Galileo ATS

Timeline for Your Vendor Selection for Applicant Tracking Systems

• Form a selection committee - 1 week
• Indentify company needs - 1 to 2 weeks
• Create a list of possible vendors
• Request RFPs to provide clarification on any topic or concern - 4 weeks
• Create a shortlist using your key evaluation crtieria - 1 to 2 weeks
• Demonstrate various systems - as soon as possible
• Sales presentations - as soon as possible
• Finalize a vendor - 3 to 6 weeks

Keep in mind that the main goal of an applicant tracking system is to empower your users. Committee members should be able to recognize and place a value upon technology tools, process organization, company vision and customer support in order to strategically narrow down the vendors into a short list of real possibilities.

It is likely that your short list may not have many distinguishing functional differences; therefore it is important to keep less tangible elements of that vendor in mind. Your committee should look at human resources portals, newsgroups, vendor's "up time" guarantee, customer support agreement, custom programming charges, and user-role flexibility.

Partnering with a service-oriented vendor that is the most compatible fit with your organization's vision and goals for the future will prove invaluable for all key players in your applicant tracking system evaluation, selection, and implementation. You ultimately want to select an ATS vendor that you can consider a long-term strategic business partner.