13 Best Employee Referral Software to Streamline Your Recruitment Process

Are you looking for the best employee referral software to streamline your recruitment process?

Employee referral software is a platform for employee referrals and lets you oversee your employee referral programs (ERPs). The software incentivizes your employers to become your company’s brand ambassadors by promoting job openings to their friends and relatives.

But it’s the recruitment professionals, HR personnel, and hiring managers that see the biggest benefits of an employee referral platform. It lets them hire quality candidates, speed up⏲️ the recruitment process, and manage employee referral bonus payouts.

In this article, I will share some of the best employee referral software that simplifies job referrals for employees and expedites the recruitment process for the recruitment team – a win-win🤝 for both parties.

So, let’s jump into the article.

Why Use Employee Referral Software?

Employee referrals are a popular and effective way for organizations to find new talent to fill their open job positions. A referred candidate is often given more attention and priority over other candidates since it’s a recommendation from a trusted employee.

Employee referral software is a modern platform to automate and simplify the referral process. It typically includes features such as:

✅ Referral Tracking: Employee referral software allows employees to submit referrals through the systematic platform. It also lets recruiters streamline the progress of each referral.

✅ Candidate Management: With the software, recruiters can easily manage and organize candidate profiles and resumes to facilitate quicker communication.

✅ Communication Tools: Most employee referral platforms have built-in communication tools that allow smooth interactions between recruiters, employees, and referred candidates.

✅ Analytics and Reporting: These software solutions help you manage the performance and success of your employee referral program with deep analytics and timely reporting.

✅ Incentive Management: Many software solutions allow companies to set up and manage referral rewards and incentives for employees who successfully refer candidates who get hired.

Also, read Best employee onboarding software for HRs.

Benefits of Employee Referral Platforms:

#1. Quality Hiring at Less Cost

Referrals can also be valuable for firms by lowering the costs associated with hiring new employees. For example, firms need to spend less time conducting interviews and reviewing resumes when relying on referrals. 

Studies in sociology and economics have shown that referrals can help reduce recruiting costs. On average, a referred employee takes 29 days to be hired. On the other hand, hiring through job boards takes 39 days, and from career sites, it takes a staggering 55 days!

Also, according to CareerBuilder, 82% of employees agreed that referrals offer the highest ROI and, as a result, save about $3,000 in recruiting costs per hire.

#2. Improved Retention

In one of its studies, iCIMS calculated the median employment duration for referral hires and non-referral hires. The study encompassed over 50 companies and 91,000 employees. 

Source: iCIMS

The study concluded that more than 50% of referred employees stayed with the company for at least 38 months. On the other hand, non-referred employees stayed for only 22 months – that’s 70% less turnover.

#3. Positive Employer Branding

A successful employee referral program can enhance the company’s reputation as an employer of choice, attracting top talent and boosting employer branding.

Also, incentivizing current employees with monetary rewards adds an element of fun and motivation for employees, leading to increased participation. Many employee referral software solutions also have social sharing options, allowing employees to engage better and be more involved in the company’s growth and success.

Best Employee Referral Software

Your employees can refer candidates organically or through a built-in ATS (Application Tracking System), but it’s always advised to collaborate with a dedicated employee referral tool. 

A dedicated platform to manage your employee referral platform can boost the number of referrals and lets you easily manage, track, and reward.

Here’s a list of some of the best employee referral vendors that can help you implement a successful employee referral program.

Recruitee

Recruitee is a well-known applicant tracking system (ATS) and recruitment software platform that offers various tools for managing the recruitment process, from posting job openings to tracking candidates.

One of the recent tools they have to offer is ReferralsHub. This employee referral software opens up the opportunity for your employees to participate in the recruitment process in a transparent way!

Encourage your employees to participate in recruitment by gamifying the recruitment process – offer rewards, cash incentives, or even a trip to Yellowstone. 😉

ReferralsHub is a popular software for managing your employee referral program, as it is used by more than 5000 companies globally. Their users include Semrush, Transcom, Lemonway, and more. They also have mobile apps for iOS and Android mobile phones to refer, manage, and track on the go!

