Applicant Management System – 3 WC Blog 543
Applicant Tracking System – 4
Losing Patience With Lost Paperwork? Try An Applicant Tracking System
Where is an applicant tracking system when I need one?! I found myself asking this very question the other day as I was trying to find out where a job applicant’s paperwork had gone to. I work for a state agency and while I love my job I get super annoyed at how slow our hiring process tends to be. When we have an open position it seems like we have to jump through all kinds of hoops to get the applicant on board once we choose our top candidate. Oh, did I mention that much of our process is still paper-based? This means we are printing papers, completing them and sending them to several different locations in our bureaucracy for further processing. On this particular occasion our paperwork got lost somewhere and I had to work with my supervisor and our department’s administrative assistant to find out where it was. In the meantime our candidate was on hold, we couldn’t make a formal job offer until the paperwork was approved. It turned out the paperwork was sitting on someone’s desk waiting for an approval signature and then it would be sent back to our Human Resource Department. At that point we could make our offer and set a start date for our new hire. Had we been using an Applicant Management System the “missing” paperwork would never have been an issue.
An Applicant Management System is a service offered by Loss Prevention Systems Inc. (LPSI) that helps retailers take the headache out of the hiring process. LPSI founder Bill Bregar has held positions as a National Director of Loss Prevention for retail chains and is also a Licensed Private Investigator. He has been involved in all levels of the hiring process and understands the challenges of hiring new employees. It is for this reason LPSI offers an applicant tracking system, pre-employment screening and a drug test panel for small and medium sized retailers. The time spent keeping track of files and documents can be better spent on other areas of the business. In many situations the store owner and manager also serves as the human resources and hiring manager. With no one else to take care of all that hiring a new employee involves finding a solution to make the task easier is essential. The applicant tracking system keeps all of the hiring forms and background check releases in one electronic location eliminating the need for paper files. All relevant documentation is in a convenient location so there is no need to worry about lost papers or wondering whose desk a form may be sitting on.
As former Loss Prevention Manager and an employee in an academic environment I am also keenly aware of the need to keep personal information secure. In my Loss Prevention role I had to keep investigation records locked up and information was on a need to know basis. In an academic job I have to be cognizant of FERPA (Federal Educational Rights and Privacy Act) regulations regarding the protection of student privacy rights. Mishandling of papers with personal or private information could land me in hot water. The same protections must be given to sensitive information your applicants give you. You may be handling social security numbers, dates of birth, phone numbers and addresses. You have an obligation to keep this secure and electronic documents in an applicant management system are the surest method of protection.
There is an old saying I like to quote, “Don’t work harder work smarter.” Why make the hiring process more difficult than it needs to be when you can keep everything in one easy to manage location? You may not be able to hire a Human Resources Manager to keep up with your hiring process but you CAN afford to use an Applicant Tracking System. Try it out and then start thinking about how you can use that extra time to increase your sales!
Need information on an Applicant Tracking System? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 now.
Where is an applicant tracking system when I need one?! I found myself asking this very question the other day as I was trying to find out where a job applicant’s paperwork had gone to. I work for a state agency and while I love my job I get super annoyed at how slow our hiring process tends to be. When we have an open position it seems like we have to jump through all kinds of hoops to get the applicant on board once we choose our top candidate. Oh, did I mention that much of our process is still paper-based? This means we are printing papers, completing them and sending them to several different locations in our bureaucracy for further processing. On this particular occasion our paperwork got lost somewhere and I had to work with my supervisor and our department’s administrative assistant to find out where it was. In the meantime our candidate was on hold, we couldn’t make a formal job offer until the paperwork was approved. It turned out the paperwork was sitting on someone’s desk waiting for an approval signature and then it would be sent back to our Human Resource Department. At that point we could make our offer and set a start date for our new hire. Had we been using an Applicant Management System the “missing” paperwork would never have been an issue.
An Applicant Management System is a service offered by Loss Prevention Systems Inc. (LPSI) that helps retailers take the headache out of the hiring process. LPSI founder Bill Bregar has held positions as a National Director of Loss Prevention for retail chains and is also a Licensed Private Investigator. He has been involved in all levels of the hiring process and understands the challenges of hiring new employees. It is for this reason LPSI offers an applicant tracking system, pre-employment screening and a drug test panel for small and medium sized retailers. The time spent keeping track of files and documents can be better spent on other areas of the business. In many situations the store owner and manager also serves as the human resources and hiring manager. With no one else to take care of all that hiring a new employee involves finding a solution to make the task easier is essential. The applicant tracking system keeps all of the hiring forms and background check releases in one electronic location eliminating the need for paper files. All relevant documentation is in a convenient location so there is no need to worry about lost papers or wondering whose desk a form may be sitting on.
As former Loss Prevention Manager and an employee in an academic environment I am also keenly aware of the need to keep personal information secure. In my Loss Prevention role I had to keep investigation records locked up and information was on a need to know basis. In an academic job I have to be cognizant of FERPA (Federal Educational Rights and Privacy Act) regulations regarding the protection of student privacy rights. Mishandling of papers with personal or private information could land me in hot water. The same protections must be given to sensitive information your applicants give you. You may be handling social security numbers, dates of birth, phone numbers and addresses. You have an obligation to keep this secure and electronic documents in an applicant management system are the surest method of protection.
There is an old saying I like to quote, “Don’t work harder work smarter.” Why make the hiring process more difficult than it needs to be when you can keep everything in one easy to manage location? You may not be able to hire a Human Resources Manager to keep up with your hiring process but you CAN afford to use an Applicant Tracking System. Try it out and then start thinking about how you can use that extra time to increase your sales!
Need information on an Applicant Tracking System? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 now.
