What is sourcing?

Sourcing is ultimately the actions you take to both seek and attract applicants. It’s the way you engage with the talent marketplace; your methods of outreach. It’s just one part of the extensive recruitment process, but it’s not a small one – it encompasses not just how you find them, but how you then capture their attention and create a channel of communication.

Needless to say, it’s an important piece of the puzzle. Which makes the metrics which surround it both fascinating and extremely useful for executing an effective campaign.

Key candidate sourcing metrics you should be tracking

The sourcing metrics you should be tracking will help you streamline your recruitment process and ultimately hire better, faster. Here are some items to think about:

Your most effective sourcing channels

Sourcing channels are – well, exactly that: the places you find your candidates. This might include online job boards, social media, word of mouth, employee referrals and more. You should be monitoring and collating data around where applicants come from in general, moreover where your most relevant, experienced and successful hires are found.

By analyzing and picking out the ways which work best, you’ll be able to improve conversion rates – and ultimately, put your recruitment budget in the right places.

Sourcing productivity

A great sourcing strategy on paper doesn’t mean an effective one in practice. You’ll need to measure how much effort is undertaken on your team’s part to actually get hold of the applicant once they’ve put their name in the hat – how many times they try to reach out before communication is initiated, how many emails are sent, how much time spent chasing down candidates, etc etc. The activities which go into the process itself will point out areas which need revising and/or improving.

The speed of the candidate journey

Leading on from the previous metric, which covers the activities which denote how long the process actually takes. When did this candidate apply for the job, and how much time has passed between then and their job offer being made? Our next of the key sourcing metrics is knowing how long it takes you to hire.

Track the speed at which you’re able to bring talent through the process, taking particular note of any blockers and barriers which are slowing things down. The faster you can process talent, the more likely you are to secure them.

Finally, those all-important conversion rates

Of course, the final but arguably most important sourcing metric you should be tracking: conversion rates! How many of the applications received for your job are actually relevant? Of those, how many do you manage to move to interview stage? From there, how many make it to the second round? How many offers are made (if filling multiple positions, as so many of our clients in the manufacturing space are) and, of the offers made, what percentage are accepted?

It’s important to know if your recruitment campaign is efficient and works well, but it’s also crucial to understand whether you’re making competitive job offers and finding the right level of talent.

Understanding your key candidate sourcing metrics

It’s part and parcel of what we do here at NLG. As a dedicated staffing solutions partner, whether you’re looking to fill one role or a hundred, we’re well versed in understanding what makes a campaign work.

To learn more about how, get in touch today.

Why is that?

While it’s impossible to say entirely, one thing’s for sure: the way you job hunt will need to shift in order to stand out from the crowd. If everything around you is changing, it’s time to adapt. In an ever-evolving job market, that may just mean trying something new, taking a different approach.

Here are our top three new approaches to take to your job search during the pandemic (and after, for that matter!)

Reverse engineer your job search

Stop looking for job opportunities – start looking for amazing organizations you’d like to join. Instead of trawling the job boards and throwing your name into the hat, begin compiling a list of companies you’d be proud to work for; businesses whose values align with your own, and where you know your skills could add value in one way or another.

Next, do your research. Do you share any connections with their decision makers on LinkedIn? If yes, someone who formerly worked there, chat to them to learn about their culture and what it was like. If you know someone who currently works there, all the better – how are things, what are the future plans and goals, and how might you fit within them?

There may not be an open position that’s going to be a perfect fit right now, but your aim should be to develop an understanding of – and ideally, a relationship in some way with – a company you could work for at some point. When you feel it’s a fit, make a professional approach with your value proposition at the forefront, and see what happens.

Highlight relevant skills AND complementary ones

At this point, standing out from your jobseeking peers is crucial. Invest in your application package and take the time to understand what it is that a potential employer is looking for. Read each job advert you apply to carefully; comb their website for some buzz words and key attributes to mention.

Next comes all recruiter’s favourite piece of advice: tailor your resume.

And when doing so, instead of just inserting the odd key phrase here and reordering your skills, add some new ones. Think about the skills you know they want, and logically work out which skills you have that are going to really complement these. Try to touch upon both what the hiring organization wants and what they may need. It’s these additions that will stick in the minds of the individual reviewing the applications. Yes, it’s more effort per application – but your conversion from application to interview will thank you.

Solve problems and offer ideas

Now that you have their attention, instead of talking about how your skills fit the job advert so perfectly – talk about why. What problems are you going to solve for the business? What improvements can you make? What challenges can you help them overcome? Further to this, what ideas can you bring to the table? Where do you see room for innovation?

Jobseeking now should be more than a focus on whether or not you tick the boxes. It’s about the value you can add. The what, why and how of yourself as a key new hire.

Jobseeking during the pandemic with NLG

The great thing about all of the above? When you partner with a staffing agency like NLG, we do exactly this for you. We work closely with every candidate on our books to identify the most suitable opportunities – live vacancies or not – and work together to proactively approach your job search.

The pandemic has changed a lot, but the value of a solid recruitment partner has never been more evident.

We’re excited to help – don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team of fantastic consultants today.