COMPARISON GUIDE

Tanova vs. Manual CV Screening

A comprehensive comparison of AI-powered evaluation vs. traditional manual screening. Discover how Tanova saves time, reduces bias, and improves hiring quality.

20x Faster
60 seconds vs. 15-20 minutes per CV
100% Consistent
Same evaluation criteria for every candidate
Zero Bias
Objective scoring without unconscious bias

Detailed Comparison

FeatureManual ScreeningTanova AI
Time per CV 15-20 minutes
Reading, analyzing, note-taking
60 seconds
Instant comprehensive analysis
Consistency Variable
Depends on recruiter mood, fatigue, time of day
100% consistent
Same criteria applied to every candidate
Unconscious Bias Present
Name, photo, university, age, gender
Minimized
Focus on skills, experience, and fit
Evaluation Depth~ Surface level
Quick scan of experience and skills
7-dimensional analysis
Qualifications, capabilities, culture fit, expectations
Hidden Gem Detection Often missed
Non-traditional candidates filtered out
Actively detected
Identifies career changers and self-taught talent
Interview Preparation~ Manual
Recruiter generates questions separately
Auto-generated questions
Tailored questions based on CV and concerns
Documentation~ Sparse notes
Brief comments, if any
Full evaluation report
Detailed strengths, concerns, scores, and reasoning
Audit Trail Limited
Hard to track decision rationale
Complete history
Who evaluated when, with full reasoning
Scalability Limited
Bottleneck during high-volume hiring
Unlimited
Process hundreds of CVs simultaneously
Cost per Evaluation €5-10
20 minutes × €15-30/hr recruiter rate
€1.40-€2.80
Or €0.07-€0.14 for quick screens
GDPR Compliance~ Manual tracking
Spreadsheets and reminders needed
Automated
Built-in retention management and deletion

Real-World Scenarios

High-Volume Hiring

Scenario: Startup needs to hire 5 developers from 200 applications

Manual Screening:
200 CVs × 20 min = 67 hours (1.7 weeks full-time)
With Tanova:
200 quick screens × 10 sec = 33 minutes
Top 50 full evaluations = +25 minutes
Total: ~1 hour
Result: 67x faster screening

Recruitment Agency

Scenario: Agency handling 10 client roles with 50 candidates each

Manual Screening:
500 CVs × 15 min = 125 hours
Cost: 125 hrs × €25/hr = €3,125
With Tanova:
500 evaluations × €1.40-€2.80 = €700-€1,400
+ 5 hours review time = €825-€1,525 total
Result: €1,600-€2,300 saved (51-74% cost reduction)

Quality Improvement

Scenario: Finding the right candidate, not just the fastest hire

Manual screening challenges:
  • Recruiter fatigue after reviewing 20+ CVs
  • First-impression bias (strong/weak intro paragraph)
  • Overlooking career changers with transferable skills
  • Inconsistent evaluation criteria between candidates
Tanova advantages:
  • ✓ Every candidate evaluated with equal attention
  • ✓ Hidden gem detection for unconventional backgrounds
  • ✓ 7-dimensional analysis catches cultural mismatches early
  • ✓ Consistent scoring allows fair comparison
Result: Better quality of hire, fewer mis-hires

Compliance & Audit

Scenario: GDPR requirements and defending hiring decisions

Manual screening issues:
  • Scattered notes across emails and spreadsheets
  • Difficult to prove non-discriminatory hiring
  • Manual GDPR deletion tracking prone to errors
  • Hard to explain "gut feeling" rejections
Tanova provides:
  • ✓ Documented evaluation criteria for every decision
  • ✓ Automatic GDPR-compliant data retention
  • ✓ Full audit trail (who evaluated, when, why)
  • ✓ Objective scoring defensible in disputes
Result: Lower legal risk, easier compliance

When to Use Each Approach

👤 Manual Screening Still Makes Sense For:

  • Executive roles requiring nuanced judgment and extensive experience
  • Very small applicant pools (1-5 candidates) where speed isn't critical
  • Highly specialized roles where domain expertise is essential
  • Internal promotions where you already know candidates well

🤖 Tanova AI Excels For:

  • High-volume hiring (50+ applications per role)
  • Fast-growing companies hiring across multiple roles simultaneously
  • Recruitment agencies handling multiple clients
  • Standardized roles with clear requirements (developers, sales, support)
  • When bias reduction is a priority
  • Finding hidden gems among non-traditional candidates
Best Practice: Use Tanova for initial screening to quickly narrow 200 candidates to 20, then apply manual judgment for final selection. This combines AI efficiency with human intuition.

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