For small or independent businesses in the career space, finding flexible and user-friendly tools is essential to manage recruiting workflows effectively. Airtable offers a balance between spreadsheet simplicity and database functionality, allowing you to build a customized Applicant Tracking System (ATS) that aligns with your specific hiring process. This guide explores setting up an efficient recruiting system in Airtable, from organizing candidate data to automating routine tasks, making your hiring process streamlined and manageable.
Why Use Airtable for Recruiting?
Airtable’s adaptable structure allows for customized workflows that suit different stages of recruiting. You can:
Customize Fields: Track information specific to each role and client requirements.
Organize with Views: Utilize views like Grid, Kanban, and Calendar to visualize your hiring pipeline.
Automate Routine Tasks: Set up reminders, follow-ups, and status updates without needing additional tools.
Let’s dive into practical steps to help you build a recruiting system tailored to your unique needs.
Step 1: Create a Candidate Database
Start by selecting a Recruiting Template from Airtable’s Template Gallery as your foundation. Customize it with essential fields like candidate name, contact info, and LinkedIn profile links.
Suggested Fields to Add:
Interview Stage: Track candidates from application through to hire.
Referral Source: Capture where candidates came from, such as LinkedIn or a referral.
Candidate Rating: Rate each candidate based on experience, skills, or other relevant metrics.
These fields help you maintain a comprehensive, easily accessible view of each candidate’s progress.
Step 2: Organize the Hiring Pipeline with Views
Airtable’s View options let you see your recruiting data in different formats based on what’s most useful for the moment.
Grid View: This is useful for entering data and seeing a full overview.
Kanban View: Use this view to create a visual pipeline of candidates at each stage. For example, you could organize columns by “New Applicant,” “Interviewing,” “Offer Extended,” and “Hired.”
Calendar View: Ideal for scheduling, enabling you to see upcoming interviews and deadlines at a glance.
Switching between views helps keep your data organized and adaptable to different stages of the recruiting process.
Step 3: Schedule and Track Interviews
Airtable’s Calendar view can serve as an interview scheduler to help you stay on top of candidate interactions.
Steps to Set Up Interview Scheduling
Add Date Fields: Include fields like “Interview Date” and “Follow-up Deadline.”
Switch to Calendar View: Go to the View dropdown and select Calendar to visualize your schedule.
Sync with Google Calendar: Link Airtable’s calendar with Google Calendar for a consolidated view of all interview events.
This setup provides a clear, time-based view of all upcoming interactions with candidates, making it easy to avoid scheduling conflicts.
Step 4: Collaborate and Share Feedback
The Comments feature in Airtable allows your team to leave notes and feedback on each candidate directly within the database, keeping communication streamlined.
Tips for Effective Collaboration
Document Feedback by Stage: Use comments to record impressions and recommendations after each interview.
Assign Candidates: Assign each candidate to a recruiter to keep roles and responsibilities clear.
This feature keeps feedback organized and accessible, reducing the need for extra emails or shared documents.
Step 5: Automate Follow-ups and Reminders
With Automations in Airtable, you can set up custom workflows to simplify repetitive tasks and ensure timely communication with candidates.
Useful Automations for Recruiters
Automated Follow-ups: Create automations to send follow-up emails a week after an interview.
Status Updates: Automatically update candidates when they move to the next stage or when their application status changes.
Task Reminders: Set reminders for recruiters when a candidate’s status remains unchanged for a set period.
Automations can save you time, helping you stay organized and responsive to candidates throughout the hiring process.
Key Takeaways for Small Recruiting Teams
Using Airtable as an ATS offers unique advantages:
Cost-effective: Airtable’s free and affordable paid plans are accessible for smaller teams.
Customizable: You can adjust your setup to match evolving needs, adding or modifying fields as needed.
Collaborative: Real-time updates and commenting make it easy for teams to work together smoothly.
By setting up Airtable in these ways, you can build a recruiting process that’s efficient and tailored to your needs.
Learn More
If you’re interested in discovering more ways Airtable can support your recruiting efforts, explore our Airtable resource page. It covers additional tips and tools to make the most of Airtable’s features for career professionals.
