Hiring Efficiency: Optimizing Time-to-Fill vs Time-to-Hire

The hiring process averages 36 days, but more than half of job seekers expect a response within two weeks of their interview. Swift hiring practices attract top talent, as qualified candidates won't wait.

HR teams and hiring managers should distinguish between time to fill and time to hire. These metrics provide insights, saving costs, time, and improving onboarding.

Enhancing time-to-fill and time-to-hire metrics helps attract the most qualified candidates. To improve your hiring practices, learn the difference and calculate your company metrics with Aniday.

What is Time to Hire?

Time to hire measures the time from resume submission to job offer acceptance, typically around 24 days on average, but industry-dependent. Delays, like excessive interviews or multiple rounds, can extend this time. Occasionally, applicants can influence this metric, indicating possible process improvements for better candidate education and information.

Why Measure Time to Hire?

Measuring Time to Hire is crucial for several reasons:

• Efficiency Evaluation: It helps organizations assess the efficiency of their final hiring stages, including offer negotiations, decision-making, and the completion of necessary paperwork.

• Cost Reduction: A shorter Time to Hire can lead to cost savings as it minimizes the time a job vacancy remains unfilled, reducing the need for temporary staff or overtime.

• Enhanced Candidate Experience: A swift hiring process can lead to a better candidate experience, which is vital for attracting top talent.

Ways To Calculate Time To Hire

To calculate Time to Hire, you can use the following formula:

Time to Hire = Date of Candidate Acceptance - Date of Job Offer

What is Time to Fill?

Time to hire is often confused with time to fill, but they differ. Time to fill encompasses a longer process, starting when a position is approved and ending when it's filled, usually over 35 days.

Before posting a job, the decision to fill it is made, triggering the time to fill metric. While time to hire aids efficiency, time to fill assesses recruiting practices, considering communication duration, recruitment tools, and time spent at each step.

Why Measure Time to Fill?

Understanding Time to Fill is essential for various reasons:

• Process Efficiency: Time to Fill provides insights into the overall efficiency of the recruitment process, from identifying the need to onboarding.

• Identifying Bottlenecks: It helps in identifying bottlenecks or areas where the recruitment process can be improved.

• Resource Planning: It assists in resource planning and allows organizations to allocate resources more effectively.

Ways To Calculate Time To Fill

To calculate Time to Fill, you can use the following formula:

Time to Fill = Date of Job Opening - Date of Candidate Acceptance

Time To Fill vs. Time To Hire

While both Time to Fill and Time to Hire are crucial recruitment metrics, they measure different aspects of the hiring process. Here's a summary of their differences:

• Scope: Time to Fill covers the entire recruitment process, from the moment a job opening is identified to the candidate's onboarding, while Time to Hire focuses only on the period between job offer and acceptance.

• Emphasis: Time to Fill is more process-oriented, providing insights into the overall efficiency of the recruitment process. Time to Hire is outcome-oriented, measuring the efficiency of the final stages of the hiring process.

• Use Case: Time to Fill is helpful for identifying areas of improvement in the recruitment process and resource planning. Time to Hire is valuable for assessing the speed of decision-making and offer acceptance.

How To Use Time To Fill and Time To Hire Metrics To Improve Hiring Practices

Now that we understand the differences between Time to Fill and Time to Hire, let's explore how you can leverage these metrics to enhance your hiring practices:

1. Time to Fill:

• Identify Bottlenecks: Analyze the Time to Fill data to pinpoint stages of the recruitment process where delays occur. Is there a delay in sourcing candidates, interviewing, or making decisions?

• Streamline Processes: Use Time to Fill data to optimize your recruitment processes. For instance, if you find that the interview process takes an unusually long time, consider streamlining it without compromising on quality.

• Resource Allocation: Use this metric to allocate your recruitment resources more effectively. If you notice that certain positions take longer to fill, you may need to assign additional resources to those roles.

2. Time to Hire:

• Candidate Experience: A shorter Time to Hire can lead to a better candidate experience. Ensure that your job offer and onboarding processes are efficient and candidate-friendly.

• Decision-Making: Evaluate the efficiency of your decision-making process. Are multiple rounds of interviews causing delays? Consider consolidating the interview process or improving communication with candidates.

• Cost Reduction: Reducing Time to Hire can lead to cost savings. Fewer days with open job vacancies mean less reliance on temporary staff, reduced overtime costs, and increased productivity.

The importance of time-to-hire and time-to-fill in modern HR strategy

The importance of time-to-hire and time-to-fill in modern HR strategy is significant. These metrics directly impact the efficiency and effectiveness of recruitment processes. They are crucial for several reasons:

• Recruitment Efficiency: Time-to-hire measures the duration from job offer to candidate acceptance, highlighting the efficiency of final hiring stages. Time-to-fill, on the other hand, spans the entire recruitment process, providing insights into overall efficiency.

• Candidate Experience: Lengthy hiring processes can deter top talent. Candidates expect timely responses, and a swift time-to-hire and time-to-fill can enhance their experience and increase the likelihood of securing the best candidates.

• Cost Savings: Prolonged vacancies can lead to additional costs such as temporary staffing, overtime, and extended recruitment efforts. Reducing time-to-hire and time-to-fill can result in significant cost savings.

• Competitive Advantage: In a competitive job market, quick and efficient recruitment is a strategic advantage. Faster hiring means securing top talent before competitors.

• Data-Driven Decision-Making: Both metrics offer valuable data for process improvement. Analyzing the factors affecting longer times can help identify bottlenecks and streamline processes.

• Talent Retention: Swift onboarding, indicated by a shorter time-to-hire, leads to quicker employee productivity and can improve retention rates.

FAQs about Time to Fill in Recruitment

Explore and find answers to questions about Time to Fill with Aniday below:

1. What is Time to Fill in recruitment?

Time to fill is the duration in days from when a job requisition is approved to the day the candidate accepts the offer. It's a measure of recruiting process efficiency.

2. How can I reduce Time to Fill in recruitment?

Reduce Time to Fill by using recruitment software to manage your talent pool, track engagement, and automate tasks like scheduling and group interviews.

3. Why is Time to Fill Importance?

Time to Fill is a vital KPI for recruiting operations, offering insights into how long it takes to fill a position. It's a valuable forecasting variable and input metric for talent strategies.

In Conclusion

In the fast-paced world of recruitment, measuring the efficiency of your hiring processes is crucial. Time to Fill and Time to Hire are vital metrics. Time to Fill gauges overall efficiency, while Time to Hire focuses on the final stages to ensure swift onboarding for selected candidates.

Analyzing these metrics helps organizations identify improvement areas, streamline processes, enhance the candidate experience, and secure top talent more efficiently. Aniday believes that whether you are a recruiter, HR professional, or hiring manager, using these metrics effectively can give you an edge in attracting talent, resulting in better hiring outcomes and improving organizational performance.