Digitising the recruitment process - step by step
There are many ways to digitize the recruiting process, and they are constantly changing. What is standard today could be outdated tomorrow. Ultimately, however, a different process and level of digitalization is suitable for every company. HR managers therefore ask themselves the question: Which process steps can be digitalized and how?
Job advertisement
Job advertisements are often still created as PDFs and laboriously published individually on your own website and various job portals. Today, however, modern, digital alternatives are available to you. Thanks to multiposters or e-recruitment software, you can publish job advertisements on several platforms simultaneously with just a few clicks. The advertisements are mobile optimized, search engine friendly (SEO) and can contain interactive elements.
When it comes to job advertisements, it is important to choose the right channels for the respective target group. In addition to traditional job portals, you should also consider Google for Jobs or social media platforms such as LinkedIn.
Tip: If applicants are to be sent to a specific email inbox or recruitment tool, make a note of this on the website or in the job advertisement. This will ensure that the applications are received in the right place and avoid unnecessary floods of emails or additional work caused by postal applications.
Application receipt
Applicants often still arrive by email or even by post. This usually requires manual entry in Excel spreadsheets or digital folder structures.
A structured application process begins on your own website: simple online forms make it possible to record applicants efficiently, uniformly and in compliance with data protection regulations. A stand-alone online form can be integrated for this purpose or you can use the application form of an e-recruitment tool directly, which is seamlessly integrated into the process.
Selection by HR and line
Sending applicants to their superiors by email can lead to a veritable flood of emails, depending on the number of vacancies. It is difficult to maintain an overview. There are various ways to organize yourself in the e-mail program (working with categories, individual folders, etc.).
The critical point with selection via email is data protection and access authorizations. If the applicants end up in various inboxes due to forwarding, the “right to be forgotten”, among other things, cannot be guaranteed.
Another option is shared digital filing (e.g. SharePoint). This allows applicants to be stored in a structured manner and processed together. Nevertheless, there are also challenges here with regard to access control, the traceability of ratings and compliance with data protection regulations.
A recruitment tool offers an alternative. This allows supervisors to be invited to ratings in compliance with data protection regulations and the feedback to be collected centrally. Thanks to defined roles and access rights, everyone involved only sees the information that is relevant to them.
Step by step to a digitized application process - with Dualoo.
Communication with applicants
Fast and individual communication with candidates is essential for both the candidate experience and an efficient recruiting process.
It is possible to store templates or send automatic confirmations of receipt in common mail programs. However, if the emails end up in different inboxes and are also saved, this procedure can hardly be implemented in compliance with data protection regulations. In addition, a personal and gender-appropriate approach cannot be implemented automatically in conventional email programs.
This is where an applicant management tool can provide you with optimal support. You can store your mail templates in the settings. With the help of placeholders, the existing data is then inserted directly when the mail is sent (e.g. automatic generation of the salutation). This enables fast and personalised communication with the applicant. Individual access assignment and automatic anonymisation mean that data protection-compliant recruitment is also no problem.
Job interview and trial apprenticeship
Can the video interview really replace the physical job interview, the selection phone call or the trial apprenticeship? Probably never completely. But for a first impression, for example:
- with a task presented online by the candidate or
- of the company as a virtual company tour
this can be an option and bring variety to the recruiting process. Further information can be found in the video interview guide.
Acception and rejection
The recruiting process can also be digitized for acceptances and rejections. Although standard mail programs with templates already simplify acceptances and rejections enormously, recruitment tools offer even more advantages:
- Create e-mails incl. templates
- Send mass rejections
- Create contracts and accompanying letters incl. templates
Tools for the digital recruiting process
There are numerous tools available today for a successful digital recruiting process: from specialized applicant tracking systems (ATS) and modern solutions for remote recruiting to the targeted use of AI in recruiting, for example for the creation of job advertisements or emails.
The choice of suitable tools should be carefully considered. Weka’s software overview provides an overview of common applicant management systems, while the requirements catalog helps you to systematically identify your own needs. You can find more practical tips and decision-making aids on our page on comparing recruiting tools.
Conclusion
The gradual digitalization of the application process ensures a clear structure, reduces administrative effort and improves collaboration between all parties involved. A digital process also enables precise evaluations with the help of recruiting KPIs.
A sensible first step can be to visualize the existing process in order to identify potential for optimization and address this in a targeted manner. We are happy to provide you with a template for a recruiting process for download.
Questions & Answers: Digitizing the recruiting process
What are the advantages of a digital recruiting process?
Digitalization reduces the administrative burden, facilitates communication and improves the candidate experience through transparent and efficient processes.
How do you start digitizing the recruiting process?
Analyze your existing processes. Identify optimization potential and select the right digital solutions.
How does digitalization support data evaluation?
Digital tools enable detailed analyses to measure the success of job advertisements and selection processes.
What are the challenges of digitalization?
Careful and sustainable implementation, employee training and the selection of data protection-compliant solutions are key challenges.
