Improving the recruitment process with data
The COVID-19 pandemic has led many organizations to accelerated digitization within the company, including in the area of recruitment. With a data-driven recruitment policy, organizations can attract talent. What does data-driven recruitment entail?
A recruiter or hiring manager does not have to struggle with a pile of CVs, but can, with a data-driven strategy, use collected data from one or multiple sources within the recruitment process. For example, you can see from data in Google Analytics or ATS (Applicant Tracking Systems) which channel most candidates come from, how many people actually apply, and in which phase of the candidate experience the candidate is. By using data-driven recruitment you can, based on figures, better align recruitment objectives with organizational objectives; constantly improve the recruitment process using data and think along with the organization's management. But how do you do that?
The right goal
A data-driven recruitment strategy begins with a clearly defined goal. As a recruiter you naturally want to know what your efforts to attract talent yield. Draw up a plan for why you want to bring about change within the organization. In your plan you can include different goals you want to achieve, but also think about the time and the money you need and what the recruitment strategy should ultimately deliver. Often measured KPIs are:
● Reduce recruitment costs (cost per hire).
● Find candidates faster (time to hire).
● Lose fewer candidates in the recruitment process (return of investment).
Out LinkedIn research it turns out that many organizations do not measure quality-of-hire, which is a shame. it is also important to think about which kpi’s are important to you as a recruiter and to delineate the definition. when you want to measure cost per hire, what do you include? think, for example, of advertising costs. how you ultimately measure the kpi’s is up to you or can be decided together with the organization. in any case, make sure that the definitions of the kpi’s are clear within your team and organization.
Collecting data
The more information you have, the better the decisions you can make. From research by the Intelligence Group It appears that companies that, for example, make more than average use of labor market data have an application duration that is five days shorter than their competitors. To attract the most suitable employee for your organization, you should therefore focus on the right target audience. It is important that you know which channels you can best use. From general job sites and social media channels to the careers page on your website.
Organizations that collect data on the performance of the various channels see the value for their different objectives. Think, for example, of the number of candidates who apply via the career page, how many of them receive an invitation for a follow‑up interview after the initial screening, and the number of candidates who are eventually hired.
Data analysis and interpretation
A good preparation is truly half the work. After implementing the new goals within your recruitment strategy, it’s important that you check whether the desired effects occur. You can each time compare your new insights with the baseline measurement, in other words your starting point, and adjust your strategy where necessary. It is a continuous process! Here are some handy steps:
1. Is your advertisement sufficiently visible?
You can perform various tests with, for example, a different job title and keywords that better match the search behavior of candidates.
2. Is the traffic insufficient?
When there is traffic to your job posting but people do not click through, you can test whether your title, headline and introductory text are interesting to the candidate. After that you can rewrite the job posting text and test again to optimize it.
3. Streamline your recruitment process
Make sure your preferred candidates move through the process quickly and efficiently using concrete goals. With clear metrics you can optimize every stage of your recruitment process. Think, for example, about setting the number of days within which a candidate receives a response after applying or the maximum time for sending an invitation or rejection.
4. Use an NPS (Net Promoter Score)
Organizations want the right candidate, but you must not lose sight of the candidate experience. You can use a satisfaction score or an NPS by, for example, asking whether candidates would recommend your company as an employer. This can be done by asking for quantitative feedback or by having a conversation about the application experience. Use all the information to the candidate experience to improve.
