Someone recently asked me if there were any TalentAcquisition metrics I thought were overrated. So, let’s get into it.
If you’re in the TA field – or HR field, leading any kind of recruiting efforts – you’re probably tracking TimetoFill (or trying to… 😉), and maybe even hoping to use it as a success story for your recruiting efforts. Well, spoiler alert – It’s not my favorite. Here’s why…
1. Time to fill is rarely well defined. Even if YOU define it – your business will likely not consistently understand that definition. Everyone makes an assumption with TTF. Is this requisition open through hire date or requisition approval through offer accepted or requisition posted through hire date….”What is the difference between req open and req posted?”….etc etc….you get my point.
2. It’s nuanced across companies – completely dependent on processes, systems and workflows that are often a product of company culture (looking at you 5+ round panel interview company 👀 )… and not necessarily specific to an industry. This makes it very unreliable for benchmarking and understanding what “good” actually looks like.
3. Hiring is rarely owned by TA exclusively – in fact most of the time, your recruiters own about 20-30% of the time in a TTF workflow. So, who’s speed are we really measuring? BINGO – the business, the hiring leaders etc….and….I think we all know how easy it is to change their interview preferences and calendar availability.
4. Faster doesn’t always mean much. If your candidates are being treated poorly through slick automation and AI interfaces or incredibly rushed processes – you’re not necessarily winning the recruiting game.
In all the years I’ve been tracking time to fill, I’ve actually NEVER had a leader ask me for it or be impressed by my presentation of it (ps. my numbers are GOOD!! 🤣). The general reason? It’s not a huge impact to the business overall. Now – if your business needs speed to execute their goals – focus on it – track it – and track your ability to reduce it – do your thing! It’s a staple metric to have in your portfolio, and it’s always good to understand your overall candidate experience (and therefore the journey) but don’t rely on your TTF as some kind of indication of recruiting health.
Find out what matters to your company – what are their goals and track what matters – not what your recruiting playbook taught you.
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