Data-Driven Recruiting: The Ultimate Secrets To Hiring Top Talent

The traditional recruiting methods were overwhelming and time-consuming. This is because hiring managers had to handle every process manually to find top talent. As a result, only a few could manage to achieve their objectives since the recruitments were all based on luck and intuition. However, the onset of technology has changed the way recruitment is done. With plenty of cloud-based software, this process has been streamlined, thus maximizing hiring managers’ potential to find the best talent. In addition, recruiters now prefer using data to find suitable talent. So, what is data-driven recruiting, and how does it contribute to hiring top talent? Keep reading to find out.

What is Data-Driven Recruitment?

Data-driven recruitment is a process whereby hiring professionals use facts and tangible statistics to make informed hiring decisions. This process is applied throughout the recruitment process, from shortlisting candidates to creating solid hiring plans. The best element about the data-driven recruiting process is that you get to formulate definite candidate attraction and employee retention strategies. Moreover, you can save time and be guaranteed an efficient hiring process. As a result, it is easier for you to meet the best talent not only suitable for an open position but your business culture. 

Advantages of Using Data to Optimize Hiring

It’s a no-brainer that using recruiting data helps improve the quality of hires. However, what other elements make this hiring strategy worth implementing? Take a look below.

1. Data-driven recruitment helps in the allocation of the hiring budget. For instance, data helps in tracking the source of hire, thus helping you identify the best channels to go for. 

2. Increases hiring efficiency and business productivity. The use of data in recruitment can help you plan your time accordingly since you will be able to know the areas that require more focus. As a result, your chances of hiring quality talent are maximized, leading to increased business productivity.

3. It helps recruiters identify areas that lag their activities and contribute to wrong hires. With this, you will know what to avoid when sourcing candidates and work on solving any pending issues. 

4. Recruiters can easily forecast their hiring through data and try to apply strategies that will help them realize their objectives. For instance, recruiting data can show you the number of applicants you need for a single job post. With this information, it will be easier for you to take measures to ensure you receive an adequate number of applications. 

5. It also helps in developing a hiring strategy to attract top talent. For instance, you can be using job boards or social media platforms to source candidates when all you need is an employee referral program. 

6. Candidates’ experience is also enhanced with data-driven recruitment. This is because you will know exactly what you want and implement in the hiring process, making it fast and exciting for candidates. 

7. It helps in building your employer’s brand. You see, having a clear insight into what needs to be done to source top talent gives your current employees confidence. Being part of the winning team makes them your brand ambassadors, thus attracting quality talent. 

How to Implement Data-Driven Recruiting

As mentioned earlier, talent attraction data speeds up the hiring process while maximizing your potential to hire the best talent. Below we take you through the procedure for implementing this recruitment method to achieve your hiring goals.

1. Choose Your Metrics

It is essential to know the metrics you will be tracking in the recruitment process. Therefore, choose metrics based on your company’s capabilities and recruitment budget. Most employers will start by monitoring the quality of hire. However, note that there are other examples of data-driven recruiting metrics, including,

• Time-to-hire
• Cost-per-hire
• Source-of-hire
• Candidate experience score
• Job offer acceptance rates
• Percentage of bad hires
• New hire performance

With plenty of data-driven recruiting metrics, it is crucial that you team up with your hiring personnel to determine what matters most. 

2. Collect Data

Now that you have chosen the right metrics, you will proceed to collect your data. Since this procedure can be time-consuming, start by identifying the right method that works best for you. For instance, you can use Google Analytics to see how many viewers of your job listing are sending their applications. In addition, take advantage of recruitment software that meets your hiring needs. Such tools already have applicant tracking systems that help you gather data for informed hiring decisions. 

3. Act on the Data

You will always have a reason for collecting data, and once you do, it is crucial to act on it. For instance, your data may indicate that you spend too much money on recruitment. With this information, you must find ways to minimize your expenditure by streamlining some procedures. 

Simply put, data analysis of recruitment and selection will only help you identify hiring challenges. However, your business will continue suffering if you do not take positive actions to mitigate them. 

4. Know Data Limitations

You cannot entirely depend on data to make hiring decisions. In this regard, consider interpreting your findings and seeing whether they make sense and why you should act upon them. Also, while data will only give you an insight into challenges in your hiring process, it is up to you to figure out what to do to make adjustments. Simply put, only you can decide whether to solve the problems in your hiring department. 

It is also crucial to note that the data you collect for hiring adjustments will never be objective, especially if your team members create the data. In this regard, it is advisable to use recruiting software in data analysis to get reliable findings.

5. Plan for the Next Step

Not all data findings should be planned for since some require your immediate attention. For data that may inspire long-term changes, ensure you create a solid plan on how you will change the recruitment process. Some data may guide you to make changes in the entire organizational performance. Although this might take time to complete, you can keep tracking data to see if the changes benefit your business. 

Conclusion

Using data to optimize the recruitment process and hire the best candidates should be the way to go for hiring managers in this era. Remember, the job market is vast, and top talent is the most sort after by many employers. Giving candidates the best experience helps you hire quickly, improve your business performance, and reduce turnover rates. 

Note that there are plenty of ATS tools in the job market to help you gather real-time data and make the best decisions. All you have to do is choose the one meeting your business objectives. Most importantly, be prepared to act on your findings to fully benefit from the data-driven recruitment process. There is no need to go through all the above procedures only for you not to take action that brings the changes your business deserves.