We work closely with our clients in developing new features. During brainstorms we introduced the possibility to connect OTYS with Teams in a new and innovative way. This Microsoft-OTYS integration will make it possible to display candidate data from your OTYS database directly in a new OTYS window inside your Teams screen.

This idea was one of the most well-received ideas during conversations with customers, so I’m pleased to announce that this integration will be available in Q4 of this year.

This new integration makes it possible during the video interview to view the candidates CV, write a note, plan the next workflow step, or use OTYS interaction forms for following a structured interview method like DIGS, STAR or one of its many derivatives. You can do all this without leaving the MS Teams screen, so you can keep eye-contact with your candidate without needing to look at a paper or a second screen.

This feature will be available for free across all editions of OTYS Go! 
If you're still using an older version of OTYS, please contact OTYS Customer Success to explore the possibilities of acquiring the new version.

BTW ‘We will update the Zoom integration with these options later this year. Google Meet sadly does not allow this type of integrations. If Google changes its policy at a later stage, we will also add this feature for our Google users. OTYS customers could use the Indeed Interview Integration if Teams or Zoom are not an option’.

OTYS introduced Kanban screens in 2013. The current Kanban screen is nice to use but was rather difficult to configure and only available in the vacancy module in OTYS.

The new Kanban screen will be available from the start in vacancies and also in candidate module. The screen can be displayed as a tab. It is also possible to show related info in the Kanban. For instance, for candidates in procedure step Interview by phone it is possible to show a related calendar item and if you like a more simple screen without a lot of information the Kanban screen can look more like the current one.

The new Kanban screens are configured automatically and will be introduced over time in many more screens in OTYS Go! such as OTYS tasks and OTYS Sales tracker to quickly followup on deals & leads by our sales and business development oriented users.

The new Kanban boards for candidates and vacancies will be available in all editions of OTYS Go! as per September of this year.

If you're still using an older version of OTYS, please contact OTYS Customer Success to explore the possibilities of acquiring a new version.

During conversations with our users, we've noticed that most candidate interviews take place using tools such as Teams, Zoom, Google Meet, or Indeed Interview. Many of our customer’s beautifully decorated meeting rooms are now either unused or repurposed as spacious Video Interview rooms.

At OTYS, we're addressing this by introducing new and improved tools for scheduling and conducting video interviews.

Over the next few months, we will be introducing several new tools to make this easier and faster. Interview planning will become easier and will be seamlessly integrated with your Outlook or Google calendar, a significant improvement over the current available integrations.

This feature will be available for free across all editions of new OTYS Go! 

If you're still using an older version of OTYS, please contact OTYS Customer Success to explore the possibilities of acquiring a new version.

BTW ‘The new planner will only work with the scheduling features of M365 or Google calendars and sadly not with the OTYS native calendar. Connecting the native OTYS calendar with your Outlook or Google calendar is easy and the connectors are free to use. Check the FAQ in your OTYS account on how to setup the connection’.

The use of ChatGPT within recruitment is widespread. Many of OTYS’ competitors have added integrations with ChatGPT and offer an AI assisted vacancy editor. In OTYS this feature has been available for a few months now via partners such as Cortexter and Textmetrics.

Of course we have been busy integrating AI tools ourselves, but we have decided to do this in full compliance with GDPR.

So, we did not integrate ChatGPT, but we have integrated OTYS with GPT. We have our own GPT server located in Amsterdam. This also means that all your data remains in our care and that it stays within the EU as well. There is no possibility that data shared via OTYS-GPT will be shared openly, as might be the case when you use ChatGPT.

 We have also chosen not to only build the 'next' vacancy writer feature, but we have integrated OTYS-GPT in each screen of new version of OTYS Go!

You’ll find the assistant in your vacancy modules as well as in the email, in the candidate screens, CRM, placements etc. For instance, if you want to propose a CV to your client OTYS-GPT can help in writing an introduction for your candidate from the screen you are using now as well.

In each text editor widget or screen in new OTYS Go! you’ll see the OpenAI logo, indicating OTYS-GPT is available for you. We have made options available for summarizing, translating and beautifying texts. And next to the prompts OTYS engineers have created you can also use your own prompts if you want.

