What are the best Jobvite alternatives for applicant tracking systems?
In the highly competitive world of recruitment solutions, Jobvite managed to find a unique selling point that differentiates them from all other competitors. They market themselves as a talent acquisition suite with a marketing-first approach and an emphasis on automation.
So, what does it mean? The tool’s website claims that most of the processes are powered by native artificial intelligence technologies. This concerns such processes as mitigating bias, matching candidates, chatbots, texting, etc. Such enhancements can help HR professionals automate numerous routine tasks and focus on what’s worth attention.
However, there are also enough complaints about various aspects of the tool’s work including its poor UX and numerous issues with emails. Which is why people are looking for more intuitive and affordable Jobvite alternatives.
the best candidates faster
For instance, 100Hires is also an all-in-one recruiting tool offering comprehensive CRM, emails, hiring pipeline, and whatnot. At the same time, the tool costs several times less and even offers a rich free subscription for small businesses. You can check its pricing here and compare it to how much Jobvite costs.
Pricing is not everything though. Are there any other concerns that can interfere with effective recruiting processes? Let’s find out!
Why even look into Jobvite alternatives?
At first glance, it seems that many users are super satisfied with the tool distinguishing its robust functionality and numerous customization options. But, there’s always a fly in the ointment. Jobvite currently scores only 4 stars on G2 based on more than 400 reviews. If it sounds like not much, that’s because it certainly is.
So, how could this happen with such a well-established tool? And what are the main downsides that its users can’t get past? What you see below is the list of most common complaints that customers have left in their reviews on G2, Capterra, and TrustRadius:
Poor UX
As it turns out your most exciting and powerful feature can become your downfall. Many former and current Jobvite’s users mention in their reviews that it’s sometimes very hard to configure the tool so that it works properly. That’s the most common complaint.
You see, when a tool is as customizable as Jobvite, it will inevitably play tricks on its speed and performance. That’s why people have noticed long ago that it can take forever for the tool to load and it will feels clunky and disconnected.
Quote 1:
There are several things, but the actual ATS part of the system seems to have been designed as an afterthought. The workflow is not intuitive and there are too many features that just are not there for a modern search firm, and I imagine it would be very frustrating for an internal corporate recruiter as well.
Quote 2:
Jobvite is so customizable that it can be overwhelming. It really requires a deep dive to understand all of its capabilities.
Quote 3:
And for new users, the site isn't as intuitive as it could be and requires some handholding to provide the best use. I'd love to be able to just point people at it and know they can find what they need, but more often than not, I have to provide regular training and frequent reminders especially for users who aren't in it as often.
As you see from the previous quotes, there are also some concerns regarding the tool’s user-friendliness. Or rather, a complete lack of it. Some users point out that you have to keep several tabs or screens open separately in order to perform important tasks.
And when you finally do, the tool will just glitch. This often results in the loss of some data or new changes, which can be extremely irritating and consumes too much time.
Quote 4:
Jobvite is not user friendly. So many features that should be easily accessible are not. For example creating templates. We’ve had to spend a lot of time back & forth with the Jobvite tech team to be able to add BASIC functionality.
General glitches
Not a single software solution is 100% free of bugs and glitches. But, what if it was founded 17 years ago? I think it’s only fair that the expectations for a company that old and well-established must be higher. So, when seeing numerous reviews mentioning occasional problems with the tool’s different features, one must start worrying.
This review was left not so long ago. And the person who left it was clearly quite frustrated because of the tool’s numerous bugs and mishaps:
Quote 1 (from 04-16-2020):
There were constantly problems with feedback disappearing, the scheduling tool never working, we felt like we had to have a dedicated team member who was always trouble shooting on calling Jobvite for assistance on a feature that was not functionally properly
Some older reviews mention that all the fuss around artificial intelligence and highly developed automation fails to bring any real benefits. The system lags, the data disappears, and you end up doing most of the work manually and double-checking it.
