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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Request for Information

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Request for Information

Webhooks

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Webhooks

Hadoop

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

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Sales Engineer

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Sales Engineer

B2B Data Enrichment

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B2B Data Enrichment

Responsive Design

Responsive design is an approach where a website's layout adapts to the user's screen size, providing an optimal experience on any device.

Responsive Design

Direct Sales

Direct sales involves selling products directly to consumers in a non-retail setting, such as at home, online, or person-to-person.

Direct Sales

Intent Data

Intent data tracks a user's online behavior—like searches and site visits—to identify signals that they are ready to make a purchase.

Intent Data

Sales Intelligence

Sales intelligence is technology that gathers and analyzes data to help salespeople find and understand prospects and existing clients.

Sales Intelligence

Sales Lead

A sales lead is a potential customer—an individual or organization that has shown interest in your company's products or services.

Sales Lead

SEO

SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is increasing the quantity and quality of traffic to your website through organic search results.

SEO

RESTful API

A RESTful API is a web service interface that uses HTTP requests to access and use data, adhering to the constraints of REST architecture.

RESTful API

Lead Qualification Process

The lead qualification process is how you determine which prospects are most likely to become customers by evaluating them against specific criteria.

Lead Qualification Process

Customer Relationship Marketing

Customer relationship marketing is a strategy for building lasting connections with customers to foster long-term loyalty and engagement.

Customer Relationship Marketing

Event Tracking

Event tracking is the method of collecting data on specific user actions, or 'events,' on a website or app, such as clicks or downloads.

Event Tracking

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

Lead Scoring

Lead scoring is the process of assigning points to leads based on their attributes and actions to determine their sales-readiness.

Lead Scoring

Marketing Qualified Account

A Marketing Qualified Account (MQA) is a target company that has shown significant engagement, indicating it's ready for the sales team to pursue.

Marketing Qualified Account

Sales Enablement Technology

Sales enablement technology refers to software and tools that equip sales teams with the resources they need to close more deals efficiently.

Sales Enablement Technology

Smile and Dial

"Smile and dial" is a high-volume sales tactic where reps make numerous cold calls from a list, often with little to no prior research.

Smile and Dial

Bottom of the Funnel

Learn about bottom of the funnel, including maximizing conversions at the funnel's end, & strategies for nurturing bottom-funnel leads.

Bottom of the Funnel

B2B Intent Data

Learn about B2B intent data, including how B2B intent data enhances sales strategies, sources of B2B intent data, leveraging B2B intent data for competitiveness.

B2B Intent Data

ABM Orchestration

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

ABM Orchestration

Competitive Intelligence (CI)

Competitive intelligence (CI) is the ethical gathering and analysis of market data to inform strategic business decisions and gain an advantage.

Competitive Intelligence (CI)

Revenue Operations (RevOps)

Revenue Operations (RevOps) is a business function that aligns a company's sales, marketing, and customer service teams to drive predictable revenue.

Revenue Operations (RevOps)

Consultative Selling

Consultative selling is an approach where salespeople act as expert advisors, diagnosing customer needs to provide the most suitable solutions.

Consultative Selling

Cold Emailing

Cold emailing is sending unsolicited emails to potential customers you haven't contacted before, aiming to start a business conversation.

Cold Emailing

Account Development Representative

An Account Development Representative (ADR) identifies and qualifies new business opportunities, creating a pipeline for account executives.

Account Development Representative

End of Quarter

“End of Quarter” (EOQ) refers to the final weeks of a business quarter when sales teams rush to meet quotas, often leading to a flurry of deals.

End of Quarter

Sales Demo

A sales demo is a presentation where a sales rep shows a prospect how a product or service works and solves their specific problems.

Sales Demo

Pipeline Coverage

Pipeline coverage is a key sales metric. It's the ratio of your total open pipeline value to your sales quota for a specific period.

Pipeline Coverage

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

SAM

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

SAM

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

Performance Plan

A performance plan is a formal document outlining an employee's goals, expectations, and metrics for success over a specific period.

Performance Plan

B2B Intent Data Providers

Learn about B2B intent data providers, including evaluating intent data quality, leveraging intent data for growth, & B2B intent data: key providers comparison.

B2B Intent Data Providers

Bounce Rate

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

Bounce Rate

Lead Enrichment

Lead enrichment adds third-party data to your raw lead lists, creating fuller prospect profiles for more effective and personalized outreach.

Lead Enrichment

AI Data Enrichment

AI data enrichment uses artificial intelligence to automatically enhance and update raw data, making it more complete, accurate, and valuable.

AI Data Enrichment

Lead Generation

Lead generation is the process of identifying and cultivating potential customers for a business's products or services.

Lead Generation

Persona Map

A persona map visually outlines a target customer, detailing their goals, behaviors, and pain points to help your team build genuine empathy.

Persona Map

Buying Committee

A buying committee is a group of stakeholders within an organization who are jointly responsible for making major purchasing decisions.

Buying Committee

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

Warm Outbound

Warm outbound is a sales strategy for contacting prospects who've shown interest in your brand through prior engagement, like website visits.

Warm Outbound

Account-Based Selling

Account-Based Selling is a B2B strategy where sales and marketing treat high-value accounts as markets of one, using personalized outreach.

Account-Based Selling

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)

Network Monitoring

Network monitoring is the continuous process of tracking a computer network's performance and health to detect and resolve issues proactively.

Network Monitoring

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

Sales Metrics

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

Sales Metrics

Contact Discovery

Contact discovery is the process of finding accurate contact details for potential leads, including names, emails, phone numbers, and job titles.

Contact Discovery

Lead Generation Funnel

A lead generation funnel is a systematic process that guides potential customers from initial awareness of your brand to becoming qualified leads.

