In today’s competitive hiring landscape, the emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) has never been greater. As organizations strive to build more inclusive workplaces, understanding and improving the DEI candidate experience has become a crucial part of this journey. But how do you measure a process as complex as DEI within the candidate experience? Using the right metrics can help reveal insights into your recruitment practices, identify areas for improvement, and ensure that your staffing solutions align with DEI goals.

In this blog, we’ll explore the key metrics to consider when measuring DEI candidate experience and how these insights can transform your staffing solutions.

1. Candidate Demographic Data

Why It Matters: The first and most straightforward DEI metric is understanding who your applicants are. Analyzing demographic data—including race, gender, age, and disability status—helps organizations see if they are attracting a diverse candidate pool. By identifying any gaps in applicant diversity, you can make adjustments to your staffing solutions and recruitment strategies to appeal to underrepresented groups.

How to Use It: Gather this data at the application stage, ensuring that you are transparent with candidates about why it is collected and how it will be used. Use this data to benchmark your recruitment practices and compare them to industry standards.

2. Application Completion Rate

Why It Matters: This metric measures how many candidates start and complete the application process, which can be a critical indicator of candidate experience. High dropout rates may indicate barriers in your application process that disproportionately impact diverse candidates. Perhaps certain sections are unclear, time-consuming, or require access to resources not available to all applicants.

How to Use It: Compare completion rates among different demographic groups. If certain groups have significantly lower completion rates, review and adjust your application process to remove unnecessary requirements, simplify language, or add accessibility features. These adjustments to staffing solutions can make the hiring process more inclusive.

3. Interview-to-Hire Ratio by Demographic

Why It Matters: This metric evaluates how many candidates from each demographic group progress through the interview stages and eventually receive offers. It’s a valuable tool for identifying potential biases in the interview process, helping you to ensure that your hiring panels and practices support equity.

How to Use It: Analyze data to see if certain demographic groups are disproportionately filtered out during the interview process. If so, consider introducing bias-awareness training for hiring managers and diverse hiring panels to create a fairer experience. Regularly assessing these ratios can help your staffing solutions stay focused on DEI at every stage.

4. Candidate Net Promoter Score (NPS) with DEI-Specific Questions

Why It Matters: Candidate Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a powerful tool to gauge candidate satisfaction. By adding DEI-specific questions to the NPS survey, you gain a more nuanced understanding of how candidates perceive your organization’s commitment to inclusivity.

How to Use It: Send NPS surveys after candidates complete each major stage of the hiring process (e.g., after an interview or after offer acceptance/decline). Include questions about whether they felt respected and represented during the process. Responses from diverse candidates can help refine your staffing solutions, making the process more welcoming for future applicants.

5. Candidate Feedback on DEI in the Interview Process

Why It Matters: Collecting direct feedback on DEI from candidates provides qualitative insights into their experiences, which can often reveal issues that quantitative data might miss. By understanding how comfortable candidates felt in the interview, you can assess if DEI values are truly reflected in your staffing solutions.

How to Use It: Send candidates an anonymous survey post-interview that includes DEI-focused questions such as: “Did you feel represented during the interview?” or “Did you feel the interviewer respected diverse perspectives?” Regularly reviewing feedback can highlight areas for improvement and ensure DEI values are embedded throughout the candidate journey.

6. Diversity of Hires and Retention Rates

Why It Matters: Ultimately, the diversity of your hires and how long they stay with the company are critical indicators of a successful DEI candidate experience. If diverse candidates are hired at a high rate but leave shortly after, it may suggest a disconnect between the DEI image portrayed during recruitment and the reality of the company culture.

How to Use It: Track the diversity of hires and their retention rates across different roles and departments. If you notice high turnover for specific demographics, explore whether the DEI candidate experience aligns with the actual workplace environment. Ensure your staffing solutions support DEI goals not only during recruitment but also in post-hire engagement and development.

7. Referral Rates from Diverse Candidates

Why It Matters: A strong indicator of a positive DEI candidate experience is whether candidates from diverse backgrounds are willing to refer others to your organization. High referral rates from diverse candidates reflect that they felt respected and valued during the recruitment process, fostering a sense of trust and advocacy.

How to Use It: Track referral rates and consider incentivizing referrals from diverse employees. If certain groups are less likely to refer others, investigate whether there may be gaps in your candidate experience that need to be addressed. Adjusting your staffing solutions to encourage and reward diversity referrals can help grow your network of candidates from underrepresented backgrounds.

8. Time-to-Hire for Diverse Candidates

Why It Matters: Time-to-hire is a standard metric in recruitment, but it becomes even more meaningful in a DEI context. If diverse candidates consistently experience longer hiring times, it could suggest internal biases or inefficiencies in the process that impact certain groups more than others.

How to Use It: Measure the time-to-hire for various demographic groups, identifying any disparities. If diverse candidates face extended timelines, consider streamlining or restructuring parts of the process. A consistent and fair time-to-hire across groups can reflect well on your staffing solutions and improve overall candidate experience.

Making DEI Metrics Actionable

Collecting DEI metrics is just the start. For data to make an impact, you must take action based on what you learn. Regularly review these metrics, set specific goals for improvement, and hold hiring managers accountable for maintaining DEI standards in recruitment.

Key Takeaways for Your Staffing Solutions:

1. Align Staffing Solutions with DEI Goals: Staffing solutions must prioritize inclusivity, ensuring that recruitment tools, job descriptions, and interview processes are free from bias.
2. Continuous Monitoring: Regularly monitor DEI metrics to keep your organization accountable and responsive to candidates’ needs.
3. Make Adjustments Based on Feedback: Use candidate feedback to refine and improve staffing solutions continually, demonstrating a commitment to DEI at every level of the hiring process.

By focusing on these key metrics, organizations can better understand and improve their DEI candidate experience. With intentional adjustments to staffing solutions based on these insights, companies can create a welcoming, equitable hiring process that genuinely reflects their DEI values.