Smart HR Organizations Investing in More Comprehensive Tools for Measuring ROI

Posted by Laura McPeck, Director of Total Quality, Business Development

Media source tracking pinpoints effective channels for applicants.

Cleveland, OH (PRWEB) August 3, 2009 – To maximize recruitment budgets during the economic downturn, many HR organizations are investing in better media tracking methods to help pinpoint the most effective media channels for specific job families, according to NAS Interactive, a division of NAS Recruitment Communications.

“The word is getting around as HR organizations that use tools such as our Total Source Tracker are able to identify what sources drive the highest volume of applicants,” says Caroline Slomski, Interactive Marketing Strategist for NAS.

NAS’ Total Source Tracker allows HR organization to measure media effectiveness by position advertised or job title, “tracking” a candidate’s response to a given media through to completed application—drilling deeper than typical media measurement sources or methods that require applicants to select from a drop down list of media within the applicant tracking system.

Millions of job seekers use the Internet every day to look for jobs so, on the surface it would seem a job board would be the ideal place for job postings. Most HR organizations rely on job board reports to measure effectiveness. These reports provide a good snapshot of activity, but fail to measure real results—completed applications in the ATS.

“What Total Source Tracker gives organizations is the opportunity to make informed decisions based on the actual results of the media buys—the follow through—rather than basing decisions on the candidate’s initial response,” says Patty Van Leer, Senior Vice President of Interactive. “It helps HR make informed decisions on how to buy more effectively, shift dollars to channels that are outperforming others, use media sources that can help them reach their intended audience rather than post every job to the same sites.

“Choosing the right channel to attract the right candidates is essential, but next to impossible if you don't have the tracking in place to measure response on each channel —online AND offline,” adds Slomski.

“Media trends change quickly and social networking is playing more of a role in how HR sources candidates. Total Source Tracker enables organizations to react to changes in the landscape as they occur, and modify their media plans to reach specific positions and to validate their return on investment.”

“These are the organizations that will have a real advantage on the competition for talent when the economy turns around.”