As we discussed in last month's human resources domain article, there are numerous strategies HR can employ to attract candidates to their agencies. ("Effective Ongoing Recruiting: A Three-Legged Stool" ) And, as we noted in that article, depending on the type of position, a successful recruiter will be able to employ any one, or combination, of those strategies.

But how does a recruiter deploy the best option against a current opening-which works best in what situation? The answer is found in tracking results and measuring outcomes.

One of the key findings of a September 2004 Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) report is that agencies engage in only the most limited evaluation of the success of individual recruitment strategies, as well as overall recruiting programs' ability to attract qualified candidates. That's a shame, because tracking is essential both to the success of any good recruiting program, as well as to the career of anyone responsible for the recruiting effort.

Why Track?
There are several reasons to track the success of individual recruitment strategies.

Resource allocation. Limited resources, both human and capital, require HR to manage costs and justify allocations. The only way to achieve both of those goals is to track results and measure outcomes to demonstrate that resources are being applied efficiently and effectively.

Work valuation. While the value HR brings to recruiting may be obvious to HR, it is not always obvious to the rest of the organization. Just as other operational areas report on progress against their goals, HR must report on its recruiting progress. Numbers speak volumes; recruiting statistics demonstrate the value of the recruiting effort-the HR effort-to the wider organization.

Performance improvement. An organization can only improve performance by tracking current performance, setting a baseline, and working to improve against it. Tracking recruiting success enables the recruiter to identify areas of deficiency.

Work effort focus. Publicizing the list of areas recruiting tracks defines for the organization what is important-to HR and the agency-and focuses attention on those critical areas.

What to Track
There are a broad range of areas HR could track to determine recruiting effectiveness, including source effectiveness, new hire retention/failure rates, hiring diversity, speed to hire, recruiter effectiveness, manager satisfaction, and applicant satisfaction. This article focuses on the first-source effectiveness-because it is the most important metric for recruiters just establishing a recruiting tracking mechanism.

The first step to analyzing the effectiveness of a recruiting program's ability to attract candidates is to generate a complete list of candidate sources. As we discussed in last month's article, resume sources include the following.

• Agency websites, whether through a specific job section or the general website
• USAJOBS
• Employee referrals
• Social networks
• Direct, unsolicited applications from another source
• Online job boards, both general and niche
• Print advertising
• Job fairs
• Campus recruiting
• .jobs URL (future possibility)
• Recruiter

Once that list is generated, the recruiter needs to track the following information.

• Agency websites, whether through a specific job section or the general website
• Number of positions to be filled
• By source (see above)
• Number of applicants
• Dollars spent
• Number of resumes generated
• Number of viable candidates (that is candidates who would be eligible for interview)

Calculating Costs
In determining costs to include in calculations, people generally under-report, mostly because tracking "soft costs" is difficult. Obviously, "hard costs" such as the dollars spent on ad placement, recruiters' fees, employee referral fees, dedicated HR recruiter salary, and the like, must be included in cost calculations. The costs that may be missed, but should be included, are staff (HR and line) time spent: planning recruiting campaigns; reviewing announcements, plans, etc.; reviewing resumes; interviewing candidates; strategizing during the campaign; and, follow-up activities with all candidates.

Finally, with candidate sources identified, numbers by source collected, and costs determined, the recruiter calculates the following figures.

• Cost per resume by source
• Cost per qualified candidate by source
• Cost per total hire

Remember to segregate tracking and calculations by job category and level, as the effectiveness of a source may vary by position. There is no one-size-fits-all solution to recruiting across a wide range of jobs. Recruiters may find, too, that they need to use all sources at first as they collect information, then make changes to strategies based on outcomes.

The federal government's current human capital situation requires that HR make the best use of every recruiting resource available to ensure top-notch performance. Tracking results and measuring outcomes enables HR to maximize the return on its investment, and demonstrate its value to itself and to the agency.