Measuring the Success Rate of the Recruitment Process
1. Time to Fill/Time to Hire
These are similar metrics. “Time to fill” is a company-wide metric tracking the total elapsed time from posting a job opening to hiring a candidate. “Time to hire” measures the length of the individual candidate’s hiring process from turning in their application to accepting the job offer. It’s smart to track both metrics. If the “time to fill” is significantly longer than the “time to hire,” this is a sign you’re not getting enough high-quality applicants and should analyze your job postings and sourcing strategy. Conversely, a long “time to hire” is often a sign of bottlenecks or inefficiency in the hiring process.
2. Offer Acceptance Rate
Ideally, this will be 100%. In reality, the current average is around 65-75%, depending on the industry. If your offer acceptance rate is lower than your industry’s average, this is a sign you’re missing out on top talent and should work to identify why candidates are declining your offers. Don’t just assume you need to raise salaries. It is a common reason why candidates decline an offer, but other factors like the work hours and environment, benefits offered/not offered, or workplace culture could be to blame.
3. Application Completion Rate
Most systems will let you track how many people start an application as well as those who submit one. This can be a useful metric for refining the application process itself. A few abandoned applications aren’t cause for concern, but if a significant percentage of applicants give up before they’re finished, this is a sign your process is overly long or complicated and you’re potentially losing qualified applicants.
4. Percentage of Qualified Candidates
There are two numbers to consider here. First, the total number of qualified candidates who apply for a given position. Second, look at what percentage of the total applications that [number] represents. You can often gauge this [percentage] by looking at what percentage of applicants are invited to interview. The average percentage interviewed is around 10-15%. An applicant to interview ratio under 10% is a sign you need to refine your job posting or sourcing strategy. You’re reaching job seekers but not necessarily the ones you want. If your percentage is 15% or higher, and you’re still struggling to find enough qualified candidates, this means your total application volume is too low and you should ramp up your recruitment marketing to get more eyes on your job openings.
Matt Erhard
Matt Erhard, Managing Partner at Summit Search Group.
