What is Google Hire, And How Can Your Small Business Use It for Recruiting?

Finding the right talent for your small business has just become easier. And he solution won’t cost thousands of dollars.

Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL) has entered the recruiting space with a new app geared specifically to small businesses. The app makes Google another player in an already crowded recruiting software marketplace. However, Google hopes the big lure for Google Hire will be in the ability to sync information already in Gmail and Google Calendar and streamline the interview process for small businesses.

Launched earlier this year, Google Hire is the result of considerable research. Bogomil Balkansky, who works on the hiring team at Google, said initial research led his team to G Suite, a set of apps that includes Google Gmail, Docs, Drive and Calendar.

Where it Comes From

“G Suite is a great tool for recruiting but there are a number of things it doesn’t address,” Balkansky said during a recent Google Hire webinar.

For example, it doesn’t manage the lifecycle of a job opening in that it doesn’t post openings on job boards and company career sites. It doesn’t capture candidate applications either.

Recruiting Process

What’s more, G Suite doesn’t set up a recruiting process with different stages so it falls short from the candidate side too.

Balkansky’s team saw a way to bridge these shortcomings with a new tool that would mend the gaps. Enter Google Hire, the product specifically designed to integrate with G Suite.

This is the clear choice for recruiters, HR people and small business managers and supervisors who already use popular Google tools like Gmail, the company believes.

What it Does

Copying and pasting information between applications and keeping several browser windows open at once to rank and communicate with candidates was often the norm before. It’s time consuming and one of the drags on productivity Google for Hire eliminates.

“Customers can have the best of both worlds,”  Balkansky says. “They can continue using the tools they use day in and day out. At the same time, all their recruiting information that’s generated in G Suite is automatically synced and displayed in Hire.”

How it Works

Logging into the system takes you directly by default to the updates page. This is a chronologically ordered list of all the important information about the candidates you might be considering.

Wondering what the HR people think of a particular candidate? Clicking on comments on the left side menu brings those up.

You can also look at the emails that have come in from candidates or the resumes that are recent arrivals. These are gathered from company job boards and career sites.

Candidate Pages

You can go to a candidate page that shows applications for any position on a resume carousel. Google Hire aggregates all this information into one place you can navigate around with the click of a mouse.

Small businesses can use the tool to streamline the hiring process. The tool even allows you to move resumes around between different stages of the hiring process or reject them entirely with just a click.

Like a certain candidate for a sales position? You can move them past another screening stage right to the point where they’ll be in line to talk with the hiring manager.

Gmail Templates

Don’t think someone fits the bill? You can reject their application with a customizable email that syncs a series of templates and Gmail.

Once you’ve sent that email, all the new information gets displayed on the candidate’s page. Everyone across your company can see what stage every candidate is at through an update.

Past Applicants

As management in a small business, you’re always strapped for time. Google Hire even allows you to view past applicants and reach out to them a second time when new jobs become available . It’s all done from one screen with a series of tabs, drop down menus and templates that trigger Gmail.

Syncs with Calendar

Google Hire syncs up with Google Calendar too.  You can schedule an interview with that prospect for the sales department. Plus, you can let everyone else know the particulars from one window.

Small business recruiters can even look at the data for any of the candidates applying for a position through Google Sheets.

Why It’s Good for Small Business

Google Hire is specifically designed for small business. It supplies an active recruiting process where companies can schedule interviews, collaborate and stay on top of communications in one place.

It does away with the never ending configuration options, clunky data entry and long streams of tables and lists to sort through.

Image: Google

This article, "What is Google Hire, And How Can Your Small Business Use It for Recruiting?" was first published on Small Business Trends