How do you decide on the best recruitment technology for your business? You could go all-in with a market leading platform. Or maybe you’d like to stay lean and clean with a rising brand.
This guide covers one rec tech comparison: Vincere vs. Mercury.
Both platforms have their pros and cons. Mercury’s tech is built on and benefits from Microsoft’s programs. At the same time, it won’t work for agencies that want an independent tech stack, and it’s not the most advanced system.
Vincere’s Recruitment Operating System is a great choice for its modules and configurability to help agencies scale. And it offers enough tech features for three or four vendors, all in one platform. But as the more established system, it does require investment.
At Vincere, we have to admit that we’re fans of our own work. Still, no tech can be the right choice for every agency. So this guide is here to locate your own tech needs in the “Vincere or Mercury” debate.
We’ll cover the good, bad, and indifferent of both Vincere’s and Mercury’s platforms. That’ll include a features comparison to get specific about what each can offer.
As a recruitment leader, you decide which system takes home the gold. Read on to find out more about each one.
And may the best rec tech win.
Mercury xRM Pros & Cons
What is Mercury xRM?
Mercury xRM Limited is a recruitment software vendor founded in 2014 and based in the UK. Their platform stands on Microsoft’s tech, working together with Dynamics 365 and the Power Platform.
Mercury’s tech has deep integrations with other partners, including LinkedIn. The Mercury team stand out as experts in both Microsoft's platform and in recruitment software.
Mercury: The Benefits
High-powered reporting and analytics
As Mercury’s platform is powered by Microsoft, agencies on the system can to Power BI's analytics.
Not gonna lie: there’s a lot to like about Microsoft’s Power BI. It’s an intensely detailed reporting and data visualization platform. Managers and leaders can leverage no-code reports and find detailed insights delivered instantly.
For agencies already using Microsoft's apps, adding Mercury's platform as another link in the chain can make sense. And it's a simple set-up - no expensive expertise needed.
That said, a small downside is that Mercury’s reporting function doesn’t update live. But even with a delay, it's still a win to dig deep into data.
Official LinkedIn integration
It pays to have good friends, and Mercury is very tight with LinkedIn. Their official integration, Recruiter System Connect (RSC), hooks up LinkedIn Recruiter accounts to Mercury.
Consultants working with this integration can:
- Add candidate profiles from LinkedIn
- Keep data consistent between ATS and LinkedIn Recruiter
- Read InMails and Recruiter notes within Mercury
- Create new candidate profiles off of InMail responses
It’s a sweet setup. There’s one click to upload profiles, one place to track candidate comms, and it ensures up-to-date info.
When consultants can link up their Mercury and LinkedIn Recruiter accounts, it’s another way to get extra data quick - and move on to their other work.
Intuitive for Microsoft users
Microsoft’s tech doesn’t need an introduction: it’s a globally leading business software good for just about any agency.
If your business is already set up on Microsoft, Mercury could easily fit in to your tech stack. Their solution is to add new recruitment technology to the system you’re used to.
But if you were to stop using Microsoft later, it’d be a headache to implement new business software and new rec tech at the same time. With Mercury relying on Microsoft to work, it can be a wonderful integration or a double trap.
It depends on where your recruitment business will go. For dedicated Microsoft users, getting Mercury on board can be easier.
Mercury: The Drawbacks
Clunky interface
While Mercury’s gone through a bit of a rebrand recently, their actual platform hasn’t changed so much.
Many of Mercury’s features are quite like Vincere’s. But whichever you choose, consultants and leaders are the ones that have to live with the system. That’s where the little things start to matter.
Mercury’s extra clicks, slow functionality, and even poor design can get grating. Every second lost to clicking around is less time for business growth.
On top of that, Mercury’s not known for frequent product updates. So what you see is really what you get (for a long time).
No native mobile app
Mercury and mobile don’t go well together.
That isn’t to say that Mercury is totally broke on mobile. The platform is mobile-responsive. Consultants can easily check their Teams or Outlook messages on the go.
But when it comes to moving candidates down the pipeline, no such luck. Mercury’s mobile option is more about checking messages and contact info. It’s not like you can look up fees forecasting or anything fancy like that.
If you want a way for your recruitment teams to stay in touch from anywhere, Mercury has you covered. But to help with the heavy lifting of recruiting or managing, the mobile option falls a little short.
Limited training and support
One of the downsides of a “lean and mean” system is what gets cut. In Mercury’s case, it looks like some customer support options were tossed out.
Mercury has a few choices for Support:
- Self-help forums for your team on Yammer
- On-demand webinars
- eBooks on tech support
- Online training sessions
While there’s nothing wrong with any of these options, there’s a missing piece in terms of extra live support.
Different setups work for different businesses. If you’re confident that your team is tech-savvy and can manage self-serve style, it’s a fine system.
For enterprise businesses or those that want more support, maybe not so fine.
Vincere’s Pros & Cons
What is Vincere?
Vincere is an innovative recruitment agency software trusted by over 20,000+ recruiters worldwide.
Vincere syncs data two ways across its modules, enabling better collaboration between front, middle, and back offices. We include features for every specialism, from recruitment CRM, recruitment ATS, recruitment analytics, video interviewing, candidate and client portals, a comms hub, or even more.
Vincere is a part of the Access Group. Together with TAG partners like FastTrack360 on payroll and Volcanic on recruitment websites, we’re set to offer an all-inclusive rec tech experience.
Vincere: The Benefits
An independent system that scales
Remember how we’ve been saying “not every system works for everyone”? That thought was in mind when we started building our own rec tech platform. That’s why it’s designed to be flexible.