The OTYS-GPT screen will be rolled out in the following months and available in all editions of OTYS Go!  If you're still using an older version of OTYS, please contact OTYS Customer Success to explore the possibilities of acquiring the new version.

A typical day for a recruiter doesn't always go as planned. People can be unpredictable, and job applicants are no exception. This means recruiters working in an ATS such as OTYS Go! often must switch between various screens. OTYS Go! has had a Quick Search function for many years. But as things go the old Quick Search was really getting ‘old’ or maybe becoming a bit ‘obsolete’, depending on which customer we asked.

Improving the Quick Search function in OTYS ranked very high on the wish-list of many recruiters using OTYS Go! Therefore, I am delighted to announce that a completely revamped Quick Search is live as of last week in the new version of OTYS Go!

The new Quick Search will allow you to start a search from every screen and find the right candidate, contact person, or job vacancy by just typing a few characters in the search bar. 

Once you have selected the correct candidate, contact, vacancy or customer file you can use the new Quick Actions menu to create a note, reminder, task, etc. without actually leaving the screen where you were working when you started the search.

This feature is available for free across all editions of new OTYS Go!

If you're still using an older version of OTYS, please contact OTYS Customer Success to explore the possibilities of acquiring a new version.

BTW ‘The Quick Action menu introduced in the Quick Search will be added in many new or improved functions in new OTYS Go!

Many of you will probably recognize that working as a recruiter means getting ‘disturbed’ during work continuously. At least, that is often the nature of the game. Recruiters are dealing with people, and people are fickle. This means Recruiters must switch between files while unfinished tasks linger in their memory.

OTYS is introducing the new functionality OTYS history. This feature automatically keeps track of the screens and functions you have used throughout the day, allowing easy navigation back to the relevant vacancies, candidates, customers, and more.

This brand-new daily history feature goes even further and tracks also what you have been working on. Maybe you were working on creating a note or a CV for a candidate. Or perhaps you're taking a call from a customer and need to access the file of that customer. All these actions are recorded by your personal OTYS memory. When you deal with a customer request you can quickly go back from the customer’s file to that specific note in the candidate’s file. At the end of the day your personal OTYS memory is wiped so you can start with a clean slate the next morning.

When we introduced the daily history to a small group of customers for testing, we quickly learned that recruiters access many many files per day. Adding a search option was the main feedback from the recruiters that have used it. And that is what we have done, the daily history function can be found in every screen in the new version of OTYS Go!

This feature is available for free across all editions of new OTYS Go!. 
If you're still using an older version of OTYS, please contact OTYS Customer Success to explore the possibilities of acquiring a new version. 

One more tip. In OTYS Go! it is possible to open multiple screens and thus keep track of what you are working on. Although this is a great feature of OTYS Go!, it can however slow down your laptop when you keep many many screens active for the whole day. The history function reduces the need to have multiple screens open, on average 3 to 4 screens seems to be enough based on user feedback. Therefore using the daily history will not only allows you to navigate easier and faster but it will also ensure that your PC itself stays fast during your working day!

We are proud to announce that we will roll out a new version of OTYS Go! with a new UX design, color scheme and improved quick access menu.

The new version of OTYS Go! is more modern and prepared for a dark mode that will be introduced at a later stage as well.

There are many small and large improvements. This new version allows us to introduce new functionalities such as the Quick Search, Instant Match and Daily History functions but also makes the application easier to navigate due to the use of a consistent color scheme.

Although the current OTYS Go! does have a lot of color, it did not have specific colors for each module separately. This can cause confusion, especially for new users. In the new version, each module will have a specific color that will be used in the menu, dashboard, list screen and detail screens. This way it is easy to see where you are at any time.

The new version of OTYS Go! has been thoroughly tested by more than 1500 users during the last 6 months. Starting September 1st it will be available for every user. If you want to use it earlier, please let us know. To make the transition smoothly users can switch back and forth between the current ‘old’ version and the new version of OTYS Go!. When everybody is used to this new version the old version will be switched off for good.

The new version will be available for free across all editions of OTYS Go! 

