Most HR teams aren't tracking the basic metrics around their career site, and that's a problem. Marketers track their corporate websites through Google Analytics, Tag Manager, and a host of other tools to better understand buyer behavior and how to drive revenues. Similarly, talent acquisition teams need to gain insights into their candidate journey in order to reap the most benefits from past/ongoing/future initiatives that drive awareness and consideration from relevant candidates.
For example, how can you tell if an employee advocacy program is working unless you know how the number of visitors to the career site changed?
How can you judge the effectiveness of adding employee testimonials to your careers site without knowing the percent of people who're convinced to apply into the ATS after viewing the careers site before and after the testimonials went live?
While marketers have entire teams and software suites designed to help them track everything that's going on (sometimes creepily), HR is of course at a huge disadvantage. However, there are a few easy to track metrics that can make a huge difference in the amount of intelligence you have around your top of funnel talent acquisition efforts.
Phil Strazzula is the CEO of NextWave Hire, a software company that helps employers attract and convert talent through employee testimonials which enhance career pages, build talent communities, and spread the word on social. Before NextWave Hire, he was a venture capital investor at Bessemer Venture Partners, and attended Harvard Business School for his MBA. Follow Phil on Twitter @PhilStrazzulla or connect with him on LinkedIn.