Whether you’re running a Temp, Perm, Contract, or Exec operation, Vinny’s got your back. Vincere comes with pre-integrated tech modules that can suit any recruitment function.
And that doesn’t just mean we want to help different kinds of agencies (though we do). We’ve done this to help agencies that change.
Because if you’re planning on opening a Temp desk or moving to Exec search later, the last thing you’ll want is to be held back by your tech platform.
Native mobile app (plus VinnyChat 🤙)
At Vinny we’re go-getting types. So anything less than a perfect on-the-go mobile app just wasn’t going to do.
Vincere’s native mobile app is more than just mobile-optimized. It’s a live connection to your rec tech system: CRM, ATS, job applications, placements, activities, calendar, and tasks.
As a leader, you might want to know how your teams are doing. Vincere’s mobile app lets you tap right in to their performance metrics. Financial data like Fees and Placements are also visible on mobile.
If that’s not enough, there’s also VinnyChat. This Slack-like comms system works on mobile and desktop. From file upload to push notifications: it’s all there when you need it on any device.
If you’re like us and live with your phone in hand, this mobile rec tech will be a nifty little treat.
One RecOS, one system, one license
We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: broken tech stacks are a pain.
Running a staffing business is challenging enough without worrying about tech platforms that don’t work for you. It’s not just the admin from managing multiple contracts, but also the risk that team members aren’t even using the tech you’re paying for.
It all gets a little easier to deal with when you’re working with one system.
We’ve created a tech platform that adapts and grows with your business. It stands on its own as a tech platform, not relying on outside platforms or dev teams to get things working.
That means you’ve got one system to leverage and one partner to rely on.
Vincere: The Drawbacks
Higher cost
A high-quality item can’t always come in at bargain bin prices. Recruitment technology is no exception.
At Vincere, we can say that our pricing is on the higher end of the range. (We reserve the right to keep it secret until we know that you really want to get on board 🤫)
We get it: nobody likes to pay more for anything.
But recruitment technology isn’t an asset that loses value over time. It’s an investment, and it grows your operations.
Consultants can make placements faster with advanced candidate search, automatching, and client collaboration via the LiveList™.
Leaders can drill down to hyper-specific reports on KPIs and financial forecasting.
And it’s all part of one true end-to-end system. No relying on extra tech to prop up your processes (and paying more to keep the whole rickety setup together).
In the end, the RecOS is a recruitment money-multiplier.
Past weakness on pay & bill
If you look at Vincere reviews, we hd feedback about our payroll and invoicing system not meeting the mark. For example, billing to multiple client accounts could get confusing. And ANZ-based rec businesses needed help dealing with complex rates and awards agreements.
We weren’t afraid to ditch the part of our system that wasn’t helping recruiters. So we reached out to FastTrack360.
Team FT360 were light years ahead of Team Vinny on pay & bill, thanks to their work on their own back-office platform.
The Vincere x FastTrack integration now brings together the power of a P&B system with extensive ANZ experience…
…plus the ex-recruiter expertise and tech chops of Vincere’s RecOS.
So that your business can cover pay and bill with ease.
Migration and implementation challenges
Data migration and implementation can be painful.
This is true for any rec tech, but it’s worth saying it about Vincere too.
If you’re thinking about switching CRMs, you might be worried about:
- Project communication
- Migration costs
- Business disruption
- User adoption
We can’t promise to solve every problem of data migration (that would be a miracle).
What we can do is offer the most supportive migration and implementation experience possible. Vincere has a dedicated Professional Services team to guide teams through the change.
And when you’re a Vincere customer, the monthly price you pay covers implementation and adoption services to get you the exact support you need.
No rec business should go through a migration unprepared, no matter which system you might use. So we’ve created a guide to Nailing Your CRM Rollout.
Study up to stay ahead of CRM migration challenges (whether you get onboard the RecOS or not).
Vincere vs. Mercury Comparison: Features & Capabilities
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Feature |
Mercury |
Vincere |
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CRM |
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ATS |
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Analytics & Reporting |
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Integrations |
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Job Boards |
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Candidate Portals |
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Client Portals |
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Comms |
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Customer Support |
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How to choose between Vincere and Mercury?
Who wins in a Vincere vs. Mercury comparison? That depends on what you’re looking for.
Mercury can be good for:
- Businesses using Microsoft 365
- Teams that can self-serve on training
- Cost-conscious agencies
And Vincere’s a great choice for:
- Agencies that plan to scale
- Temp / Perm / Exec / Contract businesses
- Expansive tech and in-touch support
Final thoughts
Both Vincere and Mercury have their strong and weak points. If you’re a recruitment leader trying to choose one over the other, it comes down to business fit.
Mercury’s an excellent choice for agencies already invested in Microsoft 365. It connects with Microsoft’s tech, making it easier to pull together internal messages and reports.
On the flip side, relying on Microsoft limits the development of Mercury’s platform.
For the Recruitment Operating System, its strength is in its expansiveness and flexibility. And all RecOS features are under one roof.
We don’t hide that Vincere’s platform comes at a higher price. But we do offer the extra support and functionality to make it worth it for your business.
In the end, Mercury’s platform does a lot of what the RecOS can do. But it’s clunkier, has fewer features, and ties your business to the Microsoft 365 suite.
Are you that much of a Microsoft lover? That’s great. But our stance would be that you should love Mercury for itself. Not for the cool friend it brings to the party.
If you’re looking for rec tech that’s flexible, adaptable, and scalable, you just might love what Vincere has.
Curious for a demo of the Recruitment Operating System? Reach out here .