If you're still using an older version of OTYS, please contact OTYS Customer Success to explore the possibilities of acquiring the newest version

Recruiting the right staff has rarely been so challenging before. And in such a tight labor market, it is important to stand out with your vacancy. These days, there are as many as four times more vacancies than jobseekers. How do you achieve more success in recruitment? By knowing where your candidates are and on which channels you have the highest chance of success. To help you achieve your objectives, assembling the right mix, supporting you in making the right choices, OTYS analyses the performance of its clients' main recruitment sources every year.

What are the most valuable channels for recruiting new employees?  

Below is a summary of the key results. We do not have the full Source of Hire report in English yet, but we are sure that these insights of the Dutch market offer some great take-aways nonetheless! 

The Source of Hire report examines sourcing channels used to recruit new employees. In this we look at the following three key metrics:

  • Attracting (new) talent through maximum visibility of the job posting
  • Converting talent through optimal allure of the job posting
  • Hiring talent through correctly placed vacancies among your target group

And, what can we see? For each stage and for achieving each key metric, a different channel is better suited. A search engine like Google is best for generating website traffic to your vacancies. Social media channels are better for recruiting candidates. But, Indeed remains the most important Source of Hire for OTYS clients overall.

The trend through the years 

Hiring new employees is the end goal. Indeed has been supplying the majority of all hires to OTYS clients since 2018. Three years in a row, the job board accounts for at least 50% of all candidates hired. As a search engine, Google still stands out. Although it has lost share in recent years, it still accounts for 14% of all hires. Linkedin and Facebook are the leading social media channels, and Nationale Vacaturebank closes the top 5 this year.

Investing in connections proves to be fruitful 

The intensive collaboration that OTYS and Indeed have is paying off. In recent years we have only been improving this connection between OTYS and the job board. As the first Dutch supplier of recruitment software, we were the Star Partner of Indeed (now changed to Official Silver Partner). For instance, OTYS Remote Apply makes it possible to apply directly to Indeed. According to Indeed, this results in 30% more clicks on vacancies by candidates. The vacancies and candidates are also automatically synchronized between OTYS and Indeed, so you are always provided with the most up-to-date information and candidates.

The final result? 

An increase in the number of high-quality candidates in OTYS. Without OTYS Remote Apply enabled, the share of candidates through Indeed is 28%. However, when we include applications directly on the external job board, the share rises to an overwhelming 47%.

Make conversion rate your top priority 

Determining the effectiveness of a recruitment source is essential for successful candidate recruitment. One of the key metrics to measure this effectiveness is the conversion rate.

From job application to placement 

When we look at conversion rates, we can actually see that the sources that generate relatively low traffic do show the highest conversion rates. And, they are often cheaper than the big ones. All the more reason to focus on the more specialized recruitment sites, such as technical vacancies or temporary assignments.

Looking at the conversion rate from application to placement, joof.nl in particular has been extremely successful in 2022. Some other sources with a high percentage of high-quality candidates: freelance.nl, adzuna.nl, marktplaats.nl and roc.nl.

Keep experimenting with your optimal mix 

Ultimately, your optimal mix depends entirely on your industry, your goals and even your specific vacancy. Hopefully, these insights can serve as a helping hand. 

Feel free to contact us to spar with one of customer success managers on how to get the most out or our software. Like when for example you don't have OTYS Remote Apply enabled yet. Or when you want to know more about our multipost network. 

We wish you the best of luck!

ChatGPT and Textmetrics: mix the two for the best results!

Brand new and ready to use; Textmetrics has undergone a total makeover. Not only that, are you ready for the future of recruitment? Get ready!

Surely you’ve heard of ChatGPT. A tool used for easy, quick content to make your e-mail just a tad funnier, or completely unburdens you when making your shopping list for dinner with your friends. Super convenient, of course!

But how does AI help you write your job postings?

Very simple: by mixing ChatGPT with Textmetrics' smart algorithms!

Step 1. Kindly ask ChatGPT to write an ironclad job description for you.

-> It feels a bit generic, don't you think? Indeed, it is! Something mega important is missing, which is: Your organization's employer branding and tone of voice!

Step 2. So you copy the text into Textmetrics and it gives you instant feedback and suggestions for improvement. Yes, wow! All on-brand, gender-inclusive and readable for your target audience.