Lead Generation Funnel

Revenue Forecasting

Revenue forecasting is the process of estimating a company's future revenue, using historical data and market trends to guide strategic planning.

Revenue Forecasting

Buying Signal

A buying signal is any action from a prospect that indicates they are interested in making a purchase, helping sales teams prioritize leads.

Buying Signal

Awareness Buying Stage

The awareness stage is the first step in the buyer's journey, where a potential customer realizes they have a problem or an opportunity to explore.

Awareness Buying Stage

Account Mapping

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

Account Mapping

Data Enrichment

Data enrichment is the process of enhancing raw data by adding missing information from other sources, making it more complete and actionable.

Data Enrichment

Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR)

Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) is the predictable income a company expects to receive from its customers over a one-year period.

Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR)

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

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

SFDC

SFDC stands for Salesforce Dot Com, a popular cloud-based CRM platform that helps companies manage their customer interactions and data.

SFDC

Custom API integration

A custom API integration is a bespoke connection between software, enabling them to communicate and share data to meet unique business requirements.

Custom API integration

Closed Won

Closed Won is a CRM status for a sales deal that has been successfully concluded, resulting in a signed contract and a new customer.

Closed Won

Account-Based Marketing

Account-Based Marketing (ABM) is a focused B2B strategy where marketing and sales collaborate to target and convert high-value accounts.

Account-Based Marketing

API

An API (Application Programming Interface) is a software intermediary that allows two applications to talk to each other and exchange information.

API

Microservices

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

Microservices

Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR)

Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) is the predictable, recurring income a business expects to receive each month from all active subscriptions.

Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR)

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

Account-Based Everything

Account-Based Everything (ABE) is a strategy aligning sales, marketing, and success teams to focus on a specific set of high-value accounts.

Account-Based Everything

Revenue Intelligence

Revenue intelligence is the process of collecting and analyzing customer data to provide insights that help sales teams make smarter decisions.

Revenue Intelligence

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

Buying Criteria

Buying criteria are the specific requirements and standards a customer uses to evaluate products or services before making a decision.

Buying Criteria

Sales Territory

A sales territory is a specific group of customers or a geographic area that a salesperson or sales team is responsible for managing.

Sales Territory

Lookalike Audiences

Lookalike audiences are groups of potential customers who share similar characteristics and behaviors with your existing, high-value customers.

Lookalike Audiences

Consumer Relationship Management

Consumer Relationship Management (CRM) is a strategy for managing all of a company's relationships and interactions with its customers.

Consumer Relationship Management

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

Feature Flags

Feature flags let you remotely control features in your app without new code. This enables safe testing, gradual rollouts, and quick rollbacks.

Feature Flags

Email Verification

Email verification is the process of confirming that an email address is valid and deliverable, which helps improve campaign performance.

Email Verification

Lead Scoring Models

Lead scoring models rank prospects by assigning points for their behaviors and demographics, helping sales teams prioritize their outreach.

Lead Scoring Models

Account Management

Account management is the post-sales practice of building and nurturing long-term relationships with a company's most valuable clients.

Account Management

Programmatic Advertising

Programmatic advertising uses AI and real-time bidding to automate the buying and selling of digital ad space, targeting specific audiences.

Programmatic Advertising

Email Cadence

An email cadence is a scheduled sequence of emails sent to prospects over a specific period to nurture leads and drive engagement.

Email Cadence

Marketing Automation Platform

A marketing automation platform is software that automates marketing actions. It helps manage tasks like email campaigns and lead nurturing.

Marketing Automation Platform

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

B2B Data Erosion

Learn about B2B data erosion, including causes of B2B data decay, strategies to combat data erosion, & measuring the impact of data erosion.

B2B Data Erosion

Site Retargeting

Site retargeting is a marketing strategy that shows ads to people who have previously visited your website but left without converting.

Site Retargeting

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

Customer Data Platform (CDP)

A Customer Data Platform (CDP) centralizes customer data from all sources to create a complete, unified profile for each individual customer.

Customer Data Platform (CDP)

Knowledge Base

A knowledge base is a self-serve online library of information about a product, service, department, or topic.

Knowledge Base

Persona-Based Marketing

Persona-based marketing uses fictional customer profiles, or personas, to create targeted messaging for specific audience segments.

Persona-Based Marketing

CRM Integration

CRM integration connects your CRM software with other tools, creating a unified system for all your customer data and business processes.

CRM Integration

Business-to-Business (B2B)

Learn about B2B, including what is it, its key elements, the benefits of B2B partnerships, the differences between B2B and B2C, and strategies for effective marketing.

Business-to-Business (B2B)

Channel Partners

Channel partners are third-party firms that help market and sell a company's products or services, acting as an indirect sales force.

Channel Partners

No Spam

“No Spam” is a commitment to sending only relevant, solicited messages. It means avoiding bulk, unwanted emails to respect the recipient's inbox.

No Spam

Lead Enrichment Tools

Lead enrichment tools are platforms that automatically add missing data to your leads, like contact info, firmographics, and buying signals.

Lead Enrichment Tools

Gamification

Gamification applies game mechanics like points, badges, and leaderboards to non-game activities to boost engagement and motivate users.

Gamification

Account-Based Sales Development

Account-Based Sales Development (ABSD) is a focused strategy where SDRs target key stakeholders within specific, high-value accounts.

Account-Based Sales Development

Cohort Analysis

Cohort analysis is a behavioral analytics tool that groups users with common traits to track their actions and engagement over time.

Cohort Analysis

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

Demand Generation Framework

A demand generation framework is a strategic process for creating awareness and interest in your product, ultimately driving new business.

Demand Generation Framework