More companies are looking to bring on new recruiters as they prepare for the typical end-of-the-year hiring surge.

A recent report from Wanted Analytics found that the number of job postings for recruiters and other staffing professionals increased by 12 percent in September when compared to 2011 and by 29 percent when compared to 2010. This is also a good sign that the recruitment industry has officially recovered from the effects of the economic recession.

When it comes to overall growth in recruiting jobs, San Francisco takes the lead, with a 36 percent increase in job postings when compared to last year. The top five cities with the most recruiting jobs listed during September were:

  1. New York, N.Y.
  2. Washington, D.C.
  3. Chicago, Ill.
  4. Los Angeles, Calif.
  5. San Francisco, Calif.

And if you’re looking for a recruiting job, make sure you’re brushing up on your negotiation and social media skills, because it’s not enough to just know the basics anymore:

We’ve been watching hiring demand for Recruiters for a while and noticed that job requirements continue to evolve for this profession. In addition to traditional recruiting skills – like experience with applicant tracking software (ATS) and full lifecycle recruiting – there are several emerging skill sets that are gaining more traction every month. Two of these include negotiation and social media skills. The number of job ads that look for candidates with strong negotiation abilities is up 13 percent compared to September 2011. Job ads with social media requirements have grown even more incredibly, up 52 percent since last year.

To learn more about ATS and other important recruitment tools, check out CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE.

It takes a lot of work to find the best employees for your company, but that goal can be met a lot easier if you have a great recruiter on your HR team.

So what makes someone a great recruiter as opposed to a mediocre one? In fact, there are several qualities that set high-performing recruiters above their lesser-performing counterparts.

Here are four essential qualities of a great recruiter:

  1. Good salesperson – Part of your job as a recruiter is to sell your company and your company’s job openings to potential candidates. You have to sell the idea of working for your company in the same manner that you’d sell someone a new product or service, which means you need to have the ability to prove why your company is so great and why someone will want to work there.
  2. People person – As a recruiter, it’s inherent that you’ll be dealing with people on a consistent basis, so you need to be comfortable interacting with all different types of people day in and day out. Since you will most likely be the first point of contact for a potential employee, your attitude and demeanor will essentially provide a first impression of the company, meaning that you need to be able to put on a happy face regardless of what might be going on in your personal life.
  3. Organized – There is a lot going on in the world of recruiting, from writing up job descriptions and reading resumes to calling people for interviews and conducting background checks on potential hires. So as a recruiter, you need to be extremely organized in order to keep track of all of these things, so you can ultimately get the job done.
  4. Technologically inclined – As we mentioned above, there are a lot of tasks that fall at the feet of recruiters, but luckily there are some great technologies out there to help them stay on track. Whether you’re using your company’s applicant tracking system (pcrecruiter.net) to review resumes, scheduling interviews through Google Calendars, or conducting a background check, you need to know how to use the latest technology in order to make your job more efficient.

Keep these important qualities in mind when hiring your company’s next recruiter. With any luck, you’ll snag someone who can entice some of the best employees out there to join your company.

The applicant tracking system market is continuing to grow, and as providers offer newer and better solutions, many companies are thinking about switching the service they currently use.

That’s the most important information to come out of “Talent Acquisition Systems 2011: Market Realities, Implementation Examples and Solution Provider Profiles,” a report released last year by Bersin & Associates. The report looked at survey responses from HR professionals and recruiters from organizations of all sizes and in all major industries.

According to Sarah White, who works as principal analyst of talent acquisition for Bersin & Associates, a lot of companies are choosing to work with providers that offer better support and a higher level of integration, and ATS companies that offer a large selection of products are doing the best. It’s commonly accepted that applicant tracking systems are just as important to the recruiting and onboarding process as interviewing and social networking.