Step 3. It's almost impossible to imagine, but we're going to make it even easier for you. We are currently working intensely to integrate ChatGPT into Textmetrics so you can do all your writing in one place!

Relax, the AI of the future does the thinking for you.

Want to learn more about Textmetrics and how it can help you and your business? Visit our website here.

What came first? The shortage of staff or the shortage of recruiters? With the labor market tightening, which has only worsened since the corona pandemic, the demand for recruiters has also consistently increased.

More work, less recruiters

Back in 2021, Indeed reported that the demand for staff-recruiters was up 90% from the previous year. In fact, the demand for recruiters was as much as 42% higher than before the pandemic. A trend LinkedIn further confirmed in their report. In 2021, there were 6.8 times more recruiter jobs posted on the business social media platform. And, although this trend line seems to be slowing down somewhat in 2023, the demand for recruiters still seems to be higher than in other industries. This is partly explained by the fact that the demand for sufficient and most preferably good staff is still (too) high.

The flexible employment agent

Fortunately, technological developments are such that we are massively automating and robotizing to cope with these shortages. The shortage of labor migrants has, for example, lead to the use of robots for picking tomatoes in more and more places. In the transport sector, you see that manual order picking is disappearing at an accelerated rate, according to Han Mesters of ABN AMRO.

Employment agencies will also have to be flexible and adapt to the (now not so) new situation. This means not only offering other forms of contracts, but also making smart use of their own resources. For example, using smart tools to fill in the gaps can already help you avoid losing any potential new employees and make the most out of all opportunities.

Everything automated from the start

By looking at what areas of the recruitment process can be automated, a company can easily save a lot of time. Then don't just examine the back end of your process, such as putting candidates through to your possible compensation package, but start the optimization process at the beginning. As a recruiter, you can spend a lot of time scouring various channels when you want to be doing what you're really good at: contacting candidates.

Parties such as TheRecruitBoosters, NIXZ and Dora can help with this. They specialize in the first contact with (latent) job seekers. They search for candidates online and can even start the first contact with a candidate. The only things you have to handle yourself are the campaigns.

Better chance for job placements

With an integrated hunt & select functionality, you make the most of your candidates with the least amount of effort. For example, OTYS has special match functionalities built in, allowing you to create shortlists within a few clicks and easily link candidates to jobs. Missing contact information? That’s not an issue with a tool like precontacttool, which easily retrieves phone numbers and e-mail addresses online.

Partners like TheMatchBox can further help cast your net even wider. Their search engine makes sure you spend even less time searching. An example of a real time-saving solution: in NIXZ's plugin (SimpleRecruiter), theMatchBox can immediately show you how this candidate matches with vacancies in the ATS system. That’s before adding them to the OTYS system with the push of a button.

From crawling to standing with a good ATS

The entire recruitment process falls and stands with a good ATS. If you're still working with an Excel or outdated software, you can have so many tools at your disposal: it won't work for you. 
An ATS like OTYS already contains a lot of functionalities to make a large part of your process easy. OTYS also connects to all the parties mentioned above and more, so you can always keep working efficiently and effectively. Operate all the different activities which you can operate from one central location. You start a search on LinkedIn from OTYS, introduce a candidate within the procedure module, vacancies are loaded via a widget within OTYS and you complete the contact details with the push of a button.

Want to know what OTYS can do for you? Feel free to contact us. We are happy to discuss the possibilities for your organization.

The best ideas often spawn out-of-the-blue. The proof: the new OTYS on the Go! app. "It all started when we sat together one time," begins Mart Borghuis, Developer at OTYS Recruiting Technology and lead developer of the application. "We said to each other: why don’t we try to build an app that performs all the tasks in one and that 'just' works simply." That very same day he started building the app. One year, two designs and several rounds of feedback later, OTYS' new application is in all the app stores. But, if it is up to Mart Borghuis and Jonas Stolk, UI/UX Designer at OTYS, they are far from finished.

From brainstorm session to concept

For years, OTYS offered separate apps. Less practical for OTYS users, and the apps were also causing OTYS some headaches. "For people who used the previous apps, this new app must be a big shock," Jonas says with a laugh. "You actually get a look and feel that belongs to this day and age."

