“Most organizations have at least five different technology products that recruiters touch within a single day.”

As these words escaped from Elaine Orler, President and Founder of Talent Function Group, I instantly reread my notes to make sure I heard the statistic accurately.

Five?

Yes, five.

Recruiters are already responsible for combing through endless stacks of resumes in an attempt to find the best candidates for open positions, but combine that process with having to handle five, or sometimes more according to audience members, separate technology systems and it suddenly becomes acceptable to question efficiency.

Orler, an HR powerhouse who has been involved in developing and implementing talent solutions for over 20 years, is known for her ability to identify industry trends before they become mainstream. Naturally, she was the perfect person to lead the HR Technology discussion, “The Recruiting Technology State of the Union.”

At this standing-room only session, Orler pointedly said video is, without a doubt, the next wave of efficient recruiting. Before adopting this or any new technology, however, she said it is vital for companies to first identify the problem they are trying solve. Once the issues have been acknowledged, the team can then move forward together.

Aligning the Solution

According to Orler, there are four stages involved in the process to align the solution. These stages include evolution, experimentation, explosion, and adoption. Each phase builds upon the previous until finally an adoption strategy can be reached. Evolution, for example, consists of taking an inventory of each system that is currently in place and then looking to see where the gaps are.

“While it’s overwhelming to think about the number of solutions necessary for recruiting, when organizations take the time to inventory the solutions they use, they can visualize where the gaps are and how the different components need to work. This provides much needed clarity,” said Orler.

This clarity also prevents companies from attempting to adopt new technologies to solve one challenge without fully considering all potential roadblocks to success. In turn, recruiters are given the opportunity to test out new platforms and systems during the experimentation and explosion phase to see if they fit their needs comfortably. Giving access and training to these systems also helps ease the transition period, allowing employees to feel competent and more in control. When these phases align, measurable success should follow.

Overall, this session shed light on what it takes to identify and implement key solution strategies which allow recruiters and businesses succeed with the best possible systems in place. With the constant evolution of HR technologies, it can get difficult to keep track of all of the trends; however, with someone as informed as Elaine Orler leading the way, I’m not worried about falling behind.

Image used under Creative Commons from publicstock.

Original blog post found at RIVS.