Recruitment software – Conversation with Tim de Jardine of Hirewall

Does the market need another Applicant Tracking Software? Tim de Jardine, founder of  Hirewall an online hiring system designed for the SME market, thinks so. Based in NZ, we caught up with Tim, and he sheds some light on his journey, Hirewall, a new business Tribe HQ , and his thoughts on talent acquisition during a downturn.

Q. Tim can you tell us a bit about your background and how you got into the human capital industry?
I entered the HR industry to get into sales.  It was a bold move from IT and various technical roles to that of customer facing, selling roles.  In hindsight, I really did not know what to expect.  This helped me identify gaps in the industry that resulted in Hirewall.  There are not many recruiters with backgrounds in computer science.

Q. What are your current projects, and how widespread is your involvement in the Australian market? 
Hirewall is a web-based hiring system for the SME that allows them to secure great candidate before their competitors. Hirewall does this by prompting and weighing every hiring decision using simple web software.

Hirewall gets entire teams involved in finding that new employee which ensures team buy-in and candidate fit before a hire is made. We are launching Hirewall globally, the web is global by nature so this makes it easier.  For our beta we have companies from all over the globe signing up.

TribeHQ is a web-based conversational platform for different occupational groups that encourages global kinship, identity and sharing of ideas and knowledge across borders.  TribeHQ is a completely new approach to online recruitment and will be a game changer.  All I can say is that it is not an ATS and is a counter-intuitive approach to what is currently being provided by job boards.  It is to be launched globally too.

Q. Can you tell us more about Hirewall and its unique selling points. What makes it different from the rest?
There are 3 areas of e-recruitment. Sourcing of candidates, Hiring management and Decision management.

Traditionally systems only address the sourcing of candidates. These include applicant tracking systems, job boards or talent silos. Hiring and decision management has been left to manual processes, though this is arguably the most important aspect of hiring. The management of the hiring process and how people make decisions and interact is crucial in securing a talented candidate. The ability to act is needed to beat competitors. Having team buy-in during a hire is critical in future integration of the new employee to your team.

Hirewall address all three recruitment areas in a single system. By doing this you minimize the risk of losing a candidate due to lack of planning or action. Hirewall is simple, non-bloated software as a service that requires minimal investment to use.  No training needed.

The system contains a workflow engine that prompts and drives forward the decision making process, not simply storing information like traditional ATS. It’s about getting that candidate in front of a decision maker.

Q. Hirewall is targeted predominantly at SMEs. Do you think that SMEs have enough hiring volume to invest in an ATS?
Arguably SME’s need an ATS even more than larger organisations.  The reason being that they need to scrutinize every employee they hire.  A bad fit for a SME can really affect the bottom line of the company.  A bad fit for an enterprise does not. 

For those job vacancies that they do get, SME’s need to secure the candidates they want before companies and agencies whom may not be able to act as fast.  Hirewall is not like a traditional ATS.  It combines ATS elements with Project management and team collaboration.

Q. In your opinion, what must companies’ talent strategy be in light of the economic downturn?
Make sure the candidates you pick get on well with team members, really qualify this by letting team members get in on the decision making process. Be consistent in the standard and selection criteria of candidates across the organization.  When you need to act, do so as fast as possible to secure the candidate.

Forget agencies and paper based advertising as a strategy.  Also forget about relying on job boards.  They serve a purpose but do not really cover all areas, plus job boards are static mechanisms, there is no interaction and it is a big commitment for a candidate to apply for a job. 

The internet is so diverse now, use Facebook, Twitter and get your employees talking to friends and referring them.  Great minds think alike.  Often great employees hang out with those like themselves.  Use this to your advantage. 

Always be on the look for better people.  Anticipate changes and build up a pool of talented people that have passed your litmus test.