What to Know About Applicant Tracking Systems

Applicant tracking systems (ATS) are databases that hold candidate resumes. Companies use a form of ATS to filter candidates based on different criteria. The computer does not reject resumes, humans do. Aligning a resume with the job description and avoiding graphics yields high results.

By Ciarra Maraj?

An applicant tracking system (ATS) is an index compiled of resumes used by recruiters to find qualified applicants for open roles. Submitted resumes stay in the system forever. The biggest downfall of ATS is the misinformation surrounding it, said Melanie Mitchell-Wexler , career coach and 20-year recruiting veteran.

Mitchell-Wexler said job seekers at times believe the ATS is a rejection robot. A system that denies resumes, screens candidates and determines whether they advance.

“And there's just no robot,” Mitchell-Wexler said. “Sometimes there's filter questions, but guess what? Those filter questions were set up by that recruiter. By a human being.”

“An applicant tracking system, essentially, is a database,” said technical recruiter Tejal Wagadia. “It's an online database…[its job] is to store the resident applications that come through in one centralized place.”

Using an ATS is standard recruiting industry practice. The system varies by company. Some systems rank resumes based on the number of times a keyword is used. Other systems save all resumes.?

“If the keyword is project management,” Mitchell-Wexler said, “depending on the number of times it shows up through that person's resume, the higher that person is going to be.”?

Be sure to incorporate the keywords in the experience section, she added.?

Recruiters also say ATS helps the hiring process go smoother.?

“It's a place for us to stay organized and…streamline the process and help us schedule interviews and track candidate flow, those types of things,” said talent acquisition leader, Tabitha Cavanagh .

The Downside to Applicant Tracking Systems?

Like any system, there are flaws.?

“At the end of the day, it's designed by humans,” Wagadia said.

If the keywords are absent, a candidate’s ranking in the system will go down.?

“That ranking can change,” Mitchell-Wexler said. “Even if I was looking for 'project management' and based on the search, I could do 'project management [with experience]' in specific software.

“So that could be why somebody doesn't necessarily ‘come up in a search’ because maybe they don't have that software [experience].”

Candidates will not have a chance to interview if they have the desired experience but their resume lacks necessary keywords. So not aligning your resume to the description if you've done the job before is detrimental, Wagadia said.

Be cognizant of the resume format the application requires. Matching the desired format (whether word or PDF) ensures the system will read it.?

However, ditch the fun graphics and wonky text boxes.?

“Putting in graphs and tables and pictures and columns while it looks pretty,” Mitchell-Wexler said, “ATS systems, once it hits that block…it stops reading it. So then when I go and do a search and I put in the keyword, it's never gonna pick those keywords up.”

“I just had this happen to a candidate,” Cavanagh said. “…He sent me his resume through the ATS. And when I opened it, it was showing up like almost completely blank.”?

Can applicant tracking systems be biased??

“It's not the ATS, it's the user and the way the user sets up the ATS,” Cavanagh said.

“Those biases [that] exist are created by human beings,” Wagadia said. “So just like any other system…The algorithm does what it's meant to do and what it’s programmed to do.”

“I think that there's probably more unconscious biases,” Mitchell-Wexler said. “There are widely known biases. But I do think…good recruiters are very open-minded and they think outside of that box.”

The Upside to Applicant Tracking Systems

Remember that applicant tracking systems are databases. An ATS does more good than harm when used properly. Even if a candidate did not get the role, their information is still in the system for future use.?

“It keeps that process moving along,” Mitchell-Wexler said. “And I know a lot of candidates probably would think like, ‘Wow, how does it help me?’ But the reality is once you've applied for a position that does mean you're in that company's database, the filing cabinet.?

“You start to increase your odds that you could come up in searches. Maybe that one opportunity wasn't for you, but maybe that next opportunity or if a similar position opens up.”

Practice good resume form for the best chance to be noticed, Cavanagh said.?

“The best way you're [going to] stand out is by having a resume that again, has some of those different variables like white space,” Cavanagh said. “…As a recruiter, a resume with a ton of words on it with like no white space, just all becomes a big blur.”

Regardless if the applicant system ranks a candidate, tailoring a resume to the description is best, Wagadia said.

“You still want to align your resume to the job description,” Wagadia said. “Because that is what's going to get you further, whether you are writing it for a human eye or trying to trick the ATS which is unfortunately not a thing.”

Despite the human that makes an ATS bias, it is used so that everyone receives the same chance to apply.

“Companies use an ATS just to ensure that we are following the exact process for every single candidate,” Wagadia said.?

Do not be afraid of the ATS, it is just a drop box, she added.?

“Instead of going to a physical office or emailing somebody a resume, they're putting it in a database where everyone can see it,” Wagadia said. “Not just that recruiter at the company, but other recruiters at that company can also see their resume. So they have a higher chance of being called back for a different job.”

Be conscious of the audience, Mitchell-Wexler said.

“Unfortunately recruiters can't get to every single resume that applies to one job but they do look at resumes,” Mitchell-Wexler said. “And so remembering that that person is [going to] be reading it is also important.?

“But formatting is really the big key in making sure that it's a clean, streamlined format with none of the special extra stuff in it is gonna help you get your resume seen much further.”?

Top Takeaways?

What To Know About Applicant Tracking Systems?

• It is a database?
• It does not reject candidates
• Some systems rank candidates others do not?
• Avoid the graphics include the keywords?
• Just because a candidate was not qualified for a position does not mean they will not be considered for other positions