What do users love😍?

⭐ Modern Application Tracking System (ATS)

⭐ Employee referral apps for Android and iOS

⭐ User-friendly setup

You can combine ReferralsHub with Recruitee’s other products and multi-post on various recruitment channels to ensure your job openings are seen by more people. You can also create and manage smart campaigns to reach the relevant candidates easily.

ERIN

ERIN is a market leader in the employee referral software segment. The company claims they have increased employee referral hiring by 5X and decreased turnover by 50% for their clients. 

ERIN’s mission is to assist businesses in becoming as efficient as possible with human capital management and to support them in building the teams they need to achieve success. The software ERIN uses is powered by a one-of-a-kind artificial intelligence system.

Since ERIN is a mobile-first platform, its intuitive interface lets your employees sync their network with the platform and make referral recommendations in less than 30 seconds. Its mobile-first approach makes it suitable for all types of referrals, including blue-collar roles that are traditionally overlooked by most referral tech.

What do users love😍?

⭐ Allows employees to refer in under 30 seconds

⭐ Fully automated and integrated ATS, emails, and mobile notifications

⭐ Intuitive mobile-first interface

ERIN also includes training modules in all of their packages. The modules include administrator, recruiter, and Employee training.

Also, read Employee management software for small-scale businesses.

Freshteam

Freshteam by Freshworks is a modern, beginner-friendly employee referral software that lets your employees refer candidates in just one click!

All the employee needs to do is scan through the list of job openings in the company and click on “Refer a Candidate” to refer a candidate. Once the resume is uploaded, Freshteam takes over the process.

The employee referral platform automatically extracts and fills in all the relevant information and adds the referred candidate to the recruitment pipeline. 

Also, the employees can know the status of their referrals in real-time – last updated date, job status, interviewer, current stage, etc. The employee can see everything from their Freshteam Dashboard in one glance.

Freshteam also lets you archive candidates who are good but not fit for current open positions. In the future, if a suitable position opens up, you surely want to contact this employee. In such cases, you can add the candidate profile to Freshteam Talent Pool. 

This can be a precious talent pool that can expedite your future recruitment processes. When you find the right fit, you can reach out to the candidate with one click. 

One unique feature I’d like to highlight about Freshteam is that it suggests suitable profiles for a job opening by intelligently scanning the talent pool. So sometimes, you won’t even have to look for the right candidate; you might already have them in your talent pool!

What do users love😍?

⭐ Absolute transparency. No hidden charges.

⭐ Easy one-click referral system

⭐ Intelligent mapping of candidate profiles in the talent pool

If you’re looking for free employee referral software, then Freshteam does offer a 21-day free trial for all of its plans. After the trial period, you can either continue with the plan or switch to a new plan that suits your needs. 

Skillfuel

Skillfuel’s employee referral tracking software aims to eliminate the headaches of manual referral tracking by automating the distribution and tracking of referred candidates.

The software’s advanced algorithm promotes social engagement among your employees with optimized notifications/messages. 

Skillfuel’s incentive management feature lets you manage your talent and referral incentives with ease. It can also automate probation periods and notifications to payroll for payouts, ensuring better tracking and accountability.

Enable a seamless recruitment experience by connecting to Skillfuel’s HR recruitment and ATS. It also gives your hiring team the ability to consolidate all candidate profiles and employee referrals in a single database.

What do users love😍?

⭐ Free trial version

⭐ Machine-learning backed talent recommendations

⭐ All information in a single database

Skillfuel’s software proactively tracks and identifies the best-fit candidates in your organization’s existing collective network. Due to its machine-learning technology, the recommendations get better with time. Also, get access to flexible talent pools with mobile referral capabilities.

HireUp

HireUp is a popular software for managing your employee engagement and referral programs. It lets you create an employee-first referral experience and is used by major companies like Kelly, Personify, KPMG, and more.

