Rather than relying solely on subjective assessments or conventional recruitment methods, this approach grounds decisions in empirical evidence and measurable data points. Recently, numerous research studies have demonstrated the advantages of adopting data-driven practices when hiring:

Research by Wired has shown that recruiting teams who focus on data are more likely to be highly efficient and have reduced hiring costs.
A Workable survey found that using data in the hiring process significantly increases your quality-of-hire.
CognitionX found that cost-to-hire could be lowered by over 70% when recruiters effectively use data insights.

Which key metrics are useful for recruiters to measure?

In recruitment, data is crucial for understanding three main areas: time, cost, and quality. These pillars help recruiters streamline processes, manage expenses, and improve the quality of hires.

To get a handle on these, here are seven key metrics worth tracking and why:

(Remember, there’s no one-size-fits-all way to measure these; companies and recruiters often have their own methods for crunching the numbers based on what works best for them.)

Time-to-Fill: Days to fill an open position, to identify process bottlenecks.
Cost-per-Hire: Total hiring cost, to optimise recruitment budgets and ensure cost-effective sourcing.
Source Effectiveness: Candidate source yield, to allocate resources more efficiently.
Offer Acceptance Rate: Percentage of accepted offers, to help indicate compensation, job description accuracy, or candidate experience issues.
Quality-of-Hire: New hire performance, including time-to-productivity and retention rates all demonstrate long-term success.
Candidate Experience: Surveys or feedback to identify areas for process improvement and enhance your employer brand.
Diversity and Inclusion: Applicant pool and new hire diversity metrics, to assess inclusion initiatives’ effectiveness.

Which areas of recruitment can be improved through data analytics?

From sourcing and attracting candidates to evaluating and onboarding them, the integration of data-driven insights can refine, optimise and upgrade recruitment practices by not only streamlining processes but also ensuring more objective and equitable evaluations of candidates. By leveraging analytics, you can identify high-potential candidates more effectively, enhance operational efficiency, and improve the overall candidate experience.

Some of the key benefits of data-driven recruitment:

With objective candidate evaluation via pre-screening assessments, you can get a much better picture of who the candidate really is. Taking a skills-based or competencies-based approach to hiring has been shown to have numerous benefits for businesses; TestGorilla reported in 2023 that 92% of surveyed employers believed these methods are more effective at identifying talented candidates than traditional CV’s.
Enhanced operational efficiency by automating routine tasks. Companies can focus on strategic aspects of talent acquisition to speed up the hiring process and cut costs.
Streamlined processes also greatly enhance the candidate experience, which is an important part of winning over, and keeping, top talent. Research by icims.com has shown that 80% of candidates said a positive experience influenced their decision to accept an offer. Plus, organisations with a positive candidate experience strategy can see up to a 70% reduction in cost per hire.
Predictive models can help boost engagement and reduce employee churn. Alongside improving hire quality metrics, organisations can see a better return on their hiring investment and enjoy a more stable and happier workforce.
Data-driven workforce planning and talent pipelines can save you dozens of hours a month. By integrating data analytics into these areas, HR teams can leverage insights to forecast future hiring needs, build robust talent pools, and ensure there’s synergy between talent acquisition plans and overall business strategy.
Impartial talent acquisition helps mitigate bias, promoting diversity and inclusion and ensuring a fairer recruitment process.

How should you implement data-driven practices into your recruitment strategy?

Start by identifying relevant data sources, like applicant tracking systems, social media and labour market data.
Invest in recruitment software and analytics tools. We don’t recommend keeping everything on one big Excel spreadsheet – there are a number of things that can go wrong! Need help knowing what to look for in your next AI-driven recruitment tool? Check out our blog “Choosing the Right AI Recruitment Tool for Your Hiring Needs”.
Keep an eye on data governance and establish privacy, security, and compliance processes. Make sure that any outside tools you’re implementing adhere to your local data protection laws, you can find details on your countries data protection laws here.
Train recruiters, hiring managers and any other decision makers on data interpretation. Implementing data-driven recruiting requires buy-in and often upskilling from all stakeholders involved in the hiring process. Provide comprehensive training to ensure that everybody understand how to interpret and leverage the data and analytics effectively.
Continuously review and optimise your data-driven approach. Data-driven recruiting is an iterative process that requires continuous monitoring, evaluation, and optimisation. Make sure that you’re regularly reviewing the effectiveness of your data sources, metrics, and analytical models for continued success.

In conclusion

By infusing data analytics and metrics throughout the hiring process, companies and recruiters can optimise decisions, streamline operations, deliver exceptional candidate experiences, and create a diverse, high-performing workforce. While implementing a robust data-driven approach usually requires an initial investment in technology, training, and process redesign, the long-term benefits, as proven by numerous studies, make it an obvious worthwhile effort.

Want to leverage the power of data in your recruitment strategy? At Osavus, we’re building a platform that makes efficient, data-driven hiring easier and smarter. Secure early access today!

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