Choosing recruitment technology that works for humans

Technology lies at the heart of effective, efficient recruitment. But it’s important not to let the tail wag the dog, says Clara Lam.

The promise of technology in recruitment

Technology has the potential to bring huge benefits to the employee life cycle, in terms of efficiency, cost-effectiveness and candidate experience.

Automated candidate screening, streamlined interview scheduling, and remote assessments can save time and bring convenience for candidates. Technology can deliver access to wider and more diverse talent pools, and the use of cloud-based platforms and communications can encourage collaboration between HR, hiring managers and RPOs, as well as helping to drive engagement and performance in new starters. And then there’s the advanced data analytics - allowing time and cost per hire to be measured accurately, campaigns and strategies to become ever more evidence based, and much higher levels of transparency between organisations and their recruitment partners.

However, developing or integrating new technology always comes with risks and challenges. Choosing the correct option for your organisation’s circumstance – one that will optimise benefits whilst minimising cost, upheaval and stress – is essential.

The recruitment tech marketplace explosion

Historically, recruitment services providers relied on large, sometimes unwieldy, enterprise solutions for their clients. These were often costly and time consuming for their customers to implement. Over time, a very crowded technology marketplace has evolved, offering specialised tools for a wide range of recruitment processes from attraction to onboarding. Often, these tools are delivered through a Software as a Service model, with payments in monthly or yearly subscriptions which can build up to be costly over time.

The conundrum: ‘one-size fits all’ solutions, or multiple specialised products?

Today, many larger recruitment services providers are developing their own integrated tools for their staff and their clients to use. These have the advantage of delivering a single integration process for your organisation. In addition, they often have lower rates than more bespoke options in the marketplace and can provide a cohesive ‘one-stop-shop’ experience for employees. However, they tend not to offer much in the way of flexibility or tailored solutions that fit your organisation’s precise needs and can lock you in to working with one RPO or partner.

Some providers adopt multiple external technologies, which offer you more specialised and customisable solutions. Because the tools are designed for one part of the employee life cycle, they also tend to have better features and functionality than counterparts in the ‘one-size fits all’ systems. However, using multiple tools can mean more integration challenges for the business, more potential friction with IT teams, and more resistance to take-up from employees. When your people have to familiarise themselves with multiple HR related platforms or apps (for recruitment, onboarding, and L&D for example) it can lead to ‘app fatigue’ and make employees less likely to actively engage with them.

Learnings from the front line

In making decisions, it’s important to be pragmatic, and laser focused on the precise needs of your business, to avoid wasted spend and integration headaches. Take the example of a specialised onboarding tool. If you are a large multinational with many hundreds or thousands of new workers every year, a big remote or hybrid working population, relatively high renege rates or above average retention issues in the first year of employment, the investment may be a judicious one. If, however, you are a small organisation with less than 50 hires a year, strong retention, and a face-to-face induction programme that is already delivering strong engagement amongst new joiners, it’s worth considering whether the cost of acquiring and integrating the tool will deliver a good return on your investment.

Think also about the payment model for such a tool. If it is financed through an annual subscription, you will have to pay out even in years when you have a downtick in hiring, or a complete recruitment pause. Whereas a tool with a ‘pay per use’ model means you get much better value for money – and are paying for services only when you need them.

What a real “Total Solution” looks like

Integration and simplicity need to be key priorities when considering upgrading or changing recruitment and HR technology. What is the simplest, most cost-effective solution to reach your desired strategic outcomes? It’s important not to try to run before you can walk, by implementing advanced features before sorting out the basics. In some cases, simpler, more cost-effective embedded functions with core tools will suffice for your needs and will prevent unnecessary expenditure on advanced features that may not be fully utilised or integrated. In short a ‘total solution’ should not be a collection of disparate tools, but rather, a truly integrated system, that delivers on strategic priorities.

A smarter framework for decisions

The decision to adopt new technology should always depend on your organisations size, specific needs and overall commercial and people strategy. Are the new tools or wider technology changes a good investment in the short, medium and long term? Is the IT team onboard from day one and have integration issues been fully explored? Is the pain worth the gain in terms of improvements in employee or candidate experience that will drive business goals?

Finally, but equally importantly, are your line managers and teams onboard? Ensuring your people understand the strategic rationale behind new tech and are trained and incentivised to use it is a vital piece of the puzzle. Successful integration has a human as well as a technical element. That’s why engaging the people who will use it is a vital step in ensuring new technology really delivers on its promise.