As a marketer, you know that sourcing new talent is essential to your success. You also know that it can be challenging to find the best candidates for your organization. Fortunately, there are several great sources of hire available to you. In this blog post, we’ll look at the top 10 sources of hire and discuss how you can use them to find the best candidates for your business. Stay tuned!
What is the Source of Hire?
Source of Hire (SoH) is a metric showing where the people you hire are actually finding your roles. This formula can be used to gain insight into the source of candidates and its effect on various recruitment stages. This information can be used to inform your recruiting strategies. For example, if most of your hires come from referrals, you should focus on building an employee referral program. On the other hand, if you’re getting a lot of applicants from job boards, you should invest in paid advertising on these platforms. Understanding where your hires come from is essential for optimizing your recruiting efforts.
Why Is It Important For Startups To Track This Metric?
Tracking sources of hire can provide invaluable insight for startups in terms of understanding which sources are most successful in driving quality hires. By tracking applicants from each source, startups can identify where their top talent is coming from and adjust their recruitment strategies accordingly to ensure they’re focusing on the best sources for their company.
It also allows them to see which sources are performing well and which ones may need more attention or resources to help them become successful. Additionally, tracking sources of hire can provide helpful data for making decisions about where to allocate budget for recruitment efforts, as well as allowing startups to track their return on investment (ROI) from each source. This helps startups ensure they’re getting the most bang for their buck in recruiting.
Overall, tracking sources of hire is an essential tool for startups in today’s competitive landscape. With this data, startups can make informed decisions about their recruitment strategy and develop processes to help them find the best talent available. And by better understanding their sources of hire, startups can ensure they’re staying ahead of the curve and remain competitive in the recruitment market.
How do you calculate Sources of Hire?
To determine the Source of Hire as a percentage for hires derived from a given channel or source, such as a job board, referral program, or careers page, use the following equation:
# of hires / total # of candidates from a particular source = % of hires from a particular source
Create a pie chart to track the performance of each source channel you use to advertise job openings over an extended period. This will provide valuable insights on which sources bring successful candidates and allow you to adjust the pie chart accordingly. This will clearly show which source channel is the most efficient. Here is an example of how source channels can help you calculate the best source of hire.
What factors affect Sources of Hire?
Here are the factors that affect sources of hire:
Employer Branding:
Potential job seekers often research a company’s online presence and assess its employer brand before applying for a job. Employers must ensure that their branding reflects the company’s desired values, culture, and mission to attract top talent.
Job Advertising:
Organizations can use different platforms (such as job boards, social media, and other advertising methods) for advertising open positions.
Recruitment Technology:
Employers can use technology such as applicant tracking systems (ATS), chat bots, predictive analytics, and machine learning to streamline their recruitment processes and make it easier for potential candidates to apply.
Referrals:
Research has shown that referrals are one of the most effective sources of hire. Therefore, employers should build an effective referral program that encourages current employees to refer qualified job seekers.
Networking:
Establishing relationships with key contacts in the industry and networking through events can help organizations source potential candidates for open positions.
Employee Engagement:
Organizations should create an engaging workplace for current employees to reduce turnover and encourage them to refer potential job seekers.
Recruiting Agencies:
Employers can also work with recruiting agencies to help source potential candidates for open positions. By leveraging the expertise of a recruitment agency, organizations can find high-quality job seekers and reduce hiring time.
What are the effects of Source of Hire on a startup?
The Source of hire can significantly affect a startup in terms of brand reputation, customer retention, and recruitment costs.
Brand reputation is likely to be significantly impacted by the quality and number of hires sourced from each channel. If a startup sources most of its talent through low-quality channels with limited applicant pools, this will negatively affect its brand. On the other hand, if a startup sources the majority of its talent from high-quality channels with larger and more diverse applicant pools, this will likely have a positive impact on its reputation.
