Terms

Applicant Tracking System

An applicant tracking system (ATS) is software that helps recruiters and employers manage candidates throughout the hiring process. These systems act as a centralized database to collect applicant information, organize prospects by experience and skillset, and filter them to find the best fit for open roles. Ultimately, an ATS streamlines recruitment by automating manual tasks and organizing the entire talent pipeline.

Key Features of Applicant Tracking Systems

Modern applicant tracking systems offer a suite of powerful tools designed to streamline every stage of the hiring process. These features help recruiting teams save time, improve collaboration, and make more data-driven decisions. Key functionalities include:

  • Automation: Automates repetitive tasks like resume screening, interview scheduling, and candidate communication.
  • Job Posting: Distributes job openings to multiple career sites and social media platforms with a single click.
  • Analytics: Provides real-time data and reporting to track hiring metrics and make informed decisions.
  • Integrations: Connects with other HR software, such as HRIS and onboarding tools, for a unified workflow.
  • Filtering: Allows recruiters to search and filter candidates based on specific skills, experience, and keywords.

Benefits of Using an Applicant Tracking System

Implementing an ATS transforms a company's recruitment process, making it more efficient and effective. These systems help organizations save time and resources while improving the quality of hires and enhancing the candidate experience.

  • Efficiency: Automates manual tasks and streamlines workflows, significantly reducing the time-to-hire.
  • Quality: Improves candidate quality with data-driven insights and consistent, bias-reducing screening processes.
  • Collaboration: Centralizes communication and feedback, giving hiring teams full visibility into the pipeline.
  • Experience: Enhances the candidate journey with timely communication and a transparent application process.

Applicant Tracking System vs. Human Resource Information System

While both systems manage people data, they serve distinct purposes within the HR technology stack.

  • ATS: This system focuses on the pre-hire lifecycle, streamlining recruitment, candidate tracking, and communication. It excels at managing high applicant volumes and reducing time-to-hire, but implementation can be complex. Enterprises with extensive hiring needs often prefer a dedicated ATS for its specialized talent acquisition features.
  • HRIS: This system manages the entire employee lifecycle, from onboarding to offboarding, handling payroll, benefits, and performance data. It provides a central data repository for all HR functions. An HRIS is essential for companies seeking to consolidate core HR operations beyond just recruitment.

Common Challenges with Applicant Tracking Systems

ATS implementation can be complex and costly, often stretching IT resources thin. Integrating with other HR software like background check services presents another major hurdle. These challenges can create data silos and disrupt workflows, negating the system's efficiency gains.

Many systems suffer from a poor user experience, creating a frustrating process for candidates and recruiters alike. Legacy platforms often lack modern automation and robust filtering, leading to manual work. This inefficiency can cause top talent to drop off or be overlooked.

Future Trends in Applicant Tracking Systems

The future of applicant tracking systems is centered on artificial intelligence and automation. These platforms will become more predictive, using AI to identify top candidates and reduce bias. Expect enhanced mobile-first experiences and deeper integrations with other HR tools to create a seamless, data-driven recruitment ecosystem for both candidates and recruiters.

Frequently Asked Questions about Applicant Tracking System

How does an ATS handle resume parsing and keyword filtering?

ATS software scans resumes for specific keywords, skills, and experience defined by the recruiter. It's crucial to configure filters carefully to avoid accidentally rejecting qualified candidates whose resumes lack specific terminology, though modern AI helps improve accuracy.

Can an ATS integrate with other tools we already use?

Yes, most modern ATS platforms offer integrations with other HR tools like HRIS, background check services, and assessment platforms. However, the quality and ease of integration vary, so it's important to verify compatibility before committing.

Does using an ATS negatively impact the candidate experience?

It depends on the system and its implementation. A well-configured ATS can improve the experience with timely updates and clear communication. However, a clunky or poorly managed system can create a frustrating, impersonal application process for candidates.

Other terms

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Docker

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Docker

Signaling

Signaling is using credible actions to convey information about quality or intent to a less-informed party, effectively building trust.

Signaling

Sentiment Analysis

Sentiment analysis, or opinion mining, automatically determines the emotional tone behind text—whether it's positive, negative, or neutral.

Sentiment Analysis

Marketing Mix

The marketing mix is the set of marketing tools a company uses to sell products, defined by the 4Ps: Product, Price, Place, and Promotion.

Marketing Mix

Cold Calling

Cold calling is a sales tactic where reps contact potential customers by phone who haven't previously expressed interest in their product or service.

Cold Calling

Inbound Sales

Inbound sales attracts interested prospects who've engaged with your brand, letting sales reps connect with warm leads instead of cold outreach.

