2. Conversion rates

Questions to ask:

• How many applicants advance through each stage of your process?
• Where does drop-off occur, and why?

Metrics to track: Stage-by-stage conversion rates, drop-off rates per stage, and time-in-stage per candidate.

3. Hiring team efficiency

Questions to ask:

• How satisfied is your team with the candidates they meet?
• Are they spending excessive time interviewing unqualified candidates?

Metrics to track: Time spent per interview, percentage of unqualified candidates interviewed, and hiring manager satisfaction scores.

4. Proactive sourcing results

Questions to ask:

• How many candidates were approached directly?
• How did proactive sourcing compare to organic applications?

Metrics to track: Response rates to outreach, percentage of sourced hires vs. organic hires, and sourcing channel effectiveness.

5. Market alignment

Questions to ask:

• Are candidates’ compensation expectations aligned with your budget?
• What is the market telling you about demand, competition, or skill shortages?

Metrics to track: Candidate salary expectations vs. offer acceptance rate, time-to-fill compared to market benchmarks, and supply-demand analysis for key roles.

6. Candidate experience and outcomes

Questions to ask:

• What was the candidate journey like for those you hired?
• How did candidates perceive the process, and what feedback did they provide?

Metrics to track: Candidate Net Promoter Score (cNPS), time from application to decision, and offer acceptance rates.

7. Standardization and benchmarking

Questions to ask:

• Do you have consistent metrics to track performance over time?
• Are your targets aligned with industry standards and your organization’s unique challenges?

Metrics to track: Hiring velocity (time-to-fill and time-to-hire), offer-to-acceptance ratio, and quarterly performance against predefined KPIs.

By answering these questions and tracking the right metrics, you’ll gain actionable insights that help you hire smarter and create a smoother process for everyone involved.

How talent consultancies can help unlock the power of data

Partnering with a talent consultancy can elevate your recruitment process in ways that go beyond simply finding candidates. These agencies bring expertise in tracking, analyzing, and optimizing hiring data, which directly correlates to better outcomes.

Here’s how a consultancy can add value:

• Data-driven approach: Consultancies rigorously track metrics such as candidate funnel ratios, sourcing channel ROI, and average time-to-fill to identify bottlenecks and improve hiring velocity.
• Market insights: They provide data on salary benchmarks, market trends, and candidate expectations to help you stay competitive.
• Process benchmarking: Consultancies compare your metrics, like offer-to-acceptance rates and conversion rates, to industry standards, identifying opportunities for improvement.

Start the conversation early

Even if you’re not planning to expand your team today, engaging with a recruitment consultancy can still be valuable. Many agencies are willing to share insights and market data for free as part of building a long-term relationship. Establishing this connection now can pay dividends when you’re ready to grow your team.

To conclude

Hiring metrics should empower your talent acquisition strategy, not just justify busyness. By focusing on the right questions, tracking meaningful metrics, and leveraging insights from expert consultancies, you can transform your hiring process into a data-driven engine for business success.

Are you ready to start asking better questions? If so, don’t hesitate to reach out to a trusted partner like us or take the first steps toward optimizing your metrics. Your future hires, and your hiring team, will thank you.