What are recruiting key figures?
Why are KPIs important in recruiting?
In all areas, key figures are an important tool for becoming aware of strengths and weaknesses and initiating optimization measures where necessary. Recruiting key figures are no exception.
On the one hand, recruiting KPIs enable you to improve the candidate experience. This is because a fast and high-quality recruiting process gives applicants a good impression of your company. This is becoming increasingly important in the current “war for talent” and “skills shortage”.
On the other hand, these key figures give you a deeper insight into your internal processes. This enables you to provide sound reasons for improvement measures and any budget requests.
The most important recruiting key figures at a glance
Below you will find a compact overview of the most important key figures and optimization options.
Time to Hire
How long does it take from the job advertisement to being filled?
Calculation: Vacancy date – advertisement date
Please note: Different calculation bases are used in practice.
- Instead of the advertisement date, the requirement notification can also be taken as the starting point. In this case, the job application process is also included in the evaluation.
- The date on which the position is filled is also defined differently in practice. This can be the date on which the acceptance was made verbally or alternatively the date on which the contract was signed.
It is important that you are aware of the calculation basis on which you define the time to hire. Depending on this, other parts of the process (job application or contract dispatch) are taken into account.
Optimization options
- Appealing career page and job advertisements
- Align advertising channels with target group – check new channels if necessary (e.g. job platforms, Google for Jobs or social media)
- Simplify the application process (e.g. with an application form)
- Automate administrative tasks (e.g. with automatic confirmations of receipt or mail templates)
- Building a talent pool
- See also ideas for the key figures “Time to interview” and “Time to internal response”
Time to Interview
How long does it take to get to the first interview after application receipt?
Calculation: Date of the 1st interview – application receipt
Please note
You can check the speed of your application process with the Time to Interview. A quick invitation to an interview has a positive effect on the candidate experience.
This key figure is also influenced by the time to internal response. This is because the next step in the recruiting process can only be planned quickly if you receive quick internal feedback.
Optimization options
- Speed up the recruiting process (e.g. with mail templates)
- Minimize time to internal response (see input below)
Time to Internal Response
How long do employees (supervisors, recruiters, etc.) need on average to provide feedback?
Calculation: Receipt of internal feedback – Request for internal feedback
Please note
Various decision-makers are involved in the recruiting process. The sooner they provide feedback, the sooner you can approach the candidate again.
For line managers in particular, who are heavily absorbed in their day-to-day business, it is important to make feedback as quick and simple as possible. Ready-made evaluation forms, e.g. in applicant management software, can help with this.
Optimization options
- Create simple and standardized feedback options (e.g. evaluation forms for applicants) for recruiters and line managers
- Trigger regular and, if possible, automatic reminder emails
- Sensitize line managers: quick feedback from them leads to quick contact with the top candidates and thus increases the chance of an optimal placement.
Cost per hire & Cost per application
How much does it cost to fill a position or for each applicant received?
Calculation: Total of all external and internal costs incurred in connection with filling the vacancy (e.g. advertising costs of job portals, in the case of detailed evaluation also wage costs of internal recruiters) divided by the number of jobs or number of applicants
Optimization options
- Select posting channels based on target group
- Check new (and possibly free) channels (e.g. Google for Jobs, LinkedIn Feed)
- Optimize and streamline the application process (minimize internal costs)
Application funnel & channel effectiveness
How many candidates make it to the second, third and each subsequent round? Which application channel was used to submit dossiers?
Calculation: Number of candidates in the respective process steps
Please note
The application funnel shows you the number of candidates, broken down into the individual steps in your application process. In combination with the information on which dossier was received via which channel, you can evaluate the channel effectiveness. In other words, how many high-quality applicants did I receive per recruitment channel? It is of no use if the channel generates a large number of applicants but they are of low quality.
Optimization options
- Select posting channels based on target group
- Check and test new channels
- Budget allocation based on channel effectiveness
- Check process steps: Do we need a telephone or video interview for preliminary clarifications, if necessary? Could a trial working day provide further insights?
Further recruiting key figures
The above list is not exhaustive. Two other frequently mentioned key figures are as follows:
- Offer acceptance rate: How many applicants say yes when you offer them the job?
- Cost-of-vacancy: How much does an unfilled job cost you?
Evaluate and improve - Analyze recruiting KPIs easily with Dualoo.
Evaluation & analysis of recruiting key figures
The key figures collected can now be analyzed from different angles.
- Industry comparison
What are the key figures for your competitors?
- Time horizon
Monitor your key figures over the last few months and years to analyze major fluctuations.
- Analyze measures taken
How do the key figures change after the implementation of a measure (e.g. introduction of video interviews or tendering on a new platform)?
- See key figures in context
Rising costs do not necessarily have to be negative. If, for example, candidate satisfaction increases or the employees hired fit better into the company and therefore stay longer, the extra effort has paid off.
Conclusion
Recruiting key figures give you an in-depth insight into your recruiting process. The KPIs also enable you to evaluate potential for improvement and measure the success of implemented measures.
In this article, we have primarily focused on quantitative key figures – i.e. KPIs based on clearly measurable figures. However, you should also keep an eye on the qualitative or soft factors (satisfaction, etc.).
In order to calculate all these key figures, you need a good database. Whether you keep an Excel list or use e-recruitment software, high-quality evaluations can only be created if this data is recorded cleanly and completely.
Questions & Answers: Recruiting key figures
What KPIs are there in recruiting?
Time-to-Hire, Cost-per-Hire, Time to Internal Response, Time to Interview and others such as the Candidate Experience Score.
What is the time-to-hire?
The time-to-hire measures the time from receipt of the applicant to hiring and shows the efficiency of the process.
Why are recruiting key figures important?
They help to evaluate the success of recruitment strategies, deploy resources efficiently and make informed decisions.
