A Glossary of Key Terms: Technical Terminology for ATS & HRIS Integration

Navigating the landscape of modern HR and recruiting technology requires a solid understanding of the underlying technical terminology. As organizations increasingly leverage Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) and Human Resources Information Systems (HRIS) for efficiency, integrating these platforms seamlessly becomes paramount. This glossary demystifies essential terms, providing HR and recruiting professionals with the clarity needed to make informed decisions and optimize their tech stack for strategic hiring and talent management.

Applicant Tracking System (ATS)

An Applicant Tracking System (ATS) is a software application designed to manage the recruitment process, from job posting to onboarding. It helps organizations streamline candidate sourcing, screening, interviewing, and hiring. In an automation context, an ATS can be integrated with various tools like job boards, assessment platforms, and background check services via APIs, allowing for automated data flow and reducing manual input. For example, once a candidate completes an assessment, their score can automatically update their profile in the ATS, triggering the next stage in the recruitment workflow.

Human Resources Information System (HRIS)

An HRIS is a comprehensive system that manages, stores, and processes all aspects of employee data and HR-related information. This includes everything from payroll and benefits administration to time and attendance, performance management, and organizational charts. Effective HRIS integration with an ATS ensures a smooth transition for new hires, automatically porting their data from the recruiting system into their employee record. This eliminates redundant data entry, reduces errors, and ensures compliance, saving HR teams significant administrative time.

API (Application Programming Interface)

An API is a set of defined rules and protocols that allows different software applications to communicate with each other. In the context of ATS and HRIS, APIs are the backbone of integration, enabling data exchange between systems. For example, an ATS might use an API to push new hire data into an HRIS, or an HRIS might use an API to update employee status in a benefits platform. Understanding APIs is crucial for designing robust automation workflows, ensuring data consistency and real-time updates across your HR tech ecosystem.

Webhook

A webhook is an automated message sent from an app when a specific event occurs. Unlike APIs that require an application to “request” data, webhooks “push” data in real-time. In HR automation, webhooks are incredibly powerful. For instance, when a candidate’s status changes to “Hired” in an ATS, a webhook can instantly trigger a new employee setup workflow in the HRIS, initiate an IT provisioning request, or send a welcome email. This event-driven communication makes automations highly responsive and efficient.

REST API (Representational State Transfer API)

REST API is a widely used and flexible architectural style for designing networked applications. It operates over HTTP and typically uses JSON or XML for data formatting. Most modern ATS and HRIS platforms offer RESTful APIs due to their stateless nature and scalability, making them ideal for cloud-based integrations. This allows for straightforward automation scenarios where, for example, a recruiting dashboard can pull candidate metrics from an ATS, or new employee data can be posted to an HRIS with relative ease and reliability.

Data Mapping

Data mapping is the process of matching data fields from one system to corresponding fields in another system to ensure data consistency during integration. For instance, the “Candidate Name” field in an ATS must be mapped to the “Employee Name” field in an HRIS. Proper data mapping is critical for preventing data loss, ensuring accuracy, and enabling seamless data flow between platforms. Automation consultants frequently spend significant time on data mapping to guarantee that integrated systems “speak the same language” and maintain data integrity.

Integration Layer

An integration layer is a software component or platform that sits between disparate systems, facilitating their communication and data exchange. It acts as a mediator, often handling data transformations, routing, and error management. Tools like Make.com or Zapier can serve as integration layers, connecting an ATS to an HRIS, a payroll system, or other HR tools without custom coding. This layer enables organizations to build complex automation workflows that transcend the capabilities of individual systems, creating a unified HR operations framework.

Single Sign-On (SSO)

Single Sign-On (SSO) is an authentication scheme that allows users to log in with a single ID and password to gain access to multiple related, yet independent, software systems. In an HR context, SSO enhances security and user experience by simplifying access to various HR applications like an ATS, HRIS, learning management system (LMS), and benefits portal. It reduces “password fatigue” for employees and streamlines IT administration, improving efficiency for both users and IT support teams.

ETL (Extract, Transform, Load)

ETL refers to a three-step process used to integrate data from multiple sources into a data warehouse or another target system. “Extract” means retrieving data from its source (e.g., an ATS). “Transform” involves modifying the data to fit the target system’s requirements (e.g., formatting dates, standardizing names). “Load” means writing the transformed data into the destination (e.g., an HRIS). While often associated with large data migration, ETL principles are fundamental to any robust data integration and automation strategy within HR, ensuring clean and usable data.

Workflow Automation

Workflow automation is the design and implementation of rules that automatically execute a series of steps based on predefined triggers and conditions. In HR and recruiting, this can involve automating candidate screening based on specific criteria, sending automated interview invitations, or initiating onboarding tasks once an offer is accepted. By integrating ATS and HRIS via platforms like Make.com, organizations can create end-to-end automated workflows that reduce manual effort, speed up processes, and free up HR professionals for more strategic tasks.

Candidate Experience (CX)

Candidate Experience (CX) refers to the overall perception job seekers have of an organization’s hiring process. Technical integrations and automations significantly impact CX. A well-integrated ATS and HRIS can provide personalized communication, reduce application friction, and ensure timely updates, leading to a positive experience. Conversely, clunky systems, repetitive data entry, and slow response times due to poor integration can deter top talent. Optimizing technical terminology and processes directly contributes to a superior candidate journey.

Data Standardization

Data standardization is the process of ensuring that data across different systems adheres to a consistent format and set of values. For example, ensuring that “California” is always entered as “CA” or “California” across all systems. This is critical for effective ATS and HRIS integration, as inconsistent data can lead to errors, duplicate records, and difficulties in reporting and analysis. Automation tools can enforce standardization rules during data transfer, ensuring accuracy and reliability for all HR operations.

Compliance

In HR and recruiting, compliance refers to adhering to relevant laws, regulations, and internal policies, especially concerning data privacy (e.g., GDPR, CCPA), equal employment opportunity, and record-keeping. Technical integrations must be designed with compliance in mind, ensuring secure data transfer, proper consent management, and audit trails. An integrated ATS and HRIS can automate compliance checks and reporting, reducing the risk of penalties and maintaining ethical data handling practices, which is essential for any modern organization.

Legacy System

A legacy system is an outdated software application or hardware infrastructure that is still in use by an organization. While often reliable, legacy systems can be difficult to integrate with modern ATS and HRIS platforms due to older technology, lack of APIs, or proprietary data formats. Integrating legacy systems often requires specialized middleware or custom development to bridge the technological gap, a common challenge in HR digital transformation projects aimed at achieving a unified tech stack and seamless automation.

Microservices Architecture

Microservices architecture is a software development approach where an application is built as a collection of small, independent services, each running in its own process and communicating with other services, typically through APIs. Instead of a monolithic ATS or HRIS, a microservices approach might have separate services for candidate profiles, job postings, payroll, and benefits. This modularity allows for greater flexibility, easier integration, and independent scaling of different functionalities, simplifying upgrades and enabling more agile automation deployments in complex HR ecosystems.

If you would like to read more, we recommend this article: 5 AI-Powered Resume Parsing Automations for Highly Efficient & Strategic Hiring