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Using Post-Hire Data to Refine Recruitment Marketing
Recruiting efforts shouldn't stop once a candidate is hired. Organizations possess a wealth of post-hire data that, when analyzed correctly, can significantly improve future recruitment marketing, employer branding, and candidate targeting. Many companies invest in applicant tracking systems (ATS) but fail to leverage the data within them. By digging into this data, you can gain valuable information on how to effectively target candidates and enhance your employer brand.
Phase 1: Foundational Data Collection
Before analysis can begin, you must establish a solid foundation for data collection.
Step 1: Identify What Data to Collect
The first step is to decide which data points are most valuable. To ensure your team remains engaged, collect only data that you will actively use to drive decisions and show results. Avoid collecting data for its own sake.
For example, collecting the name and address of a new hire's previous employer helps you track which industries and geographic areas your talent is coming from.
Step 2: Make Data the Recruiter’s Friend
Your recruitment team is your most important partner in data collection. The principle of “garbage in, garbage out” applies directly here; strategic decisions cannot be based on incomplete or inaccurate data.
To secure their buy-in, hold a meeting to explain the importance of their role in data entry. Demonstrate how their efforts will lead to higher-quality candidates and less time spent screening resumes, ultimately making their jobs more efficient.
Phase 2: Analyzing Recruitment Metrics
With quality data collection in place, you can begin analysis. Ensure you have a statistically significant sample size, ideally from at least six months to a year of hiring, including peak seasons.
Step 3: Define and Use the Application-to-Hire Ratio
This ratio reveals how many applications your organization receives for every hire made. By calculating this average, you can identify which positions deviate from the norm and adjust your strategy accordingly.
- For positions with an overabundance of applications: You may be spending unnecessarily on media campaigns. Consider pulling these roles from paid sources. An excess of applications can also indicate that the job description is not specific enough, leading to a high volume of poor-quality resumes.
- For positions with low application volume: A low ratio is often acceptable for highly specialized roles, especially if the time-to-fill is average or below. However, if a low application volume is paired with a long time-to-fill, these are the roles that require focused media allocation and targeted content creation.
Step 4: Identify Candidate Travel Time
Recruiters often rely on vague geographic descriptions. Instead, use the home zip code data from hire reports to analyze how far people are willing to drive to your work locations. This data enables precise, zip-code-level media targeting and helps your team schedule hiring events in areas with a high concentration of potential candidates.
Step 5: Review Past-Hire Industries
Analyzing the industries from which your new hires come can provide invaluable strategic insights. For example, a security firm discovered it was hiring many individuals without prior security experience. Because the company had a strong training program, it could successfully transition hourly workers from other fields into security careers. This insight led to a new recruitment campaign targeting candidates who otherwise would not have considered applying.
Phase 3: Gathering Qualitative Feedback
Step 6: Survey Candidates After the Interview
Quantitative data tells only part of the story. Post-interview surveys are a powerful tool for gathering qualitative feedback on your application process, interview experience, and employer brand perception. Use simple email surveys with open-ended questions to gather actionable insights.
Sample questions include:
- How was the company positioned to you?
- Did the job description provide a clear understanding of the position?
- What information would you have liked to have before the interview?
By systematically collecting and analyzing both quantitative and qualitative post-hire data, you can continuously improve the candidate experience and maximize the return on your recruitment spending. '''