With HireUp’s platform, your employees can easily share job openings on their social profiles. This simplification gives your job openings more exposure and promotes positive employee branding.

HireUp’s real-time updates and customized notifications let the recruitment team, the candidate, and the referrer stay in the loop. You can even create campaigns and let your current employee network know about the open referral opportunities.

What do users love😍?

⭐ Referral Health Calculator to check the strength of your current referral culture

⭐ Mobile apps for iOS and Android

⭐ Branded referral campaigns

Gamify the entire referral process, offer rewards and incentives, integrate with other tools for the seamless recruitment process, create branded campaigns, and promote social sharing with the user-friendly mobile app – do it all with HireUp.

Referrals

Do you want to make tracking and managing your employee referral program a natural extension of your recruitment process? Referrals by Teamable lets you do that. Leverage your current organizational network to scale, manage, and track your job referral program with ease. Encourage your employees to participate in recruitment and leverage their connections to build your dream team.

In fact, Teamable claims that it is 6X easier to convince warm referrals to join your company. Teamable’s referral engine smoothly integrates with your sourcing workflow. This saves time and ensures you get the best out of all the referral opportunities available.

What do users love😍?

⭐ Scaling capabilities by integrating with other Teamable products

⭐ One-click easy referrals

⭐ Automated tracking and managing of the employee referral program

You can combine Referrals with Teamable’s other products as well. For example, Teamable offers a Chrome extension that lets you source from anywhere on the internet with just one click. You can also harness their AI capabilities to expedite your hiring process.

Workable

If you want to see how AI can help you leverage the power of your employee network, then you should try Workable. It’s one of the most popular job platforms for remote work.

Freelancers and remote job searchers have been using this platform for years, but it also has recruitment features that let HR managers and recruitment teams hire candidates easier than ever.

Workable’s repository comes with advanced tools that simplify the referring process and make the recruitment process quick and seamless. The employees only need to upload a resume, provide a name, and share a link to their online profile – it’s that simple.

Workable is one of the best employee referral software if you want an intuitive and user-friendly interface. It also helps you boost employee participation with advanced referral tracking, performance rewards, and social sharing. This kind of gamified referral program makes the recruitment process engaging.

 What do users love😍?

⭐ Transparent and accessible referral system

⭐ AI-powered writing assistant

⭐ Automated job alerts and referral tracking

The software’s AI-powered writing assistant lets you create amazing job descriptions in seconds and begin your recruitment process in no time.

Team Engine

Team Engine simplifies your employee referral process by sending automated text messages to your current employee network and letting them submit referrals by just typing in the name and number of the candidate.

Enable automated tracking of your referred candidates with Team Engine’s referral tool. Organize everything in one place, eliminate spreadsheet-tracking or delayed payout dates.

Team Engine’s algorithm lets you send automated text messages to referred candidates within an hour of referral. With Team Engine’s ATS, reduce the cost per hire, facilitate quicker hiring, and keep your referrals and employees in a loop. 

What do users love😍?

⭐ Simple interface

⭐ Effective talent pool

⭐ Affordable plans for small businesses

If you are looking for basic employee referral software, Team Engine is just the right fit for small businesses. 

CVViZ

CVViZ is an employee referral software that focuses on AI-based referral tracking and gamified employee engagement. The software uses game mechanics like the reward points system, team competition, and leaderboards.

This type of gamification makes your employee referral programs interactive, fun, and more effective. With CVViZ, allow your employees to refer their buddies and let them track all their employee referrals, referral bonuses, current stage of hiring, etc.

CVViZ’s AI-powered resume screening scans the available resumes and identifies the best ones. The software’s AI abilities also allow you to auto-discover the best candidates from past employee referrals.

What do users love😍?

⭐ AI-powered resume screening

⭐ Integration possibilities

⭐ Gamified employee engagement

CVViZ also facilitates smooth integration with other Applicant Tracking Systems (ATSs) for smooth hiring. If you want to give cash bonuses for successful referrals, integrate CVViZ with your payroll system.