Within a week there was already a first draft that allowed people to see e-mails and other simple things. "It wasn't even an official project we were going to do yet. It was just an idea," says Mart, who studied application development. "I just started working on a first outline myself. Soon I discovered that it was pretty easy and we could make it. That's how it all started, and it has now become the application it is."

"Mart first investigated: what can and should it do?" adds Jonas, who later joined the development of the OTYS on the Go! app as a designer. That Mart can do a lot is evidenced by the fact that he single-handedly built the current app in a tight six months. "That's the beauty of OTYS. We're given freedom and he doesn't tie us down to things. He says, 'just build the prototype your way,” says Mart talking about Bert, the CEO.

A clever piece of engineering work

That an application should support the work process is a given. However, this was not always the case with the previous applications. "The old apps were used by quite a reasonably amount, but often a component broke down or something didn't work, yet again," Mart says. "It then also became costly, both money and timewise, to fix these issues. We needed developers with separate competencies to develop for both IOS and Android, which meant that it took a lot of time to fix small problems."

The new application runs as a PWA (Progressive web application), which means it is developed in a language that all operating systems are familiar with, namely web. This way, it is built for one platform and then deployed on multiple operating systems at the same time. "This way you don't have to write separate Android and IOS code, but one application that works on both devices. An additional advantage," Mart explains, "is that with this variant you merely have to change something in one place to solve a problem for all platforms. You save a lot of time and you can develop much faster." Because the apps are packaged specifically for IOS or Android, you can download the new OTYS on the Go! app from both the App Store and Google Play Store.

Something both men point to as a nice piece of engineering are the dossiers. "Visually not very cool, but technically it's constructed in an awesome way," says Jonas. "The fact that you can easily search through it is incredibly cool," agrees Mart. "After all, you have a file in candidate detail, but also in a vacancy. You build dossiers in a relation contact, but also in a relation. The fact that this works generically for all entities in OTYS is really fantastic."

Designed with the Best Practices in mind

With a degree in Communication and Multi Media Design, Jonas was the right person to take charge of the design of OTYS on the Go! "Since my start at OTYS in 2019, I have mainly designed recruitment websites. You do create a mobile design for those, but this is really different. There are a lot of functionalities in OTYS Go!

The app is basically a light version of the main application. OTYS Go! is, of course, a desktop application with a broad ratio. You have to know how to compress this into a mobile design. In this process, information will drop out." Partly for this reason, they discussed every aspect with OTYS' product management team.

For the app's design inspiration, Jonas looked for best practices within the field. "An app consists of many different little parts. A search hook, a list view, cards that hold information. You have floating action buttons, an app's most prominent add button, menus, etc. "I used inspiration from all the big well-known apps to create a strong modern design." What Jonas is most proud of? The calendar in the app. "How the calendar is going to look in the next update, that's really sleek. That's just a good equivalent of the Google Calendar."

Our eyes are on the future

Their ambitions are not yet fulfilled. "We have now built a live prototype based on the techniques and code languages I know. Now we are improving that as well."

Mart learned the latest variant of the Angular Framework last year, and the next update that will come out early this year is built within this framework. “Visually not much changes for the user, but the app is much more scalable and a lot faster.” Jonas interrupts Mart to say that they do in fact have design improvements in the new version. 

What does scalable mean according to Mart? By building the app within a framework, everything is a lot more scalable. All elements are reusable, and therefore it takes less time to build new parts. We can simultaneously build in the same application with multiple developers without getting in each other's way. If there is a new development in recruitment, we can act on it even faster now.

The app is also a valuable addition to the main OTYS Go! application. "The new version of OTYS Go!, is built in the new code language. The mobile app is built as a mini Go!" says Mart. "The advantage is that it allows us to use new techniques, new ways, to deal with data and to present something to users which they can easily try out. And to do it in a way so it doesn't disturb our customers, but can still be easily built into the main software."