Here are some key figures from the survey:

  • The ATS market increased by 11.1 percent to $837 million during 2010, which was slightly lower than the $861 million originally predicted by experts. The difference can be attributed to the slowing economy.
  • The survey predicted that the ATS market would grow by 12 percent to $937 million by the end of 2011, as high-end companies consolidate and low-end companies continue to expand.
  • About 50 percent of companies were planning to switch to a new ATS provider over the year, as new options and new technologies emerge.
  • The amount of time it takes to convince a company to commit to an ATS provider has increased from six months to up to three years.
  • A large majority of ATS providers offer a mobile solution in order to keep up with growing popularity.
  • More and more ATS companies are merging in order to offer a more robust suite of solutions to customers, such as search engine optimization or video services.
  • As social networks continue to become more and more popular, most ATS companies are offering the ability to integrate with LinkedIn, Facebook, or other sites.
  • Analytics have become more important than ever in evaluating a company’s application, interviewing, and hiring process.
  • Learning Management Systems are growing by 10 percent per year, while Performance Management and Succession Management Systems are increasing by 12 percent.

So, as you can see, applicant tracking systems and other similar technologies that make the recruiting and onboarding process easier, cheaper, and more efficient aren’t going anywhere anytime soon. If you’re not already using this technology, now is the time to jump on the bandwagon!

It’s common practice for employers in certain industries to place a strong emphasis on a potential candidate’s work history in order to prevent high turnover numbers. It’s long been thought that candidates who have held several positions in a short period of time will make worse employees and will be more likely to quit.

However, a recent white paper by Evolv shows that work history has very little effect on a candidate’s abilities or likeliness to stay in a position. That means one of the factors employees place a strong emphasis on – in their applicant tracking systems, in the interview process, and in the hiring process – is mostly wrong.

The white paper, entitled “Does Previous Work History Predict Future Employment Outcomes?”, looked at applicant data and employment outcomes of 21,115 call center agents.

Key findings of the white paper include:

  • Almost half of all applicants had two or three jobs in the last five years, while 45 percent had none or one job, and 7 percent had four or more jobs.
  • 56 percent of applicants said they hadn’t held any jobs for less than six months.
  • Survival curves, or the probability that agents reach a given point in time, were almost identical for all groups, regardless of the number of jobs held in the last five years or the number of short-term positions.

“These results indicate that an applicant’s previous work history is actually a poor predictor of employment outcomes,” the white paper notes. “In fact, there is other assessment content that is much more strongly predictive of both attrition as well as performance on the job.

“Clearly, a more nuanced understanding of the applicant as well as his or her personality, aptitudes, work style, technical skills, and fit for the position are necessary to make more informed recruiting decisions,” the paper continues. “Previous work experience must be viewed holistically and placed within a much broader context in order to ensure that a given employer is recruiting the best possible talent.”

If you like working with technology and connecting job seekers with available positions, a career as a personnel recruiter may be right for you.

Personnel recruiters work to find, interview, and screen applicants capable of filling existing and anticipated job openings within their company. They also are responsible for promoting career opportunities within the organization.

There are a number of ways a personnel recruiter might find potential candidates, but one of the most popular and efficient ways is by using a company ATS, which allows job seekers to apply for specific jobs and provide information the company wants to know.

Continue reading “Job Description of a Personnel Recruiter”

If you’re a green company looking to hire, or a company looking to go more green, having a good ATS can make all the difference when it comes to finding the right candidates.

There has been a big push on going green lately, with the thought that doing so will not only help to improve the environment, but also will help to create more high-paying and sustainable jobs. Most recently, world leaders met at the International Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen to discuss how each nation can become more green.

In the meantime, President Barack Obama outlined a new strategy to stimulate job creation, and one of the central points to his plan is to generate green jobs by building environmentally friendly infrastructure and by providing citizens with the incentive to become more energy-efficient.

Continue reading “ATS Can Help You Go Green”

If you’re an IT job seeker and are soon planning to look for a new job, you should make sure your resume is ready to go through the applicant tracking system gauntlet.

A new study from Spherion Pacific Enterprises found that almost half of the American IT workforce plans to change jobs during the next year. The study further found that IT workers have a higher job-seeking confidence than the overall workforce.

This means that plenty of IT workers are currently polishing their resume in preparation to begin applying for new jobs. For the most part, job seekers in the IT industry run into the same resume issues as other candidates, mainly how to fit all the information on one page and how to know what potential employers really want to see.

Continue reading “ATS for the IT Resume”

If you’re looking to brush up your ATS (Click here) and other HR skills, an upcoming workshop may be just the thing.

Ultimate Software recently announced that it will host a complimentary Interactive HR Workshop on June 17 at The Plaza Hotel in New York, N.Y. The workshop will offer step-by-step solutions that other companies have developed in order to solve their toughest organization problems.

