Many companies now want to use Applitrack for tracking job candidates and comparing and contrasting their skill sets. Applitrack helps school districts streamline and improve the outcomes of their recruiting processes; however, a
major challenge in implementing Applitrack is getting it to work with an organization’s enterprise content management (ECM) system.
Not having an ECM that is compatible with Applitrack is a problem many companies don’t know they have until it’s staring at them in the face. Usually they’re already trying to integrate Applitrack and blockers in the process start piling up to the point where the IT manager will start questioning whether completing the integration is even possible.
We’ve seen this scenario play out with our customers more and more lately…and it’s one of the reasons why Imaging Office Systems will be rolling out our own tools in the coming months as part of the launch of a larger, comprehensive cloud services offering. (Hey, if you’re reading this blog, then you’re “in” on this little tidbit of inside info…to learn more, drop us a line! We’d love to tell you more.)
What You Need In an ECM to Integrate With Applitrack
1. Mobile Functionality
When evaluating candidates, it’s critical you have round-the-clock access to your recruiting data. Candidates might only have a short window in which they are available, and you need to act fast and analyze and respond to them in a timely manner. Having mobile access to your data ensures this can happen regardless of the physical circumstances and location of hiring personnel.
2. Configurable Workflows
Each company has their own unique workflows for the hiring process. For example, a company might have multiple interview stages, test periods, or training stages through which multiple candidates must be assessed. Having configurable workflows in your ECM is the best way to ensure Applitrack can be smoothly integrated, but even with that, it’s important to discuss your hiring workflows with your ECM provider to ensure your process, the ECM, and Applitrack will work well together. Another consideration is to ensure you can make changes on the fly as your requirements or technology changes.
3. Data Security
What level of data security is provided by the ECM? It’s critical that your applicants’ data is protected as it makes its way through the hiring stages. Ensure that your ECM provides multiple layers of encryption and that all access points are protected by permissions-based systems.
Another element of data security is the training necessary to use the ECM. It’s important to ensure staff is easily able to understand what happens to the data when key steps are taken in the hiring process. For example, what happens when you share data with multiple stakeholders across the system? Can they alter the data, or is it still under your control through the ECM?
4. Will the Integration Timeline Work?
Software can take several weeks or months to install safely and securely and then several more weeks for your team to learn it.
When evaluating an ECM and its potential integration with Applitrack, make sure that the integration timeline fits with your expectations. As we’ve seen with many customers that come through our door, delays can be costly, both in terms of hiring outcomes and potential damage to a company’s reputation in their industry.
5. Compatibility with Common File Formats
It might seem obvious, but many organizations have gone through the process of choosing an ECM, only to fail to consider compatible file formats within the system. Some ECMs are not compatible with Microsoft Office files, for example, which can then cause downstream issues when candidates are sending files. It’s important that team members aren’t forced to find specific software outside the ECM to open a file.
Any workable ECM should be compatible with all of the latest files your candidates are using, particularly Adobe PDFs and Microsoft Office Excel and Word documents. Reliable compatibility will save you time in the future and limit the potential for communication problems with candidates and across your organization.
Yes, ECMs Can Be Awesome (and Compatible With Applitrack)!
Like I said, Imaging Office Systems will be rolling out our new (yet unnamed) ECM tools in 2020…and you better believe it’s going to be great! For years, we’ve borne witness to what most of the ECMs out there do well and where they struggle…and we’ve been keeping copious notes. What you’ll see from us is an ECM solution that will deliver the “best of” everything we’ve seen while cutting out what has proven problematic. We have a deep understanding of ECM technology from all the implementation angles and from a wide range of use cases, and we’re going to build it the way it should be built. To put it mildly, we’re excited about the future!