How to run effective ATS vendor demos (with example scorecards)

Don’t let vendors give you their “one size fits all” pitch. Send vendors your specific use cases ahead of time. Not a generic “show us candidate management,” but actual scenarios: “Show us how a hiring manager would review 50 applications for a senior developer role, shortlist 8 candidates, and schedule interviews across 3 time zones.”

Give them real data if possible (anonymized, obviously). Most demos use perfect sample data with 3 candidates called “John Smith.” Your reality involves messy CVs, incomplete applications, and candidates who apply to multiple roles simultaneously.

Set clear expectations about what you want to see. Include your deal-breaker requirements, specific integrations you need, and any workflow quirks that are important to your process.

Good vendors will tailor their demo accordingly. Poor vendors will ignore your brief and show their standard presentation anyway.

Opening: Quick vendor overview, but keep it brief. You’re not here for their company history. You want to see their software and what it can do for you.

Core functionality: Walk through your most common recruitment scenario end-to-end. Post a job, receive applications, screen candidates, schedule interviews, make decisions. Watch how many clicks each task takes and whether the process feels intuitive.

Edge cases: This is where you separate good systems from great ones. How do they handle bulk actions? What happens when candidates withdraw? Can you easily manage interview panel availability? These scenarios reveal system limitations that don’t show up in happy-path demos.

Integration demo: If integrations matter to you, see them working. Don’t accept “it integrates with your HRIS.” Ask them to show data flowing between systems. Many “integrations” are actually manual export/import processes in disguise.

Questions and discussion: Use this time for specific concerns, not generic questions you could answer from their website.

Create a simple scorecard for each demo. Don’t overthink it. You want something you can fill out quickly while watching. Here’s a basic structure:

Ease of use (1-5): How intuitive did the interface feel? Could your hiring managers figure it out without extensive training?

Functionality fit (1-5): How well does it handle your specific requirements without workarounds?

Performance (1-5): Did it feel fast and responsive, or were there noticeable delays?

Overall impression (1-5): Trust your gut. Does this feel like a system your team would actually want to use?

Include space for notes: Specific features you liked, concerns that came up, questions to follow up on.

Keep your demo attendance consistent but representative. You want the same core group at every demo to ensure fair comparisons, but make sure you include the people who’ll actually use the system daily.

Essential attendees (should be at every demo)

• Project lead (often the lead recruiter, though sometimes HR leadership): completes the scorecard and manages overall evaluation
• Lead recruiter or recruitment team representative: focuses on day-to-day usability and workflow efficiency

Additional attendees (can join specific demos or sections)

• Key hiring manager: evaluates ease of use from the manager perspective and candidate review processes. For larger organizations, consider a separate short session focused on the hiring manager experience rather than having them sit through entire vendor demos.
• IT representative: assesses technical aspects, security, and integration requirements. Many organizations schedule separate IT-focused calls to dive deep into security, compliance, and technical architecture without taking up time in the main demo.

The key is keeping your core evaluation consistent across all vendors while bringing in specialists when their expertise is most relevant. Smaller organizations might include everyone in each demo, while larger companies often break this into focused sessions to respect everyone’s time and get more targeted feedback.

Each core attendee should complete their own scorecard independently during the demo, then compare notes afterwards. This prevents groupthink and captures different perspectives on the same system. The project lead consolidates feedback but shouldn’t override individual scores. Different viewpoints often reveal important system limitations or strengths.

Most importantly, have the same core people attend all demos. Additional attendees can be included to focus on specific things, and can contribute to the evaluation process from their unique perspective.

Pay attention to how many clicks common tasks require. If posting a job takes 12 steps, that’s a red flag. Your recruiters do this stuff dozens of times per week. Efficiency matters.

Notice how the system handles errors. Ask them to show you what happens when something goes wrong. Do error messages actually help users fix problems, or are they generic technical gibberish?

Watch the vendor’s reaction to unexpected questions. Good systems (and good vendors) handle curveballs gracefully. If every question outside their script causes panic, that’s telling you something about both their product knowledge and system flexibility.

Ask about mobile experience if your team works remotely or travels. Many ATS platforms look great on desktop but are painful on tablets or phones. If mobile access matters to your workflow, see it demonstrated, don’t just take their word for it.

Instead of asking “Can you do X?” ask “Show me how you do X.” Observing the experience first hand gives you a much more insightful answer than a “yes” or “no” response.

Ask about recent customer implementations similar to yours. Can they share specific examples (with permission) of how they’ve solved similar challenges? Vague answers suggest limited relevant experience.

Dig into their support model during the demo. Who would you contact with problems? What are typical response times? Is support included in your license fee or an additional cost? 

Ask about user training and onboarding. How do they help new users get up to speed? Do they have online resources, training videos, or dedicated customer success support? User adoption makes or breaks ATS implementations.

Fill out your scorecard immediately while everything’s fresh in your memory. Waiting until you’ve seen all vendors makes earlier demos blur together.

Send follow-up questions promptly. Good vendors will respond quickly with detailed answers. Poor vendors will take forever or give vague responses.

Schedule a quick demo debrief within 24 hours with your core evaluation team (project lead, lead recruiter, key hiring manager, IT representative). This should be a brief 15-minute session to capture initial impressions while they’re still current and identify any immediate follow-up questions.

Most importantly, resist the urge to make decisions immediately after seeing an impressive demo. The “wow factor” wears off quickly if the system doesn’t actually solve your problems.