US companies’ online application process most tedious on average, compared to UK and Germany

• WorkGenius measured the amount of individual clicks needed to complete online applications at Dow Jones, DAX 40 and FTSE 100 companies
• US companies provide on average the most tedious online application process, surveyed German companies are fastest
• Walgreen Boots Alliance has the slowest process of all, German company Henkel offers the fastest

When compared with German and UK companies, their US counterparts offer the slowest online application process for job openings for IT professionals, as WorkGenius’ (www.workgenius.com) analysis has shown. The scale up headquartered in New York City, NY with offices in Hamburg, London, Chicago and Los Angeles, closely examined job openings for IT professionals at up to 40 businesses of the largest stock indexes of the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany. Looking at the average number of clicks needed to complete an application process, the US comes in slowest at 55 clicks on average, whereas German companies offer the fastest process at 28 clicks. UK companies come in second at 40 clicks on average.

Many US companies among the slowest processes surveyed

Some businesses offer such cumbersome processes that they have been excluded from the research. Such is the case with Apple: The tech-giant requires applicants to create an Apple-ID, including e-mail and phone verification, prior to the actual application process.

Many of the most elaborate processes are found at US companies, which therefore form the end of the ranking: Walgreens Boots Alliance, e.g., requires a total of 89 clicks, making it the slowest process discovered by WorkGenius. Johnson and Johnson at 81 clicks and Nike at 77 clicks come in second to last and third to last. In the UK, Barclay’s and BT Group are last, each requiring 70 clicks until the application is finished. In contrast, the most tedious application in Germany was found for an opening at the software company SAP: 51 clicks are needed to apply for a position.

These companies offer the fastest process

Applications at the German chemical company Henkel require a mere nine clicks from the user – the fastest process of all examined firms and a testament to Germany’s renowned efficiency. Chemical company Brenntag and UK’s Coca-Cola HBC come in second at ten clicks required. The fastest process in the US can be found at McDonald’s. However, at 25 clicks, it is more than twice as laborious as the fastest European companies’ application process.

Many companies require prior registration

Requiring prior registration before the start of the application process significantly reduces its speed, while simultaneously increasing the needed input from the applicant. Only five of the examined companies listed in the Dow Jones offer applications without prior registration, again making US companies’ applications the most tedious in this regard on average. UK businesses come in second, as only twelve companies allow applicants to apply without setting up an account beforehand. German companies are, again, more efficient, as 21 of 40 examined companies allow applications without prior registration.

PageSpeed barely differs among companies examined

WorkGenius also compared values produced by PageSpeed, an online tool able to measure the performance and speed of any given website, to further analyze the speed of the respective companies’ applications hubs. German companies PUMA and Brenntag are ranked highest at 98 points, though US companies Disney, Cisco, and Caterpillar come close at 97 points as well as UK firm BAE Systems with 97 points as well.

As PageSpeed measurements tend to fluctuate, it’s impossible to determine a true winner of this ranking. ”Losers” with particularly low scores can be found in every country, ranging from 13 points for Volkswagen in Germany to 17 points for Salesforce in the US and 23 points for GSK in the UK.

WorkGenius’ Chief Product Officer, Daniel Barke, comments on the results: “Our research indicates that German companies are adapting to the new job market. The future workforce doesn’t want to be hindered by lengthy and unintuitive application processes, meaning the companies themselves would also gain from more accessible and faster processes. Extensive application forms will discourage applicants. At WorkGenius, we made these findings our business model: Our A.I.-based matching algorithm connects freelancers and companies quickly and effortlessly, requiring just a few clicks.”

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