“Have you ever wondered how other HR executives are dealing with the business challenges you face every day?” Ultimate Software notes. “What are their secrets for aligning HR concepts with the business strategy, developing a workplace environment that encourages employee collaboration, and maneuvering through a maze of thorny legal compliance issues?”

Continue reading “ATS Pros Can Attend Workshop”

As the economy begins to recover and businesses think about hiring again, now is the time to implement an ATS if your company doesn’t already have one. Visit http://pcrecruiter.net to learn more.

There is a lot of advice out there as to what type of ATS you should buy, and all the options can make it quite a daunting process. A recent article from Onrec provides some great advice from business professionals as to how you should go about selecting and implementing an ATS.

Most experts agree that you should first consider what size and scale of a system your business really needs, so that you don’t end up paying for features and solutions you’re not even going to use. In that same respect, the hiring needs of a small business will differ from those of a large company, so each may benefit from using different ATS.

Continue reading “ATS Tips”

The changing face of the manufacturing industry is causing employers to adapt their hiring processes accordingly. Mainly, employers are focusing more on people than anything else, which is a step in the right direction. There are many tools, such as an applicant tracking system, that are making this move possible.

The nation’s manufacturing industry as a whole has been coping with a decline in resources as fewer graduates are learning the basic technical skills that are necessary to fill replacement positions. That, coupled with the increasing technology in production, is requiring manufacturers to invest more in their employees.

These changes, along with the rising cost of making a bad hire, are reiterating the value of finding the right candidate for the job. With that in mind, employers are working to provide a standardized process that screens a candidate’s skills and behaviors against company requirements.

Continue reading “ATS for the Manufacturing Industry”

If you’re in charge of selecting your company’s ATS, a new Webinar will help keep you up on the industry.

“Workforce Planning and Talent Management: What Your CEO Wishes HR Would Do,” is a one-of-a-kind free Webinar for HR executives and other technology-decision makers presented by ERE and Taleo. The Webinar is scheduled to take place from 2 to 3 p.m. on April 14.

The Webinar will benefit any HR executive or technology decision-maker who is in charge of ensuring their organization selects the right ATS. It also will be useful to: staffing directors and vice presidents, recruitment managers, corporate recruiters, CEOs and top HR executives in talent-driven industries, and other HR professionals who are responsible for evaluating and selecting an ATS.

Continue reading “ATS Webinar to Help Company Decision Makers”

A recent survey detailing the trends the recruiting industry will see this year may help ATS (Click here) providers and users.

“Optimism Abounds: Staffing and Recruiting Industry Expectations,” a new report from Bullhorn, revealed the results of the company’s 2010 trends survey of what recruiters expect for the staffing and recruiting industry.

The report also outlines key statistics and ideas to increase job orders and turn a greater profit margin this year. Among those ideas are a grater concentration in sales and social media networks, especially with LinkedIn.

Continue reading “ATS Companies, Users Should Benefit from Recruiting Upswing”

If your company uses an ATS during the hiring process, as most businesses these days do, what should you consider when renewing that system? Visit http://pcrecruiter.net/site to learn more.

Authoria recently released a report detailing the seven key considerations companies should keep in mind when renewing their applicant tracking system. As technology has dramatically changed the recruiting game, with everything from Web-enabled application and talent pool systems to business intelligence tools, it’s important for companies to stay at the forefront of the game.

“A wide array of applicant tracking systems (ATS), at different stages of maturity, now compete for the opportunity to help your organization meet its staffing and recruiting needs,” the report notes. “But with over 100 vendors to choose from, where do you start? If you are responsible for renewing your company’s applicant tracking system, there are many factors to take into account.”

Continue reading “ATS Renewal: Seven Important Considerations”

Recruiters are increasingly using social networking sites as part of their ATS.

There have been a number of studies on how social networking affects job seekers during the hiring process. Microsoft recently threw its hat into the ring by releasing a study conducted by Cross-Tab that delves into the subject of online reputation.

For the report, about 275 recruiters, HR professionals and hiring managers, as well as 330 consumers, were interviewed in the United States, France, Germany and the United Kingdom. The end result explores the attitude these people have about online reputation, how it impacts hiring and how people manage it.

