Empowering HR with Cloud Recruitment

With the advent of cloud software such as Dropbox, Google Drive, iCloud, OneDrive, MediaFire and others, HR in India is migrating to cloud-based software.

Recruitment sector is emerging as a flourishing industry in India. However, the growth of recruitment sector has put forward a major challenge for Indian recruiters. For example, in larger recruitment companies, especially the MNCs, the HR team is generally spread out across different states and countries having different time zones. As a result, recruitment professionals find it difficult to communicate with their colleagues and remote teams during crucial times. Consequently, the entire hiring process becomes slower due to lack of communication.

In order to make the process of recruitment faster, easier and more organized, recruitment companies in India are continually looking out for innovative recruitment technologies that are easy to use and can be accessed remotely. This is where cloud recruiting comes to play. Besides enhancing productivity, cloud recruiting empowers recruiters to be more tactical and organized. With the advent of cloud software such as Dropbox, Google Drive, iCloud, OneDrive, Mega, Copy, MediaFire, etc., more and more HR companies in India are migrating to cloud-based software.

What is Cloud Recruiting?

In simple words, cloud recruiting is an e-recruitment tool that requires only a computer or any mobile device with internet connection so that recruitment professionals can access the recruitment software 24×7 from anywhere. It offers network-based application that liberates users from the hassle of installing software on a desktop or a laptop.

What Makes Cloud Recruiting Different From Traditional Recruitment Software?

At the present time, cloud-based technology or Saas (Software as a service) based applications are the most preferred technology among recruitment companies. Cloud computing or cloud technology enables recruiters to store and access data over the internet instead of overloading the hard drive of a computer. Cloud computing comes with several advantages such as—

• Accelerating the process of hiring and helping recruitment companies gain a competitive edge in the market
• Enabling recruitment companies to evaluate resumes easily and carry out screening process online
• Allowing HR companies to share relevant documents with candidates online
• Saving time by enabling recruiters to check references online
• Updating the software automatically to meet the needs of its users. It allows users to easily access new features once the application upgrades itself automatically
• Enabling recruiters to share information about candidates instantaneously
• It requires only a web browser to connect. Does not require a huge storage space or any expensive software

Thus, several recruiting companies across the country are bidding adieu to traditional recruitment software for streamlining the process of recruitment through cloud technology.

Cloud computing has the potential to bring about a digital revolution in the recruitment process by modernizing and simplifying the process of recruitment. The points mentioned below will elucidate how the implementation of cloud technology can transform the recruitment industry.

Easy to implement

HR system is generally slow and involves lots of complexities. Cloud-based technology, on the other hand, can be implemented quite easily. Besides calculating payroll and maintaining data cloud technology can easily track applications and performance appraisals, generate reports, and search relevant resumes. Moreover, it functions efficiently without disturbing business operation. It takes only a few weeks to implement cloud-based HR technology and its implementation does not call for any extra expenditure.

Streamlines workflows

Implementing cloud-based HR technology makes workflows simpler. It also diminishes absence costs and improves the procedure of reporting information. Furthermore, cloud-based HR technology also enables recruiters to save their time so that they can focus on the growth and overall development of the recruitment company.

Sophisticated security systems

Recruiters who have to deal with highly confidential information are constantly worried about the security of the same. Cloud-based HR technology comes with highly advanced security system that enables recruiters to limit access to confidential information. By making sensitive information accessible to few selected individuals, HR recruiters can now protect the secrecy of confidential data.

Cost-effectiveness

Another significant factor is that cloud technology offers its customers with a cost advantage. Unlike traditional recruitment software, cloud technology is reasonably priced and does not require purchasing of costly licenses for a limited number of users. Another advantage is that users do not have to pay servers, or recruit any in-house IT staff for maintaining recruitment software programs that have been installed locally. Because there is no implementation cost, cloud computing helps recruitment agencies save a huge amount of money.

Enables recruiters to work remotely

With cloud-based hiring technology, recruiters can now access the system easily from any mobile device with internet connection. Cloud technology enables multiple recruitment professionals to work collectively on the same hiring project simultaneously from different corners of the world. This is the reason why cloud technology is replacing on-site recruitment software as the latter allows HR teams to have access to the system only when they are at their workstation. With cloud technology, HR professionals can have immediate access to every updated information and data entered into the system by other users.

Makes recruitment process faster

Cloud-based recruiting technology is known for improving the speed of recruitment process. It enhances agility by allowing recruiters to access the required data without the need of storing or organizing each and every file on different computers. Cloud technology helps users place all relevant data together at one place, thus simplifying large-scale data analytics. All important and confidential data can be accessed easily on all mobile devices by the HR team of any recruitment company, as and when required.

Saves printing cost and promotes Green Initiative

Traditional method of recruitment involves a lot of paperwork— creating resumes, writing cover letters, printing application forms, printing offer letters and appointment letters that are required during the process of recruiting candidates. Digitalization of hiring process through cloud technologies helps HR companies to save printing costs.

Cloud-based apps launched by cloud technology enable recruiters and candidates to upload and save important documents on cloud. What’s more, once a user uploads important files online, they do not have to worry about losing them. Thus, implementation of cloud technology not only saves money but also helps to save the environment.

Enhanced customization

Cloud technology offers exceptional agility and speed. Unlike traditional recruitment software, cloud technology comes with an open application programming interface code for digitalizing different HR processes and to facilitate communication among various platforms and systems. This enables recruitment companies to customize software widgets as per their business requirements.

The popularity of HR-based cloud technology in India is on the rise. This is evident from the fact that a large number of recruitment companies throughout the length and breadth of the country are transitioning to cloud technology for their staffing and recruiting needs. Thus, cloud recruitment is no doubt, a boon to the recruitment industry and becoming highly essential for recruitment companies of all sizes.

The impact of cloud computing on HR sector and recruiters is profound, and it hardly has any downside. However, there are a lot of HR companies that are still apprehensive of the efficacy of cloud technology; hence, they are averse to the idea of taking the risk of embracing cloud-based HR. However, the major risk is missing out on the novelty, convenience, and modernization that cloud recruitment offers to an organization and its employees.

Authored by: Anupam Jauhari, Vice-President-HR, Infogain