Having a Human Resources Department, regardless of its size, is a must-have for businesses and organisations. One of the functions of this unit is to track mostly the employees’ documents, information and performance, among other things. In the case of job seekers, HR departments use Applicant Tracking Software (ATS) to screen incoming resumés of applicants. For a candidate to reach the interview stage, he/she should have a resumé that can be easily read and can give what the ATS is looking for.

What is an ATS?

A software application, ATS manages the recruitment procedure by sorting through the sent resumés. Then, the software will select who among the applicants are the best fit for various positions. Unlike human recruiters who try to find reasons for turning down applications, the software works by searching certain keywords on the candidate’s resumé. That being said, some office intranets such as Microsoft Sharepoint, have built-in ATS that will help the HR department in monitoring their potential new recruits.

Managing Recruits

Through Sharepoint, companies can institute a collaborative approach in managing their recruits. They can monitor vacant posts, applicants, enquiries and applications with their internal recruiting domain. In addition, HR departments can track their interactions with applicants— interview schedules, appointments and correspondence.

Guide For Applicants

Those who are looking for work, here are some pointers to follow so that you can increase your chance of getting through to the next stage:

• Do not send your application in .pdf file. Since ATS does not have a definite benchmark in structuring .pdf files, information on your application can be misread by the software.
• Avoid including tables and graphics in your resumé. The software reads tables from top to bottom instead of from left to right. More so, ATS cannot read graphics.
• Do not restrict your application in one page. The ATS can still read long resumés. As much as possible, load your document with all of your experiences to increase the likelihood of having a high system ranking.
• Avoid being overly creative with important terms in your application. For instance, refer to your work experiences as “Work Experiences” and not as something else.
• Begin your work experience with your employer’s name, then job title and date. Systems look first at your previous employers.

Inevitably, recruitment management solutions such as what Microsoft Sharepoint offers will help ease the whole hiring process and guarantee that the HR department will employ the right person for the job.