Continue reading “ATS and Your Online Reputation”

It’s no surprise that the current economic recession has had a negative impact on business, and during times when companies are hiring fewer employees, ATS (Click here) and recruiting software companies also begin to suffer.

Fortunately, however, the opposite also is true. That means as companies begin to feel more financially stable and want to start hiring new employees and creating new jobs, recruiting companies can expect to see a surge in business. According to a new report, that is already beginning to happen.

Bullhorn, a staffing and recruiting software company, recently released “Recovery: Are We There Yet?” For the report, the company asked staffing and recruiting professionals about their expectations for economic recovery and its effect on the industry.

Continue reading “ATS and Recruiting Software Companies to See Business Increase”

As the current state of the economy has led many people to start their own businesses, chances are there is a small business owner in your life who you might be considering buying a gift for.

While the holidays mean family time and relaxation to many, they often mean an increase in production and hiring for small business owners, especially those who want to take advantage of the time when larger companies shut down. There are some gifts you can give to make this time of year a little easier on the small business owner in your life, including gift certificates, office essentials and ATS. Visit http://pcrecruiter.net to learn more.

Here are the top five gifts for small business owners:

Most private businesses know that using an applicant tracking system, or ATS, during the hiring process can be extremely beneficial, especially in terms of saving time and money. Lately, however, that trend seems to be working its way into public sector businesses, such as governments and schools.

Most recently, officials in the United Kingdom announced that the use of an ATS or other recruiting software could reduce the country’s national cost of advertising for school teacher and support staff positions by almost two-thirds.

In response, a new Schools Recruitment Service was created, which offers schools a faster and more efficient and standardized application system. About 52 local authorities representing more than 8,000 schools and 32 academies have already signed up to use the new software.

Continue reading “ATS Saves Schools Millions”

A new survey found that a surprisingly low number of companies are using applicant tracking system technology. Visit http://pcrecruiter.net/site to learn more about ATS.

TalentDrive recently released a survey of more than 8,000 Fortune 1000 companies and staffing firms. About 51 percent of respondents said “filtering through the mass of resumes and increased number of applicants” was the biggest sourcing challenge companies are currently facing.

However, about 54 percent of companies said the quality of candidates they were able to find met or exceeded their expectations. Most companies agreed the best way to find qualified talent is through social media and online job boards, while 59 percent said they had more luck recruiting talent through employee referrals and 98 percent had no luck finding talent within the company’s existing ATS.

Continue reading “ATS Use Surprisingly Low”

If you’re a job seeker, chances are you’ve been applying for jobs online. Whether you’re aware of it or not, chances are that your resume is being filtered through an applicant tracking system before it ever even has the opportunity to reach a human being.

As we discussed in a previous post, most companies in today’s hiring world send resumes through applicant tracking systems before they ever get read by human eyes. While it might not be very beneficial to job seekers, an ATS helps the company to create efficiencies in the hiring process.

Job seekers who are unaware of ATS are often baffled when they spend countless hours submitting their resume online, only to hear nothing in return. Even people with good work experience and strong employment backgrounds can slip through the cracks.

Continue reading “ATS and Your Resume”

Applicant tracking systems and other types of recruiting software may be able to help companies who are having a tough time staying afloat during the current economic recession.

Applicant tracking systems and other types of recruiting software may be able to help companies who are trying to stay afloat during the current economic recession. Click here to learn more.

If your company is on the brink of going under, or just looking for some new ways to save money, it’s important to have an HR strategy. Making sure everyone is on the same page and following the same logic will help ensure long-term success.

Recessions such as the one we’re in now can result in companies having to decide who gets laid off and who gets hired in a pinch. These can be extremely daunting decisions.

Continue reading “ATS Helps Companies During Recession”

In a time when many different people with different experience levels are applying for the same jobs, candidates should be focusing on the importance of their resumes.

A successful resume will include several elements, including keywords that are ATS friendly. Click here to learn more about applicant tracking systems. According to an article by Human Resource Executive Online, resumes also should place importance on focus, accomplishments, branding, uniqueness and appearance.

Following are the reasons each element is important to your resume:

  • Keywords – Most resumes you submit are sent through applicant tracking systems before they reach an actual person. ATS use software and databases that are searchable by keywords, meaning if your resume contains the same keywords as a company’s ATS, it’s more likely to be noticed.
  • Continue reading “ATS Should be Focus of Resumes”