15 Key HR Metrics You Should Track in 2024

HR metrics can help you make the most of your recruitment efforts by providing a clear method of assessment. With the right metrics, it’s easier to know what’s working and what’s not.

However, it’s not always easy to know exactly what you need to measure. There’s practically an unlimited number of metrics out there, and not all of them are going to be valuable to your company or project.

In this article, we’re going to discuss 15 key HR metrics you should track in 2024.

Why Should You Track Key HR Metrics?

The human resources department should have multiple dynamic programs and ongoing operations at any given time.

However, resources are limited. It can be a big problem if the company continues pouring time and effort into ineffective activities, so it’s a must to properly monitor and evaluate the performance of each one.

This is where HR metrics come into the picture – they allow you to see exactly what works and what doesn’t. Not only does it let you choose which activities you can still improve, but it also shows which ones should be eliminated.

Key HR Metrics to Track in 2024

Interested in using HR metrics to improve your processes in 2024? Here are 15 of the key HR metrics you should start tracking today.

Recruitment Metrics

Time to Start

This metric measures the average time it takes for a vacant position to be filled with a new hire.

It’s important to measure this metric because it tells you how effective your recruitment efforts are. The shorter it is, the better.

The formula for this metric is simple. Add all of the days a position stayed open within a period of time, and divide the value by how many positions were filled.

sum of all open days / number of vacant positions filled = time to start

Cost Per Hire

This figure shows the average cost of acquiring a single hire for your company. To know how much you’re spending to get one hire, look at the cost per hire metric.

It’s particularly useful when you’re planning the budget for your next recruitment effort or when you’re examining the current one to cut costs. 

The formula for cost per hire is simple, but acquiring all of the values necessary will require some accounting.

total recruiting costs / total number of hires = cost per hire

Interview to Hire Ratio

The interview to hire ratio looks at just how many of the candidates that were interviewed actually got hired. 

For instance, if the hiring manager had to interview five candidates before hiring one, the interview to hire ratio is 5:1. While achieving a 1:1 ratio is nearly impossible, companies should aim for a 3:1 ratio for optimum results.

You can calculate this figure with the following formula:

total number of interview sessions : total number of hires = interview to hire ratio

Source of Hire

The source of hire metric reveals which places you get most of your quality applicants from.

You can assign Source of Hire rankings to each of your recruitment channels, whether it’s LinkedIn, personal advertisements, job boards, or referrals. The channel with the highest resulting percentage is your winning talent source.

This metric is calculated via the percentage of people who got accepted in that channel. Thus, you can use the formula for all of your channels and calculate which had the highest percentage.

number of accepted applicants / total number of candidates from source x 100 = source of hire ranking

Applicants Per Vacancy

This simple number can help you establish a starting point when examining your current recruitment process for flaws and shortcomings.

Having a high number of applicants per vacancy doesn’t necessarily mean that you have an effective strategy. You need to cross-reference it with other HR metrics in order to get the full picture.

Sure, it means your job post is popular, but that could simply be because you’re casting your net too wide. In fact, if you have a high number of applicants but can barely fill a position, it means you’re not focusing your attention on the right applicants or on the right sources, which translates to wasted resources.

To get this value, simply calculate how many applications you receive per job vacancy.

total number of applications / number of job vacancies = average applicants per vacancy

Offer Acceptance Rate

This metric determines how many candidates accept a job offer compared to those who got an offer. 

This is an important metric to measure because a low offer acceptance rate can indicate serious issues. Depending on your industry, it might indicate uncompetitive salary offers, lacklustre perks, or a long application process. 

To calculate this metric, simply divide the total number of accepted offers by the number of offers made and multiply it by 100.

(number of offers / number of accepted offers) x 100 = offer acceptance rate

Retention and Satisfaction Metrics

New-Hire Turnover Rate

One of the most fundamental retention metrics, the new-hire turnover rate determines the speed at which your newest hires leave the company within a set period.

