How WeVote Streamlined Its Recruitment Process

As a nonpartisan, nonprofit, digital voter guide, WeVote enables users to view their ballots, see endorsements for all candidates and measures from their local network, and collaborate with others who share their values.

About WeVote

WeVote is a volunteer-staffed nonprofit organization that maintains a digital voter guide informed by the issues users care about and the people they trust. Through its free, nonpartisan, open-source website and mobile app platforms, WeVote seeks to help users become better voters, up and down the ballot.

The organization targets the digital generation of voters: the individuals aged 17 to 35 who are less likely to engage with traditional voter guides. To help them understand candidate positions and relevant issues, WeVote curates content based on the users’ zip codes, as well as the candidates and causes they select. Users can even take WeVote with them to the polls for an easy-to-use reference when voting.

Streamlining Complex Hiring Processes

When Greg Buechler joined WeVote, the organization tasked him with rapidly scaling its operations and volunteer recruitment process. After examining the current process and having discussions with the organization’s executive director, Greg knew that the existing talent acquisition process had to be revamped. This system was not scalable, especially given the organization’s rapid growth needs and the goal to attract digital-generation volunteers efficiently.

“The entire process of acquiring talent was run with a Google Sheet and a Google Doc,” said Greg. “I began to lobby pretty heavily for a robust applicant tracking system.”

Having spent more than 30 years in the talent acquisition space, Greg has worked with at least ten different applicant tracking systems (ATS) solutions. He knew the candidate experience and the internal recruitment experience exceptionally well, so he was clear on the exact features he needed to make the WeVote talent acquisition process as frictionless as possible.

WeVote gave Greg the green light to search for an ATS solution. However, the organization’s unique needs complicated the situation: As a nonprofit with limited resources, WeVote required a solution that was cost-effective yet powerful enough to handle a high volume of applicants and streamline the recruitment process. Additionally, the solution needed to be lightweight, easy to implement, and highly customizable to accommodate various recruitment workflows and integrate seamlessly with other tools and platforms.

It seemed impossible to find a solution that would fulfill each requirement, but Greg found everything he needed in JazzHR.

“JazzHR checked all the boxes,” said Greg. “Plus, it has a clean, easy-to-use interface that limits the ability of users to make errors.”

Recruiting Process Optimization

JazzHR is an ATS that easily scales to help recruiters find and hire the right talent. With JazzHR, recruiters enjoy an effortlessly streamlined solution that replaces time-consuming, manual hiring tasks. JazzHR stood out as an optimal solution, thanks to its comprehensive feature set tailored to the needs of small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) and nonprofits like WeVote.

“Our current staff stands at 128, plus 15 interns, and 25 hires in the pipeline,” said Greg. “I was the 16th person brought on board. We couldn’t have scaled to this size in just ten months using the manual processes that were in place before I arrived. To get to our current staffing level, we reviewed 5,732 candidates. For a nonprofit that is literally a tiny little speck on the wall among all the different nonprofits and volunteering opportunities out there, we couldn’t have gotten all those applicants without JazzHR’s automation and its integrations.”

The selection of JazzHR was driven by several key attributes integral to WeVote’s mission and operational needs. Foremost among these was JazzHR’s ability to offer a high degree of automation and efficiency. The platform’s capability to automate repetitive tasks, such as Bulk Email and Candidate Texting, allowed WeVote’s recruitment team to focus on more strategic aspects, such as candidate engagement.

“Even though we aren’t officially hiring people, they are still joining our volunteer organization,” said Greg. “That means we can take advantage of JazzHR’s e-signature integration to get all necessary documents signed quickly and easily. We don’t have a human capital management system, so JazzHR keeps everything in one system of record.”

Moreover, JazzHR provided an unparalleled level of customization and flexibility, enabling Greg to tailor the process to fit his specific needs. Its solution also proved affordable, which is especially critical for a nonprofit organization like WeVote. JazzHR’s competitive pricing, coupled with its nonprofit discounts, made it an economically viable solution for WeVote, allowing it to allocate resources more efficiently toward its primary mission of voter education.

Growth Supported by a Scalable Platform

By leveraging JazzHR’s comprehensive suite of features, WeVote was not only able to rapidly scale its operations but also enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of its recruitment strategy. JazzHR’s role in facilitating WeVote’s growth and success highlights the platform’s value as a strategic tool for nonprofits and SMBs that aim to optimize their recruitment processes and achieve their organizational objectives.

Rapid Scaling of Team Size

Within just ten months, WeVote expanded its team from a handful of initial volunteers to 128 plus 15 interns thanks to the scalability of JazzHR’s efficient recruitment processes.

Extensive Candidate Reach

JazzHR enabled WeVote to process a staggering 5,732 candidates, showcasing the ATS’s capability to attract and manage a wide pool of applicants through its automation and integrations.

Enhanced Candidate Experience

The user-friendly interface of JazzHR not only simplified the application process for candidates but also ensured a seamless experience for the recruitment team. This contributed to higher engagement rates and candidate satisfaction.

Increased Operational Efficiency

The reduction in time spent on administrative tasks translated into a more agile and responsive recruitment process. As a result, WeVote could quickly adapt to the dynamic needs of its organization and mission.