Julia WeeksWhen your line of business is in staffing, it is of utmost importance to know what works and what doesn’t. In staffing, there is no time to flounder around, not knowing what has made you successful in the past.
One of the best ways for any staffing business to understand what works is by tracking your recruiting data.
Best Known Methods (BKM’s)
One of the most valuable things that I ever did when recruiting was to keep track of all of the things that worked. Understanding your best known methods are key when you need to operate quickly in order to fill positions.
To begin with, I created a spreadsheet of BKM’s and anytime that I had success with a source, tool, or strategy, I added it to the list.
Soon, I found myself in a position where I was training and leading a team of recruiters. Once everyone started to contribute to the BKM’s, the list grew quite long and somewhat disorderly.
When you have established many different BKM’s, you will notice that many of them intertwine and connect. This is when you are able to develop recruiting policies based off those BKM’s.
It’s important to keep in mind that not all BKM’s are the same for every position you are recruiting for.
For example, from my personal experience, I found that LinkedIn and live video interviews had the greater ROI when it came to higher level positions. On the other hand, when recruiting for light industrial positions I found that I had more success with in-person interviews and job boards such as Monster and CareerBuilder.
Myself and another recruiter on the team developed our department Standard Operating Procedures (SOP’s) based on many of the strategies and processes noted on our BKM’s list. Each year, I would go through the SOP, making edits and changes as needed and sharing with our team for input.
By first establishing our BKM’s, we were able to put together SOP’s that were applicable and valuable to our department based on past experience and success.
When you are easily able to reference valuable strategies, you have a quicker and better chance at success.
Production and Ratios
No matter the situation, you cannot recruit effectively if you do not know your ratios and what it takes for you to be successful.
When you receive a new job order from a client, do you know the amount of phone screens you will need to go through in order to get a submission?
Do you know the amount of submissions you will need to make in order to get that placement?
If you cannot answer these questions, you need to think about your track record. If you haven’t been keeping track of your daily numbers you need to begin doing so immediately. When you track your numbers over a period of time, your data will help you understand your fill rate and success at identifying appropriate candidates.
Knowing your ratios gives you power and helps you to quickly understand what you need to be doing each day in order to fill a position. With this knowledge, you have a better chance at success in the staffing industry.
What kind of data are you tracking in your staffing business?
Image: Jakub Jirsak/BigStock.com
Josh Tolan