Quote 2:
Although Jobvite seems to be a boon in Modern Recruitment Process, it has some disadvantages as well. Firstly, it is an application which is not refined as it contains so many errors and bugs. System lags frequently, and sometimes over-filters candidates. Despite being run by automation and intelligence, it is much more a manually operated system. Long clunky login process is also highlighted as a disadvantage. There are some issues with its upgrades and performances.
Quote 3:
Their site goes down quite a bit which leaves you stuck not being able to do anything.
Limited search
When you work with such a huge (and quite expensive, but more on this later) tool like Jobvite, you probably deal with a lot of data every day. As it serves as a unified CRM containing all the candidates for all job openings, the ability to quickly find anyone is crucial.
It seems like there might be slight issues with the search feature, too. Some reviewers complain that it can be challenging to find relevant applicants quickly enough:
Quote:
There's also a limit to the number of the columns that can appear in the search field, so we aren't able to view all of our custom fields verifying an applicant's suitability up front, which makes the process more time consuming for recruiters as they have to view more applications one at a time.
Emailing issues
Do I even have to tell you how important communication is for proper recruiting processes? You can’t hire a person without being able to talk with them effectively and on time. And emails are still playing one of the most crucial roles in this process.
So, Jobvite’s issues with the emailing feature are probably one of the most disturbing things on this list. For one thing, several reviews mention that it can even be a challenge to add proper professional signatures to your emails. If it doesn’t sound like much of a problem, please remember the last time you bothered to answer an email that looked clunky and poorly formatted.
Quote1:
The ability to add a signature in the email templates that doesn't look generic.
But that’s just the tip of it. The more frightening problem is that users report their emails often end up in spam folders of job candidates. There’s a general concern that this happens because of Jobvite’s default email address that they assign to every user. Basically, you can’t connect your custom email address with the tool and send emails from it. Instead, recruiters are forced to use Jobvite’s branded email addresses.
Quote 1:
...The worst feature though is their enforced branding through email. If you use Jobvite, every time you send an email through their platform it will go out with a jobvite.com email address. This means that many of your candidates will just not see the emails you send because their junk mail filters are picking up the jobvite.com email address as spam because they have a very high junk mail score and also because the word job is in the email address. When I used Jobvite as a corporate recruiter, I was constantly having to call candidates to see if they had received my emails and when I found out they had not I was resending messages from outside of Jobvite.
Quote 2:
Ugly emails. Emails sent from Jobvite show up strangely, and the fact that it comes from a strange email address means that it sometimes goes to SPAM for the candidate. I find myself going through personal email more often now.
Occasional problems with editing jobs
Although this is not the most common issue with the tool, some people also point out that editing job openings is not always an easy job. To be completely fair, the complaints are more subjective on this one, so it’s rather a question of taste. Still, it’s important to take all concerns into consideration here.
Quote 1:
No access to knock out form templates + no option to customize basic templates
Quote 2:
Honestly, the only thing I like least about Jobvite is the fact that after making a change to a job description, you have to go all the way to the bottom of the page to hit Save. I have put in several requests over the years for Jobvite to add a Save button at the top of the page and it has never happened.
Quote 3:
I wish the uploading of job descriptions was more robust. We have decided to preload all of our job descriptions in order to maintain consistency, unfortunately, the process of uploading them into Jobvite is very cumbersome. Making a change to one job description is essentially impossible - we have to reload our entire JD spreadsheet just to capture one change. This is a real sore point for us.
Delayed and non-customizable reports
Detailed data are at the heart of every successful business campaign. People use it for planning their next steps, making informed decisions, and tracking their teams’ KPIs.
So, it’s quite awesome that many of Jobvite’s users are saying positive words about the tool's reporting capabilities. Analytics is robust and insightful if you manage to set up everything right. However, some people report that this feature lacks some crucial flexibility and intuitiveness.
Moreover, stats are not tracked in real time. Once you make a change in your recruiting pipeline, you probably want to see it reflected in your analytics. However, it might take up to three hours to see the new information there.
Quote 1:
I wish there were more reports available with graphs and pivot tables that are less confusing when you download them on excel.
Quote 2:
I'd love to see more premade reports in the system. We live in the world of Data and It needs to be easier to data mine the system.
