Tired of spreadsheets? Want to throw that stack of paper out the window? Curious what kind of software pro recruiters use to stay on top of all this stuff?
You’re not alone. Before cloud-based recruiting hit the scene, recruiters and hiring managers pretty much had two choices: 1.) log and track candidates using manual spreadsheets or 2.) cough up the cash for HR software.
As you can imagine, neither option was very appetizing for growing small businesses and midsize companies who want progressive, paper-free ways to scale their business.
The good news is, today there is a cloud-based system for everything from recruiting to performance management. And if you know what to look for, you’ll be able to find the best platform for your business and budget.
Today, we’ll dive into how cloud-based recruiting solutions changed the HR tech market for good, why that's a beautiful thing for growing businesses, and what to look for when choosing the best cloud-based recruiting solution for your company.
Table of contents
- What is a cloud-based recruiting solution?
- Why are more and more companies hiring from the cloud?
- Is Breezy the right cloud-based recruiting tool for you?
What is a cloud-based recruiting solution?
First off, let’s start by defining this magical “cloud” lingo, shall we?
“The cloud” simply means that your work is being hosted on a server that you access via the internet. This server may have special software or tools that you can utilize, and tends to be more secure than hosting software and data from your own desktop.
And what exactly does it mean to put the cloud and recruiting together?
Cloud-based recruiting is using a cloud- or internet-based platform as your applicant tracking system (ATS). There are a variety of cloud-based ATS tools available based on your business size, hiring volume and of course, your budget.
While “the cloud” may not be quite as mystical as it initially sounds, it can feel pretty powerful once you finally make the move from your clunky, disconnected HR tech stack to something that actually helps your business hire faster.
Not to mention the perk of not having to freak out about losing all your data when you accidentally spill coffee all over your laptop. 😬
Is your HR tech stack delivering real results for your company? Find out for sure with our free Guide to a High-Performance HR Tech Stack.
Why are more and more companies hiring from the cloud?
It’s not 2001 anymore. We don’t need to hire an IT person to come to the office and download software onto every computer.
And yet, despite an influx of cloud-based recruiting software in recent years, many clunky enterprise software solutions still rule the HR market. Even small companies with 100 employees can find themselves stuck at either end of the spectrum — using overpriced enterprise systems or at the complete other end with paper-based HR processes from the dark ages.
When recruiters and hiring managers shift over to cloud-based recruiting, they open the door for easier work flows, better collaboration, and with the right software, some serious improvements to your overall employer branding.
Let’s dive deeper into some of the core benefits of switching your hiring to the cloud.
Access your recruitment software from anywhere
A work shirt coupled with PJ pants is the new decade’s biggest fashion trend.
In fact, 83% of employers now say the shift to remote work has been a good thing for their company since being forced into the practice due to the pandemic.
Cloud-based software allows access from anywhere in the world, meaning your workers can be in the office, at a coffee shop, or at home with their 12 cats.
This increased ubiquity in your hiring software leaves the doors wide open for companies to find the HR professionals and recruiters who are best qualified to help with their hiring, not just the ones closest to the office. And let’s face it, in this hiring market, we need the best help that we can get no matter where we find it.
And it works the same way for your potential candidates. With a web-based recruiting tool, candidates can hop into a video interview, take a skills assessment, and finish all necessary recruitment screenings, without having to leave their house.
Keep your hiring data secure
When it comes to recruitment and hiring, you’re dealing with a lot of personal information such as names, resumes, email addresses and more. It’s simply the nature of the game.
But a data breach within your HR software can be devastating to both candidates and existing employees. In fact, the HR industry is becoming one of the newer hotspots for hacking attempts.
Data privacy experts are starting to see an increase in phishing, a cyber-crime where hackers gain access to your data via link clicks, mostly through email attacks. We’re even seeing hackers posing as IT crew members and successfully gaining login information from HR staff members. From here, they gather the information and sell it, putting the entire company at risk.
A cloud-based recruiting solution tends to be better protected against hacking schemes, allowing for advanced security options and encrypted messaging.
That advanced user management means that if someone accidentally gives away their login, an administrator can quickly freeze or deactivate the user’s account, which wouldn’t be as easy on locally-hosted software. It also helps users only gain access to the data and tools that are absolutely necessary to their role, helping other areas stay safe should an attack occur.
Boost collaboration within your hiring and recruiting teams
When the whole team is involved in hiring, we can expect to see increased employee engagement, less turnover, and a better path to successful onboarding.
In short, hiring isn't just an HR team sport … it’s an entire team sport.
