What (Definition)

Hiring plays a pivotal role in an organization’s growth. There are several metrics that businesses measure in order to analyze the benefits of the recruitment process. During the recruitment, applicants have to go through different phases to be finally hired as an employee in an organization. One of the recruiting metrics is counting the number of applications reaching a particular stage during the hiring period. Calculating this metric can help businesses analyze the success of hiring new employees. 

Why (Benefits)

Tracking the number of applications progressing to different stages can bring out several benefits to businesses. Companies will be able to analyze the efficiency of the hiring process as they can look at the number of applications progressing towards each stage. If a particular stage is taking too long, employers can allocate more resources to manage the workload and time. For example, increase the number of interviews per day or interviewers, etc.

How (Calculation)

Calculating this metric is very similar to counting the number of applications received. Initially, gather basic information about the applications such as the total number of applications and the candidates' details. Once the final count on the total number of applications is made, specify the application count for the required. 

For example, the beginning stage is when applicants submit their CVs and cover letters, and shortlisted candidates after reviewing applications, interviews, etc. Make sure to deny duplicate applications to get accurate results of the applications reaching a stage. 

The use of an Application Tracking System (ATS) or spreadsheet software can make life easier. Applicant Tracking System (ATS) is a software used by businesses to manage the hiring process. The use of this application can help hirers to view the insights of the recruiting process.

Recruiters can count the applications manually by going through each application one by one or uploading data sources to the ATS software to get the sum of applications automatically. They can also input the collected data into spreadsheets to make charts and visualize the progress.

General equation to count the applications reaching a stage:

Number of Applications reaching a stage  = Number of Unique Applications reaching a required stage

In general, the application process begins with Applications being received and the applicants going through multiple stages of hiring.

This will vary for each role and each department. In the example below, we have considered the most commonly seen stages of application.

To visually see the number of applications in a stage, most popular visual is the Recruitment Funnel.

In the above Recruitment Funnel, we can see the percentage of applications that have reached the given stage. 

For example, say if there are 100 applications received, about 46 of them reached the Tech Interview 1

A recruitment funnel is an amazing visual to see the quality of applications that are being received.

From over 100 applications, if only 24 are reaching the Interview stage, there has to be a better job description for the applicants to choose to apply for.

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Now it’s your turn.

Do you measure the number of applications reaching a stage during the hiring period in your company? Please share your thoughts on how you do it below. We would like to hear from your experience.

To learn more about other recruiting metrics please visit HR reporting tools.