Integration issues with LinkedIn
As with any successful ATS solution, Jobvite offers a plethora of third-party integrations for virtually anything. But who would need hundreds of integrations if your recruiting tool doesn’t work properly with LinkedIn?
It seems that this is exactly the case with Jobvite. Some users note that when it comes to the most popular professional social network in the world, the tool is not always reliable.
Quote:
... more fluid approach with LinkedIn Recruiter.
Not the most affordable pricing
Jobvite’s pricing model is not one of the most transparent out there. For one thing, they don’t disclose any prices or even ranges on their website. But so do many other ATS software solutions these days (which is quite irritating as it is).
However, a quick Google search can give us way more understanding of how much you need to pay for the tool every month. Apparently, Jobvite pricing starts from $500 per month for < 100 employees with a $1500 ‘activation charge’. On the other hand, Siftery reports that it might range from around $4,000 per year (26 to 50 employees) to $100,000 per year (2,501 to 5,000 employees).
Moreover, it seems like they offer many important features as add-ons for an additional cost. All in all, Jobvite can be quite an expensive tool to acquire and run with no ability to use it for free (unlike other similar tools like 100Hires).
Quote 1:
Wish that the texting option was a standard feature and not a pricey add-on.
Quote 2:
Jobvite is expensive - I think we are the only UAE company who uses Jobvite since whenever I've met with other recruitment officers and talked about recruitment tools, they keep on saying that they want to try Jobvite however, it's too expensive for them.
Unresponsive customer support
The most ironic thing about every complaint on this list is that it could’ve never happened. You see, customers are willing to forgive A LOT if your customer support provides lightning-fast and effective help. But apparently, it’s not the case with Jobvite.
Numerous reviews mention that the tool’s customer service department often failed to assist. People are forced to wait for too long before someone even answers them in the first place. And when they do, there’s still no real help.
Quote 1:
There has been frustration getting instant online help in a timely manner.
Quote 2:
Customer Support is super hard to get in touch with, you'll stay on the phone waiting for someone to answer for hours, if they ever do they are not very helpful.
So, what is the best alternative to Jobvite?
To sum everything above-mentioned up, a perfect alternative to Jobvite would have to be affordable, user-friendly, and intuitive to the point when there’s no additional training needed. Its UX must be clean and modern. And a nice addition would be fast (preferably real-time) support.
There’s such a tool! 100Hires is a comprehensive applicant tracking system covering all recruiting tasks a modern company might want to perform. Source, communicate, recruit, and onboard new employees in an intuitive yet powerful dashboard.
So, what are the main advantages of 100Hires over Jobvite?
Robust features
For one thing, 100Hires is a relatively new player on the market. Their UX doesn’t feel clunky or outdated because it was created a few years ago. But don’t think that this means the tool lacks some crucial functionality because it doesn’t. These are just a few of the features that 100Hires offers:
- Integration with all the most popular job boards
- Custom job boards
- Unifies CRM of all candidates and their detailed information
- Kanban board for keeping an eye on your entire recruitment pipeline
- Customizable email templates
- Bulk emailing
- G Suite and Zoom integrations
- Evaluation forms
- Chrome extension
Chrome extension
You can easily export information from popular job websites and social media with the help of the 100Hires extension for Chrome. So, if you want to source candidates from LinkedIn, AngelList, Upwork, etc, or update their current information, it takes a few clicks to do just that.
The most exciting thing about it is that you can reach out to candidates on the go using your email templates and custom variables. Basically, it’s possible to manage the entire recruiting process with a single extension.
Timely customer support
100Hires offers live chat support that typically answers in a minute or two. The team strives to provide real time support whenever their users need it. Alternatively, you can drop an email and wait for your issue to be resolved in no time. Feature requests and general suggestions are always welcomed!
Affordable pricing and a free subscription
What’s even more pleasant is that all these features can cost you exactly $0. The free subscription includes unlimited users, 100 candidates and 50 emails per month. Paid plans start from only $129/mo. Sign up to test 100Hires right away and save yourself tons of resources.
the best candidates faster
