This article draws insights from a case study by Mary K. Pratt on how Indeed leverages data-driven decision-making to improve operations and user experience. Read the full original article here.
Data-driven decision-making is a goal for many organizations, yet few manage to implement it effectively across all levels. Indeed, the global hiring platform, provides a compelling example of how to use data to refine operations, optimize costs, and enhance user experience. Their approach demonstrates how businesses can leverage analytics to drive efficiency and innovation while avoiding the common pitfalls of intuition-based decision-making.
Measuring Hiring Efficiency with the Time to Hire Index
Hiring the right talent quickly is crucial for businesses, yet many recruitment processes are hindered by inefficiencies. Indeed identified a gap in its ability to assess which of its tools contributed most to hiring speed. Relying on anecdotal evidence wasn’t enough; the company needed a structured, data-driven approach.
This led to the creation of the Time to Hire Index, which tracks how long it takes employers to move through different hiring milestones—from job posting to making an offer. By analyzing these data points, Indeed can:
- Identify bottlenecks in the hiring process.
- Prioritize product updates that have the most impact on reducing hiring time.
- Test new features with clear performance benchmarks.
Instead of making assumptions about what might improve hiring efficiency, Indeed now uses real-time data to make targeted product improvements, ensuring job seekers and employers can connect faster.
Optimizing Cloud Spending with a Business-Driven Metric
Cloud computing provides scalability and flexibility, but it also introduces cost challenges, especially at scale. After migrating its production services to the cloud, Indeed needed a way to assess whether its spending was justified—not just in absolute dollar amounts, but in relation to business outcomes.
To address this, they developed Cloud Spend as a Percentage of Revenue (CSPR), a metric that allows them to:
- Determine if cloud investments align with business growth.
- Identify when to optimize costs versus when to invest in innovation.
- Benchmark their spending against industry peers.
By continuously monitoring this metric, Indeed can strike the right balance between cost control and innovation, ensuring cloud expenses remain sustainable while supporting business expansion.
Improving User Experience with Targeted Surveys
Understanding customer satisfaction is essential, but broad satisfaction scores like Net Promoter Score (NPS) often fail to provide actionable insights. Indeed recognized that a high overall NPS didn’t reveal which specific aspects of their platform needed improvement.
To gain more precise feedback, Indeed replaced NPS with ASK’EM, an internal survey system that gathers user input at key moments in their journey—such as after posting a job or reviewing resumes. This shift allows them to:
- Pinpoint which platform features contribute most to user satisfaction.
- Make targeted improvements to the job posting and hiring experience.
- Ensure new product changes enhance, rather than hinder, the user experience.
By collecting feedback at the moment of engagement, rather than through retrospective surveys, Indeed ensures its data reflects actual user needs and behaviors.
Key Takeaways for Businesses
Indeed’s data-driven initiatives provide valuable lessons for organizations looking to maximize the impact of their analytics investments:
- Identify and Track Key Performance Indicators – Whether it’s hiring speed, operational costs, or customer experience, businesses should define measurable success metrics rather than relying on intuition.
- Use Data to Guide Resource Allocation – Just as Indeed balances cloud spending between optimization and innovation, organizations should continuously assess whether their investments are aligned with business goals.
- Gather Actionable User Insights – Traditional satisfaction metrics may not be enough; targeted feedback at key interaction points can provide more precise guidance on product and service improvements.
By integrating structured data-driven approaches, companies can move beyond instinct-based decision-making and achieve tangible, measurable results.
At Bronson Consulting, we help organizations implement data-driven strategies that optimize efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance user experience. Whether it's improving internal processes or leveraging analytics for better decision-making, our expertise ensures businesses get the most out of their data. Contact us to learn more.
