Learning how to calculate time to fill can help streamline your recruitment process - reducing the time it takes to bring new talent onboard.
This metric reveals how long it typically takes from posting a job to having an accepted offer - which is a key insight for refining your hiring strategy.
Are you...
- Struggling with lengthy hiring processes?
- Unsure how to calculate time to fill in recruitment?
- Looking to improve recruitment efficiency?
Improving recruitment timelines leads to enhanced productivity and cost savings. We’ll guide you through calculating this essential metric.
This article is for:
- Recruiters needing efficient hiring solutions.
- HR professionals looking to track key recruitment metrics.
- Hiring managers aiming to reduce recruitment timelines.
What Is Time To Fill In Recruitment?
Time to fill is the number of days between when a job is posted and when an offer is accepted by a candidate. This metric indicates how long it takes to attract and secure new talent and is vital in evaluating a company’s recruitment efficiency.
According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the average time to fill across industries is around 36 days, though the specific time can vary depending on the role and sector. For instance, in IT and development, where skills shortages are common, filling positions may take longer, sometimes up to 45 days or more.
For companies seeking to fill roles quickly, Remote Crew offers unique support to streamline recruitment for technical talent, such as hiring developers. With an experienced team of engineers dedicated to finding skilled remote developers, Remote Crew’s specialized services ensure a qualified candidate pool for faster, effective hiring.
Time To Fill vs. Time To Hire
Time to fill and time to hire are related but distinct metrics in recruitment. While time to fill measures the interval between posting a job and a candidate accepting an offer, time to hire focuses on the time from a candidate entering the pipeline (like submitting an application) to accepting an offer.
Essentially, time to fill provides a broader view, helping track how long it takes to source candidates from the initial job listing, while time to hire offers insights into how quickly the best-fit candidates are identified and secured.
Importance of Tracking Time To Fill
Tracking time to fill plays a significant role in managing recruitment costs, maintaining productivity, and overall company performance. Prolonged recruitment cycles can lead to missed opportunities, as top talent may lose interest or accept offers elsewhere.
Unfilled roles often mean that current team members take on additional responsibilities, potentially impacting overall productivity and morale.
When companies monitor time to fill, they can identify bottlenecks in their hiring process and work towards creating a streamlined, more effective recruitment system. This ensures that roles are filled more promptly, which directly contributes to the smooth operation of the business and minimizes operational disruptions.
Understanding How To Calculate Time To Fill
Calculating time to fill is straightforward with the right approach. The metric provides clarity on how long recruitment efforts are taking and can be calculated for single or multiple positions.
The Formula for Time To Fill
The formula for time to fill is:
Time To Fill = Number of days from job posting to job offer acceptance.
To calculate average time to fill across multiple roles:
- Add the total number of days taken to fill each position.
- Divide by the number of positions filled.
For example, if three roles took 30, 40, and 35 days respectively to fill, the average time to fill would be:
(30+40+35) / 3 = 35 Days
This average helps companies evaluate recruitment efficiency and adjust timelines for future hiring needs. Setting clear parameters is essential: determine when a job is officially posted and when it’s considered filled to ensure consistency in tracking this metric.
How To Calculate Time To Fill in Excel
Calculating time to fill in Excel can simplify tracking and analysis for recruiters.
- In Excel, create columns for the job title, posting date, and the date the position was filled.
- Use the formula =DATEDIF([Posting Date],[Filled Date],"D") in a new column to calculate the number of days for each role.
- To calculate the average, use =AVERAGE([Range]) on the time-to-fill column.
This approach lets recruiters manage large datasets with ease and keep all hiring information organized in one place. Excel’s filtering and formula functions allow further customization, enabling recruiters to calculate time to fill for specific departments or roles.
3 Factors Affecting Time To Fill
There are several factors impacting time to fill, and understanding these can help organizations refine their recruitment timelines. Let’s break the three most important factors down.
Role Complexity
Specialist roles, such as IT and development, typically take longer to fill due to the need for specific skills or certifications.
Location
Some regions may have a smaller talent pool for certain positions, leading to increased time to fill. In contrast, roles in larger urban areas may attract candidates faster.
Industry Demand
Organizations often experience higher demand for developer talent, This can make it challenging to secure qualified candidates quickly.
Remote Crew’s services help alleviate these challenges by connecting companies with remote software developers ready to work on international projects, bypassing geographical constraints and ensuring access to a vast pool of qualified candidates.
Reduce Time To Fill Using These Strategies
Reducing time to fill is essential for maintaining an agile and effective recruitment process.
Here are some key strategies:
Enhance Job Descriptions
HR teams should clearly define required skills and qualifications to attract the most suitable candidates from the start. Precise descriptions streamline the process by reducing the volume of unqualified applicants.
Utilize Recruitment Technology
Automated tools, such as Remote Crew’s applicant tracking systems, can help recruiters quickly screen and rank candidates, cutting down on manual sorting.
Optimize Sourcing Channels
Assess which recruitment channels bring the best results and focus on them. For instance, if social media platforms attract more qualified candidates, increase your presence there.
Leverage Employee Referrals
Employee referrals often yield faster placements as existing employees recommend candidates familiar with the company culture and expectations.
Each of these strategies can help expedite the hiring process, allowing recruiters to secure the right talent promptly and reduce operational downtime.
Closing Thoughts
Mastering how to calculate time to fill is an invaluable skill for recruitment teams seeking to streamline hiring processes. When HR teams understand this metric and the factors influencing it, they can refine their recruitment strategies, reduce costs, and maintain productivity levels.
Whether tracking a single position or calculating averages across multiple hires, time to fill provides critical insights into the efficiency of a company’s hiring approach.
Through tools like Excel, recruiters can keep track of time to fill easily, identifying patterns over time.
Remote Crew offers services that support efficient recruitment practices - helping companies optimize every stage of the hiring journey.
Find out more about how Remote Crew can help reduce time to fill.