Ambassadors of their own app

They themselves are also enthusiastic users of the new app. "We are obviously not recruiters, so we don't use the CRM or job applications much ourselves," says Jonas. For example, Jonas checks the calendar to see if it is necessary for him to come to the office the next day because of an appointment, "without having to open and start my laptop again." Mart, in turn, uses it to create reminders for himself. "When I have a eureka moment on th

We've all experienced it once. You got a bill from, let's say, your energy company that you don't quite recognize. So you think: I'll get in touch with the company. You navigate to the website, you log in, click on the customer service icon and you are presented with a chatbot: 'describe your problem in a few short sentences'. You write a short description with your question, but you always get the answer: “Sorry, I do not understand your question. Can you type it in a different way?” Well... no! Besides the bill, you are now also stuck with a feeling of frustration.

This is the exact opposite of what a chatbot is supposed to do. You want a chatbot to contribute to the candidate experience in a positive way. To quickly give the user an answer or quickly tell the applicant the status of their application. In this blog, we'll give you some tips for writing texts (conversational copywriting) for a chatbot to make your chatbot a definite hit and not a miss.

Tip 1: Give your chatbot a clear personality

A conversation with Annie is not as informative as a conversation with Lisa tends to be. And a chat with Harry is not nearly as funny as a chat with Melvin. This is exactly the same when talking to chatbots. Just like how your brand has a personality (archetype), the chatbot should also be an extension of the brand with a consistent brand voice.

Always keep this personality in mind when writing for the chatbot. You want it to have a recognizable tone-of-voice. The bot has to sound almost human. And you can only do that if you give it a personality. After all, the way you address a candidate can make all the difference between a successful job application or not.

Here you can find the definitions of all the twelve different brand archetypes, if you want a little refresher course.

Tip 2: Write in colloquial language

Unlike what you learned in school, you will have to completely abandon all official writing rules.

Starting sentences with And? Totally fine!

Using 'annoying' filler words like: uh, yes, actually, just? Definitely do it!

That just adds that extra touch of personality and human character.

How do you make sure you apply this correctly and say the right things? First speak your conversations out loud before you write them down. Have real conversations first, with colleagues for example, and put them on paper verbatim. Also, don't be afraid to make the occasional tongue-in-cheek comment, even if it seems off-topic. In real conversations, you also occasionally digress. No one goes through a conversation completely humorless. Or, at least, almost no one.

Tip 3: Don't hesitate to put words in the candidate's mouth

Whereas our psychologist might teach us not to fill in for someone else, I advise you to do the exact opposite for the chatbot. You want to know exactly what a user is going to say so you can anticipate it. When you think all possible scenarios through as far ahead as possible, you also have an appropriate answer ready for all possible questions.

One way to make sure you stay in control of a conversation is to ask lots of questions. This way you can steer the conversation. Using simple action buttons, you give the candidate control, but within the framework you set.

It can happen that a conversation does not go well. That the bot does not understand a question. Again, prepare appropriate and varied responses so you can get the conversation back on track. Does it still not work? Then you can always have a "real person" take over the conversation.

Tip 4: Get experts on chatbots and Conversational Copywriting to contribute ideas

We all think we know how to have a conversation. I mean, we do nothing else all day long. Right?

However, nothing could be further from the truth. At least, that's my (not so) humble opinion. After all, it pays to admit when something is not your field of expertise. That is also the reason why OTYS focuses on the core of recruitment software, and links with all kinds of expert partners for a complete package. We don't say Jack of all trades, but master of none for nothing.

We believe in the power of chatbots and therefore we link with various specialists in the field of chatbots. That's why we partner with companies such as Joboti and NIXZ. The most recent addition to our impressive list of partners: Dora from Happy Recruiter.

The recruitment robot Dora was developed by Happy Recruiter to connect with candidates as well as maintain contact with them. Create an almost instantaneous bond of trust with the use of an AI-driven chatbot.

And as a final tip: keep improving your bot

The last game is not fought at the facility. Stay critical. Let other people walk through the chatbot. Keep expanding and honing the bot's vocabulary.

Is there still a hitch? Does a conversation unexpectedly go less smoothly despite all efforts? Does the bot have to endure answers to which it has no answer? Learn your lesson and write better, smarter and wittier answers.

Don't have a chatbot yet, but are you interested in it? Please contact us and we will help you build the perfect recruitment solution for you. You can do this by sending us an email, filling in the contact form or by giving us a call.