Nov. 3, 2009 (Business Wire) -- Ultimate Software (Nasdaq:ULTI), a leading provider of end-to-end strategic human resources, payroll, and talent management solutions, announced today that Sorenson Communications, a provider of industry-leading Video Relay Services (VRS) for deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals, is using the UltiPro human capital management solution and its talent acquisition tools to enhance and accelerate its recruitment processes.

Before switching to UltiPro, Sorenson Communications was relying on an in-house HR solution provided by its former parent company for its 4,700 employees. Because its prior system did not offer talent acquisition functionality, Sorenson’s HR team managed its recruitment processes manually with paper, faxes, and emails. Sorenson went live on UltiPro in 2006 and added UltiPro Recruitment in February 2009. Since deploying UltiPro’s recruiting tools, Sorenson has:

• Reduced the length of the hiring process for its global workforce from approximately three weeks to three days
• Integrated UltiPro with background checks and drug-screening services
• Improved information management and compliance reporting

With a growing workforce dispersed throughout the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Canada, Sorenson Communications was manually moving recruiting and hiring paperwork through the approval channel at a rate of approximately 150 new hires per month. Most of the company’s applicants are referrals, and applicants would submit a paper application for review. Hiring managers would then contact and interview qualified candidates. Once a new employee was selected, managers would alert HR associates who would begin the process of drug screening and background checks. After the tests results were completed and the employee was approved, Sorenson’s recruiting staff often waited for four levels of internal sign-offs, causing further delays. With UltiPro, this process has been streamlined, and time-to-hire has improved significantly.

“With UltiPro, the hiring process has been cut from about three weeks to approximately three days because information is automatically routed from person to person,” said Bob Brown, HR generalist with Sorenson Communications. “We have hired about 1,200 people this year using UltiPro’s recruitment solution, including employees in Puerto Rico and Canada. We are experiencing enormous efficiencies.”

In addition to expediting approvals for recruitment, Sorenson has achieved more time savings by automating many other HR-related transactions. For example, companies can use UltiPro to automatically alert IT staff to reserve hardware and software for new employees. UltiPro users can also notify third-party providers about necessary elements for new employees to become fully onboarded.