwork.
Which companies can benefit? Is this only for large enterprises?
Most companies are going to automated systems to become more efficient and speed up recruitment. All sizes of organizations can benefit, from mom and pops to Fortune 500 companies, because once a system’s workflows are set up, it’s easy to maintain. The difference is how extensive the system needs to be, depending on how many employees you have and how much hiring you do.
Are there drawbacks to paperless systems?
With automation, the human element is sometimes missing. You can’t always get a feel for somebody as easily as you would in person. Also, if management isn’t aggressive about hiring, looking at recruitment as a priority, you might not be utilizing the system to your advantage.
How can employers ensure they get the most value from their paperless solution?
If you feel like you aren’t getting what you want, talk to your software provider. Be methodical about what features you’re looking for. Don’t be afraid to move to something different that’s better; remember that it’s free to sit in on a demo. Also, these days it’s easy to implement a recruitment module. If you’re engaged in the process, you can be up and running in a few weeks.
These systems, however, don’t build processes. You have to make sure your business has processes in place so the project team can set up things like your workflows or questionnaires. This can sound more intimidating than it actually is — you just document how you typically hire and onboard someone, including who has to be involved and when.
It’s also important to consider a system that is all-inclusive for your payroll, performance management, recruitment, etc. Then, you have one login and an ability to move between tasks easily, while avoiding integration issues, especially as software companies do compliance updates and feature enhancements at different times.
Insights HR Solutions/Payroll is brought to you by PayBridge
