Let’s face it, unemployment is back to near all-time lows - 3.6% unemployment and over 11 million open roles - that’s nearly 2 open roles per available worker. If that isn’t enough, according to Appcast, your conversion rate (the number of clicks to get an application) is going down, while click prices are going up. The combination of which is driving cost per application (CPA) up. Said differently, the prices of candidates is going exponentially up.
And you still have hiring metrics to reach.
While Easy Apply (Indeed Apply, ZipApply, etc.) are tempting with their promises of volumes and volumes of candidates - there is a harsh reality that if your business falls under EEOC regulations, that means all the quick applies in the world aren’t applications. And without the full application, you can’t recruit them.
What are the penalties for violating EEOC?
If your business falls under Title VII, the ADA or GINA, in 2016, fines more than doubled for each violation up to $525 per violation…which doesn’t sound bad, unless you consider how many applicants you processed last year - let’s say its 10,000 applications (for 500 roles - 20 applications per role), that’s $5,250,000. Pretty sure that isn’t in the budget.
What can you do to get more volume and stay compliant? We have listed out your options.
Method 1. Redirect job board applicants to your ATS apply process and increase your budget.
This method is what most companies do today and while this keeps the company compliant, it also severely limits the number of applicants available to recruiters for the budget spent. Candidates struggle with the ATS load time, the selection of multiple apply buttons, the application process itself, login screens, and ease of the application on a mobile device. In addition, since job sites can't see what happens to candidates when they go to a career site, jobs sites will limit the number of times a company's job is shown to candidates.
Method 2: 3rd Party Enhanced Integrated Easy Applies
Integrating your ATS to Easy Applies but with complete applications can allow you to get the benefits of the Easy Apply (volume, mobile-first, etc.), but emulate your ATS application questions, profile, compliance, consent and job-level questions. Some ATS’s offer this directly (see method 3), where other ATS's offer 3rd party integrations, such as JobSync.
Method 3: ATS Built Enhanced Integrated Easy Applies
Some ATSs have already built an Integrated Enhanced Easy Apply that emulates your ATS application questions, profile, compliance and job-level questions. For most, this solution is available for one, perhaps two job sites, and relies on a direct connection of the ATS and the job site, with no other vendors in between.
Method 4: Easy Apply to a Frustration-Free Hosted Application (or to a chatbot/Text Message)
By connecting Easy Applies to a system that immediately emails your candidate and directs them to a hosted application page where they can finish (not start from scratch) the application without a forced login creation, companies can significantly increase the percentage of leads to completed applications. The candidates will still have to see and interact with an email or, if text message consent has been garnered, with the text message to the application.
Method 5: Simple Integrated Easy Applies + structured Follow-Up
Some ATS’s have integrated the standard Easy Applies directly into the ATS itself. The difference is that instead of the Easy Apply going to an email address or the dashboard, it goes directly into the system of record. Depending on the ATS, the Easy Apply could be directed against the job (eek!) or in a holding area that requires recruiters to manually process the lead. Once the lead is available to the recruiter - discipline and consistency is essential. Manual processing impairs speed and lends to skipping steps, opening your organization to violations.
Get our full breakdown of the risks and rewards that accompany each method in our latest download. We dive into the pros, cons, and in depth items that you can tackle to ensure EEO compliance. Get your copy here.