Fortunately, many cloud-based hiring tools come with features built for collaboration. In a classic enterprise setup, the integration of these features with your human resources information system (HRIS) and other software would be difficult and expensive.
In addition to collaborating with teammates easier, cloud-based software also provides the opportunity for other software integrations to come together seamlessly.
This can help make your transition into cloud-based software a lot less rocky, while helping individual hiring managers and hiring team members create their own smooth and consistent workflows.
Save money on recruitment software
At first blush, the cloud may sound fancy and expensive. But in reality, that couldn’t be farther from the truth.
Cloud-based software is often subscription-based and designed to allow users of all shapes and sizes to pay under a tiered pricing structure, meaning there’s a cost-effective system and plan for pretty much every budget.
With a cloud-based recruiting system, you’ll also save money by:
- Skipping the maintenance fees needed to keep the software running
- Avoiding license fees every time an upgrade is needed
- Bypassing IT costs as most systems offer dedicated support
Compared to the days of mammoth enterprise software (with giant price tags to match), web-based recruiting tools are a super efficient financial option, especially for growing companies.
Is Breezy the right cloud-based recruiting tool for you?
Finding a cloud-based recruitment system that supports your unique hiring goals is a crucial task, and there are a ton of different options out there to choose from.
Before making a decision, it’s important to review your recruitment and hiring process to get a better feel for what you need within your new web-based workflow.
At Breezy, we are obviously a cloud-based applicant tracking system. We care about security, scalability, and above all, candidate experience.
But that doesn’t mean we’re right for everyone. Here’s a glimpse into some of just some of the core features to give you an idea of how our own cloud-based recruiting tools might align with your hiring workflow.
Attracting top talent and promoting your open roles
There’s nothing worse than posting your shiny new role and not getting the applications you need in return.
With Breezy, you can instantly promote your job postings to over 50 job sites including Indeed, LinkedIn and Zip Recruiter. You’ll be able to attract more candidates without having to manually upload your open role to each and every job site.
You can also create your own career page or automatically update job openings on an existing page on your site. From there, applicants will go straight into your ATS so that they’re all landing in the same place (no more digging through your inbox! 🙌🏻).
Once your job posting is out where candidates can see it, Breezy also has tools for:
- Candidate sourcing
- Employee referrals
- EEOC & OFCCP compliance
- And more!
Automatically qualifying applicants (without losing the human touch)
With your new job promotion tools, you’re bound to have a pipeline full of applications to review.
In Breezy, candidate profiles include everything you need to know about a potential new hire all in one place. You can view contact information, resumes, and even send assessments and background check requests at the click of a button.
From there, Breezy has even more tools to help you organize your candidates and automate the qualification process, including:
- Automated screening questionnaires
- Easy interview scheduling links
- Built-in calendar, email, and Slack integrations
- One-way video responses, and structured interview questions
- Team scorecards for collaborative hiring
Offer letter and beyond
In addition to being a done-for-you talent acquisition suite, Breezy also has tools to help usher new hires through the onboarding process so your company can make a fantastic first impression.
Custom offer templates allow you to get the paperwork out of the way quickly, while ensuring that everything you need is covered and compliant. But that’s not all.
Here are some of the features that help you get new hires off to a running start:
- HRIS integrations with tools such as Gusto, Bamboo, ADP and more
- GDPR compliance-ready tools
- Automatic EEOC and OFCCPdata tracking
- Advanced custom reporting
The best recruitment CRM you could ever hope for
At the end of the day, every growing company has its own recruitment goals.
Whether you're trying to keep up with high hiring volume or simply find the best possible person for the job, the right cloud-based recruiting software will function as more than a simple applicant tracking tool. It will become a robust customer relationship management (CRM) platform, helping you deliver a seamless experience to your prospects.
Only this time, your prospects are your job candidates.
Today’s hiring marketing is undeniably talent-driven and while candidate experience has always mattered, an applicant-friendly recruitment process has never been more crucial to helping companies stay fully staffed for the future.
That’s why at Breezy, we created our ATS to be 100% human-first.
With a focus on user experience from day one, Breezy now serves more than 10,000 fast-growing companies in over 72 countries across the globe. With several customer-led awards under our belt, such as GetApp’s ATS Category Leader 2021, Capterra’s Most User-Friendly Shortlist 2021 and several five-star ratings across G2, GetApp, Capterra & more, we've got a lot to be grateful for.
Think we’d make a good match? Great! Try us for free, or pick a plan that works best for your needs.
