We all want to be organized—to have all the papers arranged in a neat stack, the appointments commence exactly at the top of the hour, and that annoying “Unread Emails” counter go back to zero. This is, of course, much easier said than done.
Most recruiters never seem to have enough time to complete all their tasks in a timely manner, and that often leads to mess, disorder, confusion. While we can’t clear your schedule for you, we can suggest a few helpful tips for getting organized in a fast-paced environment.
Settle on an Email Strategy – Figuring out what to do with all those emails in your inbox, which always seems to increase exponentially in size overnight, is one of the keys to staying properly organized.
One way to do this is to figure out what to do with each email as soon as you open it—that is, force yourself to make a firm decision right there: delete, respond, save, or select another option. Don’t keep delaying your decisions to some future date—that will just increase your inbox clutter.
Automate as Many Tasks as Possible – Eliminating busy work will help save time and promote sound organizational habits. You don’t want to find yourself typing a hundred emails a day saying “We’ve received your resume.”
Setting up automated responses for events such as emailed resumes appearing in your inbox will keep you from getting all tangled up in repetitive activities while also providing prompt replies to your candidates. This is only one example of the automated tasks that a good ATS software package can handle for you.
Plan Your Calls – One way to control your call volume is to determine in advance, before you pick up the phone, exactly who you will be calling. Make an ordered list of the candidates you wish to speak with. Figuring it all out on the run just gobbles up precious time.
Use Mobile Apps – No one wants to be “on the clock” 24/7, but sometimes it can be helpful to perform certain tasks while away from the desk. Mobile apps let you check emails and place a few calls so you can reduce that huge mountain of tasks that must be done.
Get Up-to-Date Recruiting Software – When it comes to automating email responses, organizing your cache of resumes, keeping track of who has spoken to whom, and performing a number of similarly useful functions, nothing beats a first-rate applicant tracking system.