Jobvite

Jobvite is a full recruitment platform that can assist in everything across the recruitment funnel. You can source and manage candidates with the in-built CRM; you can create and manage workflows to communicate with hiring managers and even get deep insights and analytics through custom dashboards and reports.

Jobvite allows employees to refer through their social media profiles. For example, a custom Facebook application that allows employees to send their connections private invitations to apply for open jobs.

What do users love😍?

⭐ Automated feedback and reward schemes

⭐ Extensive tracking abilities

⭐ Social media integration

Jobvite is a great tool if you’re looking for a talent management suite that also facilitates an awesome employee referral system. With Jobvite, you can source, hire, onboard, etc. – Jobvite can do everything.

Hireology

Hireology is a one-stop shop for recruiting, hiring, and employee management. It empowers decentralized businesses to build their best teams by providing HR and business leaders with the support and tools they need to manage the entire employee lifecycle in one seamless platform. 

Hireology is used by over 7,500 businesses across a variety of industries, including retail automotive, healthcare, professional and consumer services, and hospitality, to help them put people at the center of their organizations.

With Hireology, you can create and run automated referral campaigns with custom QR codes and TextApply – Hireology’s proprietary feature. You can also run automated internal email and text campaigns to earn referrals from multiple channels

What do users love😍?

⭐ Referral HRIS and ATS integrations

⭐ Deep analytics and in-app insights

⭐ Passive talent pipelines

Hireology also offers internal mobility by pushing internal job openings to current employees. With in-app data and analytics, monitor the effectiveness of your program and adjust your referral program accordingly.

Boon

Boon is said to be the #1 employee referral program. The software is said to deliver consistent results, and its scalability makes it suitable for any industry or business size. Boon is used by giants like Intel, SpaceX, Turing, and more.

A unique but fun feature that I like about Boon is that the platform collects data on a variety of criteria and gives employees a “Boon Score”. This score is based on the number of referrals an employee makes and how well those referrals perform in the hiring process.

Boon can seamlessly integrate with your existing hiring systems – for example, ATS – or you can use it as your standalone referral software. Its intuitive design lets you automate status updates for each recruitment stage. 

What do users love😍?

⭐ Seamless referral process on mobile and web

⭐ Unique and user-friendly referral widget

⭐ Quick setup experience

Boon promises you can set up a successful employee referral program in under 30 seconds – no logins, no signups. Jobs are automatically pulled and updated from your current careers page. Boon’s simple referral widget allows your employees to send referrals from anywhere.

CleverConnect

In Europe, CleverConnect is the market leader in SaaS talent acquisition solutions. Its Candidate Experience platform blends AI and human intelligence to create a seamless bridge between companies and their candidates. 

CleverConnect’s “Talent Engagement Engine” offers an advanced mobile app, gamified experience, dedicated email campaigns, and so much more. All these features give you the freedom to set up an engaging, straightforward, and transparent employee referral program.

What do users love😍?

⭐ GDPR-compliant employee referral program

⭐ Program and reward customizations based on vacancy, location, seniority, etc.

⭐ Automated notifications, emails, newsletters, and even success stories

CleverConnect is used by 2,500+ companies and 9M+ candidates every day for job boards, employee referrals, video interviews, talent mapping, and more. In June 2022, CleverConnect merged with Talentry (Germany) to strengthen its foothold in Europe. Currently, the software is present in France, Germany, Italy, and Spain.

Final Thoughts

Most companies have increased their funds for sourcing and recruiting but fail to measure the ROI of their investments. The right employee referral software can help you defines goals and measure your ROI with ease.

It is proven that employee referrals are the most effective hiring source. A company must spread awareness among its employees by rewarding them for their converted referrals and also gamifying the recruitment process for increased engagement.

A user-friendly job referral platform makes it easy for your employees to share opportunities with their network. In fact, companies that provide links so that workers can share jobs on social media and through text saw 3X more employee participation.

Employee referral solutions are helping companies optimize their employee referral programs and provide a better experience for recruiters, candidates, and employees.

What to read next? Read about employee background check software.