Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS)

Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) are applications that analyze CVs. It is a fundamental IT tool for the Human Resources area since it is more efficient, saving time and money in companies that frequently select personnel.

98% of Fortune 500 companies screen candidate resumes through an applicant tracking system before a recruiter reviews them; therefore, the recruiter will make a selection based on the selection made (through algorithms) by the software. It is worth noting that more and more small and medium-sized companies are using the ATS. A Kelly OCG survey estimates that 66% of large companies and 35% of small organizations rely on recruiting software.

Large companies, or those hiring for multiple jobs, receive hundreds (and thousands) of resumes for any given job opening. Because it is becoming increasingly easier to apply for jobs online, many applicants are not qualified for the vacancies they apply for and do so to "see if they are lucky" or "to be considered for another vacancy". The ATS can analyze these resumes, break them down and present the data they contain in a standardized format that can be reviewed quickly.

If you are applying for a job vacancy in a large company, you are probably facing an ATS. If you are applying for a vacancy through an online form, you are applying through an ATS. Job sites like Indeed and LinkedIn have their own built-in ATS.

Now, how do ATS systems work? As mentioned, these software systems collect and store CVs in a database so that screeners or recruiters can access them. In turn, screeners can search and sort CVs in several ways, depending on the software they are using.

Some companies prefer to see each CV that applies for a specific vacancy. In this case, the screeners take a quick look at the most important aspects of each CV, for example, what their current job is, the companies where they worked, among other data that may be of interest. In 6 seconds, they can determine whether they want to learn more about the candidate.

A very common way that recruiters filter CVs in an ATS is by searching for keywords that are usually exclusionary for the job position. This search can contain several keywords or just one. An example would be: A multinational cleaning products company is looking for a traveling salesperson to cover a radius of 200 kilometers. 200 people applied for this job offer, that is, the company has 200 CVs. The recruiter will search for the keyword "Traveling Salesperson", which will probably reduce that number to 50 CVs (or fewer). If candidates do not put that exact phrase, they will be excluded from this selection. Therefore, those applicants who can predict the correct CV keywords will have a better chance of being included in the screener's search results. The best way to find out which skills and keywords to include is by analyzing the job description. The most modern ATSs use artificial intelligence techniques that improve accuracy when filtering or ranking CVs.

ATSs also help manage the candidate selection process, making it possible to identify where each candidate is in the process. For example, whether a candidate is scheduled for an interview or has been discarded because they dropped out of the process.

Some of the arguments against ATSs are that job selection processes should not depend on a procedure that resembles SEO optimization targeting the candidate's CV. The inflexibility of ATSs is also often criticized, since a synonym or a change in the structure can cause the software to exclude the CV.

There are currently numerous ATSs, each with its own particularities, strengths, and weaknesses.

Some tips for a CV to be selected by an ATS are:

• The CV should have a simple layout with simple headings, using a consistent format for the work history with its respective dates.

• As mentioned above, analyze the job vacancy, that is, what the company is requesting for that vacancy. In this way, include that or those keywords such as (in the case of our example) traveling salesperson. This means each CV must be adapted to each vacancy (even if they are similar).

• Avoid tables and graphs

• Use a .docx or .pdf file format.

• Finally, some people trick the ATS algorithms by stuffing their CV with keywords. How do they do it? By writing the keywords in their CV in white or in the same color as the page background, so that the keywords are invisible to the human eye. This trick can help improve the ranking of your CV, but clearly the recruiters cannot be fooled. Recruiters evaluate the competencies and references of each candidate, besides being very skilled professionals at detecting lies.