You should also look at it in combination with other HR metrics, such as the total number of hires you made within the same period.

You can calculate the new-hire turnover rate with this formula:

(number of new employee resignations within a period of time / total number of resignations) x 100 = new-hire turnover rate

Employee Turnover Rate

Similar to the previous metric, this number shows how much of your regular employees are leaving the company.

Once again, high figures don’t necessarily mean that you have a mismanaged workforce, but you can cross-reference this figure to industry averages and context-specific situations. For example, the employee turnover rate may increase slightly after a merger because old employees don’t agree with new management.

The key thing to look out for is the turnover rate of key positions within the company. When these numbers are high, it means that there’s an underlying problem and that you need to implement steps to solve it.

This metric has a similar formula as the new-hire turnover rate.

number of resignations within a period of time / average number of employees = employee turnover rate

Employee Retention Rate

Usually calculated side-by-side with the employee turnover rate, this number indicates how many of your employees are staying within a certain period.

Higher employee retention rates mean generally satisfied employees, which is why you should always keep an eye on this number.

The formula for employee retention rate is straightforward.

(number of employees remaining at the end of a period / number of employees at the beginning) x 100 = employee retention rate

Retention Rate Per Manager

You can calculate the efficacy of each of your managers through the retention rate per manager metric.

This is simply the employee retention rate but broken down to reveal the numbers for each manager.

Higher numbers generally mean good management practices, while low rates could warrant a formal evaluation.

To determine this figure, use this formula:

(number of employees under one manager remaining at the end of a period / number of employees under that manager at the beginning) x 100 = retention rate per manager

Employee Happiness Index

Job satisfaction is also intimately linked to productivity. Simply put, satisfied employees are more likely to perform excellently in their tasks and will often go beyond their call of duty.

Asking employees directly about their job satisfaction often won’t lead to truthful results due to observer bias. Thus, employee happiness is measured in a more circumspect way: by comparing recommendation rates.

number of employees who will recommend your company / total number of employees x 100

number of employees who will not recommend your company / total number of employees x 100

Whichever percentage is higher is a pretty good signal of your workforce’s sentiments.

Absence Rate

The absence rate displays the percentage of employees who are absent within a set period.

Although absenteeism is usually viewed as an individual problem, it could also point to organisational issues if the number is high enough.

High absence rates could mean that there are managerial or organizational issues preventing or demotivating employees from coming to work.

In order to calculate this metric, you can use this formula:

absent workdays / total scheduled workdays x 100 = absence rate

Overtime rate

While it’s only natural to want to keep employees productive, especially during peak season, it’s in the company’s best interest to make sure they’re not overworked either.

High overtime rates are typically followed by increased absences and can even drive lower employee retention. By measuring overtime rates, you can have a more balanced and productive workforce.

You can calculate this metric through this formula:

(total overtime pay / total payroll amount) x 100 = overtime rate

Employee Value Metrics

Employee Productivity Index

This metric is one of the most useful tools to measure employee productivity. While traditionally, productivity was measured by the number of hours an employee put in, today, it’s more about how much they managed to accomplish in the time given to them. 

You can calculate the productivity of employees by looking at the revenue of the company.

company revenue / total payrolled employees = individual employee productivity

Healthcare Cost Per Employee

Although healthcare is one of the most important concerns for employers, it’s also one of the most expensive benefits that can be given to any employee.

To maintain a productive and healthy workplace, it’s no secret that healthcare is an absolute must. It’s also a great incentive for candidates looking closely at perks.

However, there’s no reason for healthcare costs to be exceedingly high. It’s crucial for HR to regularly monitor healthcare costs per employee to ensure that it’s always balanced.

This metric can be calculated with this formula:

total healthcare costs / total number of employees under health care programs = healthcare cost per employee

Tracking Key HR Metrics in 2024

In any organisation, project or operation, HR metrics can serve as a reliable guide to improve performance and foster growth. With this information, you can now make better decisions regarding your initiatives, whether in recruiting, retention or productivity.