Research has shown that time to hire has increased steadily in most industries in recent years, as the job market has shifted in favor of candidates. The interview process alone now takes at least 15 to 20 days for small companies and about 25 days for larger organizations. In high-demand fields like engineering, this statistic balloons to 58.5 days.

The Tradeoff

Successful recruitment is based on a tradeoff between speed and quality of hire. While a lengthier process may produce better hires, it can also cost deeply in terms of overall productivity. And each day you delay sealing a deal can mean you lose out on top talent. The number-one reason job offers are rejected is because candidates have already accepted a competitive package.

Clear the Bottlenecks

Starting with your candidate screening methods, you can improve your time to hire on a consistent basis by:

  • Implementing better personality assessments: Cultural fit is essential to every successful hire. As reported by Harvard Business Review, applying a short, online personality assessment as a first step leads to a smaller, more qualified candidate pool. This should precede or even replace resume prescreening. Personality assessments have resulted in an average improvement of 50 percent in quality of hire and 20.7 percent in sales productivity among companies surveyed.
  • Eliminating dead time between steps: For instance, maybe you need to schedule after-hours interviews to reduce scheduling time and make things more convenient for managers and candidates. Or, begin reference checks before interviews have completely concluded, as long as initial indicators are favorable.
  • Building a talent pipeline: For starters, implement an employee referral program. Target jobs that are likely to be open in the near future due to retirement and other factors, so you can hit the ground running when the time comes to source talent.
  • Applying more resources to the most effective steps: Prioritize based on which steps are the most impactful to your successful hiring outcomes. Then, assign more and better resources accordingly, to make a bigger difference.
  • Using the right metrics: Be wary of time to fill as your sole yardstick, because some averages may be misleading or mask slow hiring in cases of expedited positions. A better metric may be time to start, especially if excessive position vacancy dates are harmful.
  • Benchmarking data: Obtain industry and geographically specific comparisons and use them to your advantage.
  • Rewarding good hires: Measure, recognize and reward managers and other employees who significantly contribute to efficient, successful talent acquisition.
  • Converting temporary employees to permanent: When you employ temporary workers, you have an excellent opportunity to “try before you buy” a permanent hire. The best ones can be brought up to speed quickly, and they already know your company, your people and your environment.

Consider a partnership with Frontline Source Group!

We have the data and market intelligence you need to improve your hiring time and track record. We can deliver temporary, contract-to-hire, project and permanent staffing to match your unique goals and needs. Read our related posts or contact us today to learn more.