Recruiting Metrics You Need To Know

There is a lot of talk about optimizing the recruiting process. But how do you know what needs to be improved? With the increased focus on data-driven decision making, you cannot rely on instincts alone when it comes to recruitment cycle optimization. Recruiting metrics are an essential part of keeping track of a recruitment team’s KPIs, such as:
​
-    Find and place top-notch candidates
-    Decrease new hire failures
-    Improve candidate and hiring manager satisfaction
-    Streamline the recruiting process

You don’t have to use every recruiting metric you find on the internet, unless you want to. We’ve narrowed it down to eight of the most useful and relevant recruiting metrics.
​
1.    Time to Fill
It is the number of days between the publication of a job and having an offer accepted. The time period can increase or decrease as different recruiting methods are applied. For example, using Candidate Intelligence can speed up the sourcing process. In today’s competitive job market, knowing your Time to Fill allows you to compare it with the industry standard. According to Forbes, “positions in utilities (99.42 days), biotechnology (91.9 days) and agricultural spaces (88.86 days)” have the largest average Time to Fill.

If your Time to Fill is increasing, or is not on par with the industry standard, break down the process and see where you can improve.

2.    Time to hire
It’s often used synonymously with Time to Fill but it is a separate metric. Time to Hire is the time period between the moment a candidate enters the application process and when he/she accepts your job offer. By tracking Time to Fill, your team will be able to identify how efficiently they are processing an applicant.

3.    Offer Acceptance Rate
Just how often do candidates accept your first job offer? The Offer Acceptance Rate is the percentage of extended offers that are accepted. You can use this formula:

It’s hard enough to find qualified candidates and the last thing you want to do is lose them at the very end. Learn how to create desirable employee benefits here.

4.    Retention Rate
The terms “turnover rate” and “retention rate” are often used interchangeably, but they are two different metrics. We’ve already talked about Turnover Rate extensively but how do you calculate Retention Rate?

Remember only to count the number of employees in a specific period (e.g. over one calendar year)

To ‘retain’ is to ‘keep’ so this metric allows you to answer the question “What percentage of our employees are still working with us?”

5.    Cost per hire
This is one of the most crucial metrics involved in recruitment because it can make or break your yearly budget. The cost per hire sums up all the expenses that are spent hiring a new employee. It could include the following:
​
-    Advertising cost
-    Agency fees
-    Referral Bonuses
-    Background Check Service Fee
-    Job Board Subscription Fee
-    Job Fair Participation Fee

Here’s the formula for Cost per Hire:

There will always be costs associated with hiring but knowing your cost per hire is a great way to eliminate unnecessary costs.

6.    Quality of hire
Are you sourcing quality employees? Employee Performance Reviews are the most commonly used method of measuring the quality of an employee. New hires who receive high performance ratings are an indication of a hiring success. Here are some top achievers’ data attributes:

-    Rapid promotions
-    Continually enhanced and progressing skillsets over time
-    Progressive career growth and enhance responsibilities
-    Formal recognition for exceptional performance
-    Technical recognition
-    Relevant specific industry background

But is there a definite formula for quality of hire? The Adler group offers a Scorecard to help predict pre-hire quality of hire. Lou Adler’s general formula for hiring success is:

7.    Source of Hire
There are over 100 job boards in the US, so tracking where you’ve found quality candidates can help you identify which source is the most effective. But job boards aren’t the only channel from which you can find candidates. Here are the most popular:

-    Job Boards
-    Networking Sites
-    Employee Referrals
-    Career Fairs
-    Company Website’s Career Page
-    Recruitment Agencies

Identify the most effective recruiting channels and manage your resources accordingly.

8.    Applicants per Hire
The number of applicants per hire (or job opening) can gauge the demand for professionals in that field. Having very few qualified candidates for a specific role could suggest that there are not many professionals with the qualifications you’re looking for.

Here’s a quick tip: If you have too many unqualified applicants, you might need to review the job description.

It may be overwhelming to keep track of all these recruiting metrics, but you’ll be more productive in the long run. All the data these metrics provide can help your team streamline your recruiting process and find better candidates. When done right, you’ll also save time and resources.

Looking to speed up your time to fill and improve your quality of hire? Get in touch with our team and we’ll help create recruiting solutions that suit your hiring needs. Send us an email at contact@headhuntr.io.