Measure flow and waiting separately
Course overview · 4 min reading + 12 min practice, estimated
Principles and method
Conversion measures movement between stages; elapsed time measures how long it takes. Define start and end events, calendar or business days and pause rules. Open cases are not completed cases with zero duration. Medians can describe a typical completed case while long-tail delays still deserve attention. Segment by relevant factors such as role type and process version, but avoid tiny groups that invite misleading rankings or privacy issues. A shorter time-to-hire can reflect easier roles or premature rejection, so pair speed with quality and experience measures.
Worked example
A report shows a lower average hiring time after several difficult vacancies were cancelled. The interpretation must disclose the cancellations rather than claiming that the process became faster for comparable roles.
Put it into practice
Calculate stage waiting times for five fictional cases, including one still open and one cancelled.
Use fictional information and keep your work in your own notes.
Compare your approach: self-review guidance
Report completed-case statistics separately from open-case age and cancellations. Explain the start and end events. Do not treat excluded difficult cases as evidence of improvement.
Sources and further reading
Original Academy teaching and fictional examples. These references provide context, not endorsement. Edition 2026.09; updated 2026-09-24.
- CIPD: Recruitment
Professional context for the recruitment lifecycle.
- MIT: Little's formula and queueing systems
Technical background for interpreting work in progress, throughput and flow time.