COTA Health (Cota)

Slashes Time-to-Hire by Over 50% and Achieves 3% Vacancy Rate with Scout Talent

COTA Health is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting individuals with mental health and cognitive challenges to live well within their Toronto communities. Its ability to deliver on this vital mission hinges directly on the quality and availability of its compassionate staff.

Vacancy rate

decreased by 84.21% (from 19% to 3%)

10/10

Likelihood to Recommend

50%

Reduction in Time-to-Hire

However, inefficient manual recruitment hindered its ability to fill roles effectively. Rachel Stanford, Senior Director of People & Culture, recognized that transforming its talent acquisition was not just an operational improvement, but essential for the organization’s continued impact and success.

The Challenge

Prior to partnering with Scout Talent, COTA Health relied entirely on manual methods:

  • Inefficient Spreadsheets: Tracking candidates and managing the process was extremely time-consuming and prone to errors.
  • Lengthy Recruitment Cycles: The average time-to-hire stretched to 6.5 weeks, leading to candidate drop-off and delays in filling vital roles.
  • Critically High Vacancy Rates: At one point, the organization grappled with vacancy rates approaching 19%, severely impacting operations.
  • Communication Bottlenecks: Emailing resumes and updates between recruiters and hiring managers was inefficient, and information frequently got lost.
  • Cumbersome Onboarding: Managing new hire documents via email attachments was problematic due to size limits, firewall issues, and difficulty tracking completion.

The Solution

In October 2022, COTA Health partnered with Scout Talent, where they found a solution for streamlining their manual tasks. :Recruit, our Applicant Tracking System (ATS) addressed these challenges head-on. The transition was smooth, and the platform quickly delivered value:

✓ Streamlined Workflows: Provided a centralized, user-friendly platform replacing cumbersome spreadsheets. Automated key steps, improving communication and efficiency between the 2 core recruiters and approximately 30 hiring managers.

✓ AI Screen Feature: Leveraged our AI Suite to provide quick candidate summaries, saving significant review time for hiring managers and highlighting strengths.

✓ Efficient Onboarding Module: Transformed the onboarding process using our :Onboard module by allowing all documents to be sent and received securely through the dashboard.

✓ Robust Reporting: Enabled easy access to crucial recruitment data, facilitating better reporting to the CEO and Board.

The Results

Since implementing with Scout Talent, COTA Health’s recruitment function yielded dramatic and measurable improvements:

  • 50% Reduction in Time-to-Hire
    By replacing manual processes with Scout Talent’s AI-powered Applicant Tracking System, they significantly streamlined workflows, reducing administrative burden and freeing up valuable time for recruiters and hiring managers. COTA Health reduced their average time-to-hire from 6.5 weeks to just 3.
  • Achieved and Maintained an Impressively low 3% Vacancy Rate
    COTA Health’s vacancy rate decreased by 84.21%, achieving a significant improvement from previous highs.
  • Improved the Onboarding Experience
    Using our module :Onboard, COTA Health improved the onboarding process for new hires, making it seamless and efficient.

“It really has streamlined our recruitment. We went from about 6 and a half weeks to 3 weeks to recruit.”

Rachel Stanford,
Senior Director, People & Culture, COTA Health

COTA Health

Better Recruitment. Stronger Organisations.

Choose the modules you need today. Add more as your hiring grows. Transparent, modular, on your terms.

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Alex Fraser and Hanson

Why Choose Scout Talent

“I’m aware of the silly tricks that those in the industry play, which is why we use Scout Talent instead of an agency! We’ve actually done A/B testing on Scout Talent vs a recruiter, and the quality was chalk and cheese- no kidding, you can quote me.”

– Melissa Kirby
Sharpe and Abel

Our Total Talent Acquisition Software

Recruitment Campaign Services
The right mix of expertise, structure, and care, our recruitment campaigns make hiring faster, easier, and more cost-effective

Employer Branding
Position your company as an employer of choice with a strong employer brand

Employee Engagement Surveys
Gain insights on how your people feel at work so you can boost performance, retention, and culture

Recruitment Process Outsourcing
Expert recruiters and proven processes to hire top talent efficiently and more cost-effectively

Learning Services
We design customised digital training, delivered through a powerful LMS that streamlines, tracks, and measures learning—building skills and boosting performance.

Key Benefits

Expert-led campaigns crafted with strategy and care to connect you with the right people quickly, easily and cost-effectively.
Combine authentic employer branding with engagement insights to create workplaces where top talent wants to belong and stay.
Access seasoned recruiters who work inside your business—bringing flexibility and proven processes without the cost or risk of extra headcount.
Show candidates and employees you invest in their future with development pathways that make your organisation a magnet for great people.
Why Choose Scout Talent

“I’ve been a user of Scout’s software for many years, working with both the full enterprise solution :Recruit and the lite :Essentials platform. I appreciate that Scout offers fit-for-purpose options to suit different business needs.



Scout’s ATS has been instrumental in driving efficiency and productivity. In a previous project …This transformation saved our team significant time… and eliminated room for error with its intuitive workflow and transparent features.



It’s a fantastic product, and we couldn’t be happier with the results.”

– Wendy Woodford
People and Culture Manager
Housing Trust

Our Total Talent Acquisition Software

:Recruit
Your AI-powered total talent acquisition ATS and CRM solution

:Recruit Essentials
Your AI-powered Lite version of :Recruit tailored for small organisations

:Onboard
Your digital contract creation

:Recruit Pro
Your AI-powered :Recruit + :Onboard, backed by human expertise, tools, analytics, and specialist support

:Engage
Your recruitment marketing and candidate pooling platform

Scout Learning
Your customisable LMS with specialist support

Scout Talent App
Your mobile application helping you hire on the go

Felix
Your AI-powered talent acquisition assistant

Key Features

Post once, publish everywhere, and track candidates from application to hire in a single platform.

Leverage AI to screen faster, uncover hidden talent, and craft compelling job ads that attract the right candidates.

Make confident hiring decisions with dashboards that highlight pipeline health, recruiter performance, and ROI.

Connect with job boards, HRIS, payroll, and more, keeping your recruitment process fluid and connected.