Finally, the source of hire can also significantly impact recruitment costs. Suppose a startup uses low-quality sources to find talent. In that case, it may spend more money in the long run due to the need to recruit additional candidates or replace unsatisfactory hires. Conversely, suppose a startup sources most of its talent through higher-quality channels. In that case, it can reduce its recruitment costs as applicants from these sources will likely be more qualified and easier to recruit.
What is a good Source of Hire?
A good source of hire is any place with a high concentration of potential candidates for a specific job. This could be a school, a church, a community center, or an online job board. The key is finding a place where people with the desired skills and qualifications will likely congregate.
Once you have identified a good source of hire, the next step is to reach out to the individuals in that group and let them know about the open position. The best way to do this is to personalize your approach and make a genuine connection with each person you speak to. If you can build relationships with potential candidates, you will be much more likely to find the right person for the job.
Example Of The Source Of Hire
Recent data from an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) indicates that of 50 newly-hired employees in the past six months, 40% were referred by existing employees, 30% applied through job boards, 24% were sourced directly, and the remaining 6% came from career fairs. This information can be illustrated in a pie chart.
The Top Online Source of Hire
SilkRoad recently published the results from a survey they conducted with their clients, providing insights into the most effective online recruitment advertising channels. This research is industry, company size, and position agnostic and includes hiring data from 700 SilkRoad clients, covering 200,000 job postings, 9.4 million applicants, and over 100,000 hires.
The survey data uncovered that 55% of all hires came from internal employees, referrals and corporate career sites. What’s more, Indeed was the clear leader in external online sources, generating 42% more hires than any other source. This makes Indeed the clear front-runner in terms of online recruitment advertising channels.
Overall, these results indicate that Indeed is an invaluable tool for companies recruiting online. Employers should consider leveraging Indeed’s platform to quickly maximize their reach and find qualified candidates.
These findings demonstrate the effectiveness of Indeed in delivering quality hires for companies. With this data as a guide, businesses can be confident that they are making the right decision when investing in Indeed as an online recruitment advertising channel.
Tips To Improve Sources of Hire
Here are the tips to improve the source of hire:
Utilize Networking:
By networking with friends, family members, industry leaders, mentors, and other professionals through social media platforms such as LinkedIn and professional forums, you can gain insight into potential candidates looking for new opportunities in your field of work. This is a great way to find highly-qualified individuals who may not be actively searching for a new job or may need to be aware of the one you are offering.
Conduct Interviews:
Once candidates have applied for your open position, it is important to conduct interviews to ensure that the person is qualified and has the necessary skills and experience for the role. During an interview, ask relevant questions about their work history and experience, as well as questions about their motivations for applying.
Leverage Technology:
Technology can be an excellent resource when it comes to sourcing candidates. Consider taking advantage of applicant tracking systems that allow you to track your applicants from the initial submission stage through the final hiring decision. Additionally, consider using social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook to advertise open positions and search for passive candidates who may need to look for a new job actively.
Leverage Referrals:
Consider reaching out to current employees, industry contacts, and other professionals within your network to see if they know of qualified individuals willing to refer you or potential applicants they can recommend. This method can be highly effective since it allows you to access a pool of qualified candidates who may not even be actively searching for a job.
Utilize Recruiting Agencies:
Recruiting agencies can be an excellent source for hiring qualified candidates. These companies specialize in finding and recruiting talented individuals, so you can rest assured that any individual they recommend is highly-qualified and has the necessary skills and experience for the job.
Promote Your Job Openings:
Consider advertising your open positions on relevant websites, online job boards, and through social media channels. Additionally, consider reaching out to local newspapers to place an ad in their classifieds section or offering internships for students looking for field experience. Promoting your open positions is a great way to get the word out about your job opportunity and attract more qualified applicants.
Conclusion
LinkedIn comes in at number one for the second year in a row as the best source of hire. Employee referrals follow this, Indeed, CareerBuilder, Google for Jobs, and Glassdoor. The rest of the list includes Facebook, ZipRecruiter, the company career site, and Dice/Monster (tied for tenth). If you’re looking to improve your sourcing strategy or know where to focus your efforts when searching for top talent, consider using these platforms that have proven successful among other businesses.