Inbound Sales

Inbound Lead Generation

Inbound lead generation is the process of attracting potential customers to your business with valuable content and tailored experiences.

Inbound Lead Generation

Closed Opportunities

Closed opportunities are potential deals that have concluded. They are categorized as either 'closed-won' (a sale was made) or 'closed-lost'.

Closed Opportunities

Expansion Revenue

Expansion revenue is the extra money a business makes from its current customers via upgrades, new products, or additional services.

Expansion Revenue

B2B Data Enrichment

Learn about B2B data enrichment, including benefits of B2B data enrichment, implementing B2B data enrichment strategies, B2B data enrichment vs. data cleaning.

B2B Data Enrichment

Buying Intent

Buying intent is the collection of online cues and behaviors that signal a prospect is actively researching and moving toward a purchase decision.

Buying Intent

Outbound Leads

Outbound leads are potential customers a business proactively contacts through outreach like cold calls, emails, or social media.

Outbound Leads

Dark Social

Dark social is the sharing of content through private channels like messaging apps or email. This traffic is hard to track as it lacks referral data.

Dark Social

Sales Operations Management

Sales Operations Management streamlines sales processes, tech, and data analysis to help sales teams sell more effectively and efficiently.

Sales Operations Management

Market Intelligence

Market intelligence is the process of collecting and analyzing data about your target market, competitors, and industry to guide business strategy.

Market Intelligence

Commission

A commission is a service charge paid to an agent for a transaction. It's typically a percentage of the sale, rewarding performance directly.

Commission

Mobile Compatibility

Mobile compatibility ensures your site or app works flawlessly on mobile devices, like smartphones and tablets, for a seamless user experience.

Mobile Compatibility

No Cold Calls

No Cold Calls is a sales strategy that replaces unsolicited calls with warm outreach to prospects who have already demonstrated interest.

No Cold Calls

Google Analytics

Google Analytics is a web analytics service that tracks and reports website traffic, offering insights into user behavior and marketing effectiveness.

Google Analytics

Canary Releases

A canary release is a deployment strategy where new software is rolled out to a small user group first, minimizing risk before a full release.

Canary Releases

Account Mapping

Account mapping is comparing your customer list with a partner's to find common prospects and unlock new sales opportunities.

Account Mapping

Call Analytics

Call analytics is the practice of analyzing phone call data to extract insights, track key metrics, and improve overall business performance.

Call Analytics

B2B Marketing Attribution

Learn about B2B marketing attribution, including challenges in B2B marketing attribution, & key metrics for effective attribution.

B2B Marketing Attribution

Customer Retention Cost

Customer Retention Cost (CRC) is the total amount a company spends to keep an existing customer over a certain period of time.

Customer Retention Cost

Return on Marketing Investment

Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI) measures the revenue generated by a marketing campaign relative to the cost of that campaign.

Return on Marketing Investment

Average Revenue per Account

Average Revenue per Account (ARPA) is the average revenue generated from each customer account, usually measured on a monthly or annual basis.

Average Revenue per Account

Deal-Flow

Deal flow refers to the stream of business proposals and investment opportunities that a company or investor receives.

Deal-Flow

Referral Marketing

Referral marketing is a strategy that incentivizes existing customers to recommend a company's products or services to their personal network.

Referral Marketing

Data Encryption

Data encryption translates data into another form, or code, so that only people with access to a secret key or password can read it.

Data Encryption

Shipping Solutions

Shipping solutions are services or software that streamline the logistics of getting products to customers, from label printing to final delivery.

Shipping Solutions

Persona

A persona is a semi-fictional profile of your ideal customer, based on market research and real data about your existing customers.

Persona

Account-Based Marketing Software

Account-Based Marketing (ABM) software helps teams coordinate personalized marketing and sales efforts to land high-value customer accounts.

Account-Based Marketing Software

Sales Metrics

Sales metrics are quantifiable data points that track and measure a sales team's performance against specific goals and objectives.

Sales Metrics

Time on Site

Time on site, or session duration, is a key web metric that tracks the total time a visitor spends on your website during a single visit.

Time on Site

Early Adopter

An early adopter is a user who embraces a new product or technology before the majority, helping to validate and popularize the innovation.

Early Adopter

Complex Sale

A complex sale features a long sales cycle, multiple stakeholders, and a high-value transaction, demanding a strategic, consultative approach.

Complex Sale

Dynamic Pricing

Dynamic pricing is a strategy where businesses set flexible prices for products or services based on current market demands and other factors.

Dynamic Pricing

Lead List

A lead list is a curated database of potential customers (leads) with contact information and other key data for sales and marketing outreach.

