Should You Trust Data During Your Recruitment Decisions?

Nothing we do is more important than hiring people. At the end of the day, you bet on people, not strategies.”  – Lawrence Bossidy

The success of any organisation depends on its people. In fact, according to a report by Harvard Business Review, 71% of CEOs view human capital as the main factor that brings in sustainable economic value. So it is no wonder that companies are finding new ways to source and hire the best talent, including tech talent.

Until recently, recruiting used to rely more on intuition than on data. This process was time-consuming, and gathering meaningful information was also tricky. However, today with a wealth of software and data-driven tools available in the market, data-driven recruitment seems to be the latest norm.

This article addresses the importance and benefits of data-driven tech recruitment, and whether you should rely on data and how you should use it for recruitment.

What Is Data-Driven Recruitment and Why Should One Use Data for Recruitment?

Data-driven recruitment is compiling, analysing, and interpreting talent pool data to make the recruitment process more efficient. All proactive organisations have embraced recruitment analytics to make data-driven hires.

Also read: Help Your Remote Tech Recruits Feel the Company Culture

Why do companies rely on data? It is because of the benefits of a data-driven approach to recruitment that it has been so widely adopted by businesses. Data-driven recruiting makes candidates feel like they’re being treated fairly, and can improve employee morale, too! According to a LinkedIn report:

Talent acquisition teams with mature analytics are 2X more likely to enhance their recruiting efforts and 3X more likely to realise cost reductions and efficiency gains.”

Benefits of Using Data for Recruitment

So here are some top reasons why you should use data for recruitment:

1. Eliminate decision making based on ‘gut feeling’ or intuition

Instead of choosing candidates based on their resume, personality, and likeability alone, recruitment software tools help decide on their skills on many more variables. As a result, many uncertainties found in the traditional recruitment process and biases are avoided by depending on data for recruitment.

2. Optimise the cost of recruitment

With data-driven recruitment, one can track the source of hires and determine which recruiting channels bring in the best and qualified candidates. You can then concentrate on hiring from these sources alone instead of spending on channels that do not produce quality candidates. This way, one can optimise the cost of recruitment more wisely and hire smarter.

Also read: How to Keep Remote Teams Engaged and Connected to the Company

3. Set benchmarks and track performance

By using data for recruitment, you, as a recruiter, can know how they are tracking their recruitment key performance indicators (KPIs). This will enable a company to optimise its recruitment strategies and workflows.

Organizations can also compare their recruitment process with that of similar companies or competitors. For example, an organization might benchmark its own cost-per-hire against a group of peers and then take steps to reduce it if necessary.

4. Helps to make forecasts for future recruitment

A vital part is planning, anticipating future talent, and preparing for the skill gaps ahead of time. Data analytics like predictive analysis help to bridge the gap between the present and future recruiting requirements. You can make realistic estimates like recruiting budget, cost-per-hire, and other such vital details. Doing so will allow you to continuously optimise your hiring process and make great hires, even under challenging, changing, and unforeseen circumstances.

All these said, it brings you to the question:

Should One Rely on Data for Recruitment or Not?

The answer is both YES and NO.

YES, because data-driven recruitment is here to stay and is an integral part of hiring in the 21st century. NO, because mere data alone will not help you know all the things you need to solve your recruitment issues.

You need to analyse data to derive its benefits for recruitment. There is a sea of differences between merely looking at data and taking an in-depth dive into recruitment analytics, and analysing trends to get the most out of the valuable data at hand.

There is strength in numbers, but organising those numbers is one of the great challenges.”  – John C. Mather.

Hence, to rely on and use data for recruitment, you need to put the data into perspective, and for this, you must know how to use data properly for recruitment.

Also read: Top 9 Tech Recruitment Myths Debunked

How to Correctly Use Data for Recruitment

To use data effectively for recruitment, you need to follow certain best practices in data-driven recruitment. The likes are:

1. Choose the right metrics based on the company’s objectives and goals

For instance, metrics like cost-per-hire, time–for–hire, etc., are the most common and tracking metrics. However, there are also other valuable metrics like First-year Attrition (indicates the success of the hiring process), Applicants per opening, and application completion rate (meaning if the rate is low, then most applicants who fill the application form do not complete it). For instance, a low score in application completion indicates a problem with the application process; it may be too lengthy or tedious, etc., and hence may need some tracks. Hence, you might want to consider your data metrics judiciously.

2. Collecting appropriate data

A good recruiter must know how to use data and what data to collect. Then, you must collect the correct data and adequate data over a period sufficient to identify fundamental trends.

For instance, hiring a full-stack developer is a challenge as they are not only in high demand (they make 23% of the total developer population), but the role itself is challenging to define (even by their standards). Therefore, using appropriate data metrics will help know more about where to find full-stack developers, how to interview them, what they value most and how to hire them, etc.

3. Overcoming unintentional data silos

A data silo is a repository of data held closely by one department or group and not accessible by other departments or groups. Data silos create duplicate data at various levels and create a barrier to a holistic view of the company.

While individual silos may be intentional, most recruitment silos occur due to inefficient communication amongst recruiters, talent acquisition leads, and department heads. In addition, other factors like outdated tools and processes or incompatible workflow systems collected separately can contribute to silos.

Also read: How to Retain Tech Talent in the Remote World

Silos may not be harmful, but they can hamper the data analysis process. For example, to make the best use of data for recruitment, one must have a complete 360-degree view of data to know about overall requirements, hidden opportunities, and threats. So one must eliminate such unintentional data silos to make better use of data.

To Sum Up

Using data for recruitment helps you optimise the hiring process and make efficient hires even under challenging circumstances. However, the catch is to know how to visualise data and use it wisely. Contact us today to know more about CodeQuotient and how we can help you with the right tech hires.