Recruiters today are caught in what could be called the automation trap. On the one hand, recruiters are constantly overworked with too many candidates and openings. On the other hand, candidate and application drop-offs are increasing due to a lack of engagement from recruiters. In other words, hiring slows down if you focus too much on personalization. If you automate hiring, candidate experience suffers.
This problem can be fixed. The key is to know what to automate on your ATS and what needs a human touch. Once you achieve the candidate automation balance, candidate experience will be at its best, and recruiters' workloads will be manageable and focused on crucial tasks.
Let’s explore some critical steps in recruiting processes that should be automated to create the best candidate experience and keep recruiters' workloads light.
Job posting is about reaching the maximum number of people with the lowest amount of effort. When job posting is automated, you can create a great job description for an opening and distribute it across several channels in one go. For example, create job descriptions using AI content generators and post the openings on all integrated job boards at the click of a button. This saves countless hours of manually uploading job details on each platform.
When hiring volumes are high, delegation becomes an ongoing task. Automatically assigning recruiters to candidates or vice versa saves recruiters time. Recruiters can handle different locations, openings, seniority, and more. A recruiter who hires for marketing openings should have every application automatically mapped to them in your ATS. This type of workflow automation saves countless hours of delegation.
Recruiters shouldn't spend time on irrelevant candidate profiles that don't suit the openings. Instead, their first step in hiring should start with the best profiles in hand, already shortlisted through automation. Their task should be to choose the top candidates from the shortlist and start with evaluations and interviews. This is where AI automates shortlisting with candidate-matching features that sort and select the best candidates based on skills and experience.
Communication lines are critical, but not all of them need a human touch. Some candidate automation touchpoints just need to run on time to ensure the hiring process is free of bottlenecks.
For example, acknowledgment emails to candidates confirming you've received their application, follow-ups regarding assessments, interview reminders (to both recruiters and candidates), and next-stage announcements are critical communication points that impact candidate experience but could be automated easily. Consider a reliable candidate texting solution to help accomplish this.
Pre-screening tests go hand-in-hand with resume screening. Once an application is received, you can trigger an automated pre-screening test for the candidate. This saves recruiters the effort of recording responses through calls or manually sending questionnaires. The same applies to assessments when candidates make their way up to a certain round of evaluations or interviews.
Interviews play a critical role in hiring decisions. Automation frees recruiters from manual tasks such as outreach, schedule alignment and checking, and invitation emails. Emails and website chatbots are excellent options to show time slots to candidates so they can pick a time they're most comfortable with, saving recruiters countless hours.
Background screening is a critical but sometimes time-consuming step in hiring, often slowing down teams with endless follow-ups and manual data entry. Verified First’s integration with Zoho Recruit helps users automate background screening, drug testing, verifications, and more. This allows recruiters to initiate background checks with a click of a button, track progress in real time, and receive results all within their chosen ATS. Automating the background screening process can minimize errors, strengthen compliance, and help make hiring decisions faster.
Automation is here to support and enhance recruiters' work, not replace them entirely. A full automation takeover can negatively impact the candidate experience. Below, we’ll discuss several key touchpoints that should never be fully automated to maintain a personalized and engaging hiring process.
Offer negotiations are where recruiters need to step in, not step back. Beyond sending an offer letter, automation removes the necessary nuance for navigating salary and benefit discussions and addressing candidate concerns. A generic template can't account for counteroffers, personal circumstances, or hesitations a candidate may have.
Without human interaction, recruiters risk losing top talent over minor misalignments. Keeping this step personal ensures candidates feel valued, leading to stronger acceptance rates and smoother transitions.
Sending a generic rejection email without feedback can leave candidates with a negative impression, making them less likely to reapply or speak favorably about your company.
Personalize rejection communications, especially for candidates who have reached the final stages. A brief, thoughtful message or quick call shows respect for their effort and keeps the door open for future opportunities. Automation can assist by scheduling these messages, but the final communication should always have a human touch.
Candidates have invested significant time and effort into the process by the final recruitment stages. An automated email at this point can feel impersonal and transactional. Instead, recruiters should personally invite candidates to final interviews, setting the right expectations for the discussion. After the interview, a well-thought-out feedback call — whether for a job offer or rejection — helps provide a positive candidate experience.
Onboarding is more than just paperwork and checklists. Onboarding should be a candidate’s first real experience with your company. While automation can handle forms, training schedules, and compliance checklists, it shouldn’t replace human connection.
A fully automated process feels cold and transactional, leading to disengaged new hires. Personalized welcomes, one-on-one check-ins, and interactive training sessions can make all the difference. The goal isn’t just to onboard employees — it’s to make them feel valued and set them up for success.
Following these dos and don'ts of candidate automation is essential for improving the candidate experience while streamlining recruiters' tasks. But what’s more important than what tasks you do and don’t automate is the tools and processes you use to do so.
Verified First and Zoho Recruit can help organizations like yours automate the recruitment and hiring process to make faster, more informed hiring decisions. Lucky for you, our friends at Zoho Recruit are offering users like you a 15-day free trial. Once you start this trial, integrate with the Verified First account to accelerate and enhance your hiring process.
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