Lead List

User Interaction

User interaction is any action a user takes within a digital interface, like clicking a button, scrolling a page, or filling out a form.

User Interaction

Lead Generation Software

Lead generation software helps businesses automate finding and capturing potential customers' contact information to build sales pipelines.

Lead Generation Software

Tokenization

Tokenization is the process of breaking down text into smaller units called tokens, such as words or characters, for AI to process.

Tokenization

Digital Analytics

Digital analytics is the analysis of data from digital channels to understand user behavior and optimize online experiences for business goals.

Digital Analytics

Cost Per Click (CPC)

Cost Per Click (CPC) is a digital advertising model where an advertiser pays a fee each time one of their ads gets clicked by a user.

Cost Per Click (CPC)

Consultative Sales

Consultative selling is a sales approach where a salesperson acts as an advisor, focusing on understanding and solving a customer's specific needs.

Consultative Sales

ClickFunnels

ClickFunnels is a popular online tool that lets entrepreneurs easily build sales funnels to guide potential customers through the buying process.

ClickFunnels

Data Visualization

Data visualization is the practice of translating information into a visual context, like a map or graph, to make data easier to understand.

Data Visualization

Overcoming Objections

Overcoming objections is the process of addressing and resolving a prospect's concerns or hesitations to move a sale forward.

Overcoming Objections

Remote Sales

Remote sales is selling from a distance. Reps use digital tools to connect with prospects and close deals without meeting them in person.

Remote Sales

Sales and Marketing Analytics

Sales and marketing analytics involves measuring and analyzing performance data to maximize effectiveness and optimize return on investment (ROI).

Sales and Marketing Analytics

Personalization

Personalization is the practice of using data to tailor products, services, or content to an individual's specific needs and preferences.

Personalization

Analytics Platforms

Analytics platforms are tools that collect and analyze data from various sources, helping businesses track key metrics and make informed decisions.

Analytics Platforms

SAM

Serviceable Addressable Market (SAM) is the portion of the market your business can realistically serve with its current products and sales channels.

SAM

NoSQL

NoSQL ("Not only SQL") databases offer a flexible alternative to relational models, excelling at managing large and unstructured data sets.

NoSQL

Amortization

Amortization is the process of spreading out a loan or the cost of an intangible asset over a specific period for accounting and tax purposes.

Amortization

Sales Funnel Metrics

Sales funnel metrics are key data points that track how effectively you're moving potential customers from awareness to a final purchase.

Sales Funnel Metrics

Hadoop

Hadoop is an open-source framework designed for the distributed storage and processing of extremely large data sets across clusters of computers.

Hadoop

Business Development Representative

Learn about business development representative, including skills and qualifications for BDRs, & roles and responsibilities of a BDR.

Business Development Representative

Direct-to-Consumer

Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) is a business model where companies sell products directly to customers, bypassing traditional retail middlemen.

Direct-to-Consumer

Request for Information

A Request for Information (RFI) is a formal process for gathering information from potential suppliers before issuing a more detailed proposal.

Request for Information

Elevator Pitch

An elevator pitch is a short, memorable summary of what you do, designed to be delivered in the time it takes to ride an elevator.

Elevator Pitch

Sales Workflows

Sales workflows are a set of automated actions that streamline the sales process, helping teams engage leads consistently and close deals faster.

Sales Workflows

Electronic Signatures

An electronic signature is a digital method for getting consent on electronic documents. It's a legally binding way to sign agreements online.

Electronic Signatures

Sales Prospecting

Sales prospecting is the process of identifying potential customers, or prospects, and initiating contact to convert them into paying customers.

Sales Prospecting

Customer Data Management (CDM)

Customer Data Management (CDM) is the process of collecting, organizing, and analyzing customer data to create a unified view of your audience.

Customer Data Management (CDM)

On Target Earnings

On-Target Earnings (OTE) is a salesperson's total potential pay, combining base salary and commission for hitting their sales quota.

On Target Earnings

Bounce Rate

Learn about bounce rate, including understanding bounce rate implications, key factors affecting bounce rate, & reducing your bounce rate effectively.

Bounce Rate

Sales Rep Training

Sales rep training is the process of equipping your sales team with the skills, knowledge, and tools to effectively sell and hit their targets.

Sales Rep Training

Sales Engineer

Sales Engineers blend deep technical knowledge with sales acumen, demonstrating a product's value and solving customer problems to drive revenue.

Sales Engineer

Account-Based Advertising

Account-based advertising is a hyper-focused B2B strategy that targets key accounts with personalized ads across multiple channels.

