Last week, LinkedIn hosted an online event titled, “The Truth Behind Applicant Tracking Systems.” It was billed as a session to demystify applicant tracking systems (ATS) and what goes on when a candidate submits an application to an ATS. The only guest was Daniel Chait, CEO of Greenhouse, so most of the information was Greenhouse specific.

In the end, Chait and the interviewer, Andrew Seaman, did not give job seekers any new information that they didn’t already know, and what we at Don’t Bother Applying have been repeating. However, it was important that a tech leader and tech media finally go on the record and confirm what a lot of long-time unemployed people have been saying.

Greenhouse Doesn’t Really Do That Much

Greenhouse is basically a pipeline tool, much like a sales pipeline tool. Recruiters enter in keywords, a list of applicants that match the keywords returns, and the recruiter see the applicant’s resume. In another screen, the various steps of the hiring process is represented by several columns much like a Kanban board. Candidates are little cards in each column, and as they progress through the hiring steps, the candidates are moved left to right across the columns.

What was not discussed were AI features, or how smart Greenhouse is. Chait specifically claimed that Greenhouse did not summarize a candidate into one number, a “hireability” score, which is at the center of the discrimination lawsuit against Workday.

Going On the Record

Chair and Seaman went on the record and confirmed many things that we all know about the job market:

  • There are vastly more candidates than jobs. Greenhouse’s data says there are 200 jobs per job opening on average. There may be 10 qualified, there may be 200. You’ll never know.

  • AI and mass application software is making the problem worse. AI is overwhelming companies with unqualified applicants and recruiters have to rely on software more to sort through them. This is the arms race we have pointed out, and no one is winning.

  • You are not Greenhouse’s customer. Companies and recruiters are. The application experience is bad because features, or lack of features, is ultimately in the hands of recruiters.

  • People are biased, always will be. There is only so much Greenhouse can do to mitigate the bias. Ultimately the recruiters and hiring managers bring their own biases into the process.

“Please don’t sue us”

What was the takeaway? Greenhouse downplayed its capabilities throughout the entire event, and repeatedly said the way Greenhouse works is the result of what the user (the recruiter and the company, not you), does. The applicants that are presented to recruiters are the result of what the recruiter searches. Companies can send out a status notice to the candidate at any moment, but the user must trigger it. This implies if you don’t hear from a company, it’s the company choosing not to contact you, not anything that is the fault of Greenhouse.

This event was a well-scripted public relations performance. There is much backlash against the job market and the Workday discrimination suit is a product of this frustration. The Workday lawsuit may end up costing Workday and its customers billions of dollars, and Greenhouse wants to make it clear that they’re not like Workday. Any anger at Greenhouse should be directed at their customers.

Chait and Seaman repeatedly expressed a lot of empathy. “I have a ton of empathy,” “We get it,” “We hear it,” “It’s tough out there.” They didn’t propose anything that hinted of a solution, but it’s definitely not Greenhouse’s fault. Feel free to see if your landlord will take their thoughts and prayers as rent next month.