Reshape The Traditional Recruiter-Hiring Manager Relationship With Your ATS

It’s time to shake things up a little.

The Situation

The traditional relationship between the hiring manager and their recruiters can in some respects be considered structurally flawed. Typically, the hiring manager informs the recruiter of what he or she would like to see in a candidate and the recruiter takes control of the hiring process from there by searching for candidates and guiding them through the key steps from screening to initial interviews. The hiring manager might not intervene until the very end.

This situation can ultimately lead to a number of undesirable consequences that may serve to negatively impact the quality and efficiency of the process itself. In many cases, the recruiter is alone in managing a large number of candidates and may become burned out. For similar reasons, the recruiter may be inclined to take fewer risks for fear of seeing their primary candidate rejected during the final stages. Moreover, delays in decision-making from hiring managers can lead to candidates accepting other offers thus resulting in unnecessary losses in valuable time and effort.

Does a solution exist?

Companies know that the traditional recruiter-hiring manager relationship is far from perfect but may be unaware of any better solutions. Enter collaborative recruitment.

Collaborative recruitment is a new paradigm that is gaining momentum within the recruitment industry. It engages — to a much greater degree — not only hiring managers, but also other members of the recruitment team throughout the entire recruitment process. Under this arrangement, a single recruiter may continue to take the lead. However, key interviews and other aspects of candidate screening are open to increased participation of and feedback from other team members with intimate knowledge of the job in question. This in turn helps to speed up the process and ensure a more holistic review of all potential candidates.

The key to successful collaborative recruitment is clear communication and harmonization. As such, it is worth pointing out that working with an ATS significantly helps to achieve this because of its role in consolidating and centralizing all data relating to the recruitment process and enabling for real-time tracking of a candidate’s progress. A good ATS will offer features that help to ensure collaborators remain on the same page at all times.

If you are a hiring manager or a recruiter, you might consider a more collaborative approach with an ATS. It may take a little time to change your workflow, but it will almost certainly produce long-term benefits for the quality of your work, the talent you recruit, and indeed the wellness of your team.