Account-Based Advertising

Sales Pipeline

A sales pipeline is a visual representation of where prospects are in the sales process, from the first contact to the final sale.

Sales Pipeline

Fulfillment Logistics

Fulfillment logistics is the entire process of getting an order to a customer, from storing inventory to picking, packing, and final shipment.

Fulfillment Logistics

Call for Proposal

A Call for Proposal (CFP) is a document that solicits proposals, often through a bidding process, for a specific project or service.

Call for Proposal

Data Cleansing

Data cleansing, or data scrubbing, is the process of detecting and correcting inaccurate records from a dataset to improve data quality.

Data Cleansing

Product Champion

A product champion is an internal evangelist who drives a product's adoption and success by ensuring it solves real problems for their team.

Product Champion

Microservices

Microservices is an architecture where apps are built as a collection of small, independent services that communicate with each other over APIs.

Microservices

Sales Dashboard

A sales dashboard is a visual tool that centralizes and displays key sales data, metrics, and KPIs to help teams track performance and goals.

Sales Dashboard

B2B Sales

Learn about B2B sales, including key strategies for B2B success, types of B2B sales models, & B2B vs. B2C sales: understanding the differences.

B2B Sales

Compounded Annual Growth Rate

Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) measures the mean annual growth of an investment over a specified period of time longer than one year.

Compounded Annual Growth Rate

Salesforce Administrator

A Salesforce Administrator is a certified professional who manages and customizes the Salesforce platform to meet a company's specific business needs.

Salesforce Administrator

GDPR Compliance

GDPR compliance means following the EU's strict data protection laws to ensure the secure and lawful handling of personal data.

GDPR Compliance

B2B Sales Process

Learn about B2B sales process, including key components of B2B sales processes, & crafting an effective B2B sales strategy.

B2B Sales Process

Conversion Path

A conversion path is the journey a visitor takes to complete a desired goal, such as making a purchase, filling out a form, or subscribing.

Conversion Path

Contact Data

Contact data is the set of details, like names, emails, and phone numbers, used to get in touch with a person or business for outreach.

Contact Data

ABM Orchestration

ABM orchestration aligns marketing and sales actions across channels to deliver seamless, personalized experiences to high-value accounts.

ABM Orchestration

Outbound Lead Generation

Outbound lead generation means proactively reaching out to potential customers who haven't yet expressed interest to introduce them to your brand.

Outbound Lead Generation

Employee Engagement

Employee engagement is the emotional commitment an employee has to their organization, motivating them to contribute to the company's success.

Employee Engagement

Account Click Through Rate

Account Click-Through Rate (CTR) is the percentage of individuals from a target account who click on a link in an ad, email, or on a webpage.

Account Click Through Rate

Application Programming Interface Security

API security is the practice of protecting application programming interfaces from attacks, preventing data breaches and unauthorized access.

Application Programming Interface Security

Sales Development Representative (SDR)

A Sales Development Representative (SDR) is a sales specialist who finds and qualifies new leads, building a pipeline for the sales team.

Sales Development Representative (SDR)

Voice Search Optimization

Voice search optimization is the process of optimizing your content, SEO, and online listings to appear in and rank for voice-based searches.

Voice Search Optimization

Quality Assurance

Quality Assurance (QA) is the systematic process of ensuring a product or service meets specified quality standards from development to delivery.

Quality Assurance

Forecasting

Forecasting uses historical data to make informed predictions about future trends, helping businesses anticipate outcomes and plan accordingly.

Forecasting

Tire-Kicker

A tire-kicker is a prospect who shows interest in a product but has no intention of buying, wasting a salesperson's time and resources.

Tire-Kicker

Self-Service SaaS Model

The self-service SaaS model allows customers to independently sign up, use, and manage a product without any direct help from the company.

Self-Service SaaS Model

Interactive Voice Response

Interactive Voice Response (IVR) is an automated phone system that uses voice and keypad inputs to interact with callers and route their calls.

Interactive Voice Response

DevOps

DevOps is a culture and set of practices that merges software development (Dev) and IT operations (Ops) to shorten development cycles.

DevOps

Weighted Sales Pipeline

A weighted sales pipeline forecasts revenue by assigning a closing probability to each deal, giving a more accurate picture of potential income.

Weighted Sales Pipeline

Contract Management

Contract management is the process of creating, executing, and analyzing contracts to maximize performance and minimize financial risk.

Contract Management

Sales Engagement

Sales engagement is the sum of all interactions between a seller and a prospect, aimed at building a relationship and moving a deal forward.

Sales Engagement

Intent leads

Intent leads are prospects who show buying signals through their online actions, indicating they're actively looking to make a purchase.

Intent leads