Source Tracking

Source Tracking Overview

You can associate sources to job boards in Recruiting allowing recruiters to track where a candidate is coming from. This principle is maintained in Sourcing.

Path: Configuration > [Recruiting] Administration > [Source Tracking] Sources

The image is a screenshot of the configuration page in Recruiting where sources are associated to job boards.

When you post jobs on a job board using eQuest, Broadbean or Multiposting, the source code for that job board is added as a parameter to the URL that sends the candidate to the appropriate Career Section when they click on the job link in this job board. This is what allows Recruiting to track the source of the candidate. This principle is preserved in Sourcing using a URL redirection.

As recruiters continue to post jobs on job boards, the link in the job board, including the source parameter, will send candidates to the appropriate Career Section. In Sourcing, the Career Section then redirects the candidate to the Job page in Sourcing; the redirection process is transparent for the candidate. This redirection preserves the source code as a parameter and, if the candidate applies to the job, Sourcing sends this source code back to Recruiting so that we can track the source of the candidate. This behavior relies on the Job Description Redirect URL parameter which must be configured in each Career Section that will be linked to Sourcing; this includes mobile Career Sections, if you are using them.

The image shows the flow of the of source tracking and the redirection.

Social Network Sources in Sourcing Analytics

In Sourcing Analytics > Apply Starts, an icon displays in the Social Channel(s) column if the candidate is coming from Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter or Weibo. However, this data is not sent to Recruiting. We track these sources only in the cases that the posting on LinkedIn was done through eQuest, or if the candidate clicked on a link sent via a Social Networks Campaign in Sourcing.

This screenshot shows the icons in the Social Channel(s) column in Sourcing Analytics.

Additional Source Tracking using Google Analytics

Sourcing is configured for Google Analytics usage; there is no need to add Javascript. At both the application level and the site level, there is a field to declare your Google Analytics ID. Once your ID is registered in Sourcing, Google Analytics will start tracking your application or site traffic.

Google Analytics can gather data regarding:

Traffic - Google Analytics provides a detailed view of both daily and hourly traffic coming to the site. You can track in real time how many candidates are connected. This helps to identify the best time to create and send your promotion campaigns.
Geographical data - You are able to track precisely from which location your candidates are accessing your site. You can also see which language they are using by default to browse the internet. This helps in targeting precise populations with the most relevant language.
Browsers and devices - The number of candidates accessing sites and applying through mobile devices is constantly increasing. Google Analytics provides detailed statistics on the type of devices and browsers used to access your site.
Candidate sources - The visitors’ sources are tracked and a dedicated dashboard provides insight about the provenance of the candidates.
Navigation through the site - The users navigation is tracked. A set of dashboards provide insight about the most visited pages in your site and the behavior of its visitors.

Configuring Source Tracking

Job Description Redirect URL

The Job Description Redirect URL parameter must be configured in each Career Section that will be linked to Sourcing. For a proper redirection that will support the sources, the URL must comply with the following syntax:

https://customer.referrals.selectminds.com/taleo/jobdetails

This URL will support vanity URLs if they are in place. For example:

https://jobs.customer.com/taleo/jobdetails

The URL also supports redirection to a specific site. For example:

https://customer.referrals.selectminds.com/SITE1/taleo/jobdetails

Note: Additional parameters such as language can be sent during the redirection.

Sources Set by Sourcing

Sourcing provides its own sources that can be tracked in Recruiting. They include:

Default Value - Source code used if no source code is provided for the options below
Unaffiliated Value
Alumnus Applicant Value - Alumnus applying from Sourcing
Employee Applicant Value - Employee applying from Sourcing
Unaffiliated Applicant Value - External candidate applying from Sourcing
Referred by Alumnus Value - Candidate referred by alumnus
Referred by Employee Value - Candidate referred by employee
Referred by Unaffiliated Value - Candidate referred by external candidate
From Twitter - Candidate applying from a Twitter post created through a Social Media Campaign
From Weibo - Candidate applying from a Weibo post created through a Social Media Campaign
From LinkedIn - Candidate applying from a LinkedIn post created through a Social Media Campaign
From Facebook - Candidate applying from a Facebook post created through a Social Media Campaign

Note: When a candidate is applying through the Facebook App the source code will be External Candidate Applying from Sourcing. There is no source code to identify the Facebook App.

Configuring the Sources for Sourcing

The sources set by sourcing listed above have to first to be created in Recruiting. To do this, go to Configuration > [Recruiting] Administration > [Source Tracking] Sources. Be certain you have the relevant source types created. Typically, the sources have Visibility configured as Internal and Use set to both In Requisition and In Profiler.

The image shows where sources for Sourcing are configured in Recruiting.

Once these sources are created go to Configuration > [Sourcing] Jobs > [ATS Parameters] and enter the source code to the corresponding option in the ATS parameters section.

Job Boards Scraping the Jobs

Some job boards like Indeed and Glassdoor do not require the customer to post jobs through eQuest. They directly scrape the jobs from the site. Recruiting has a database of job boards with predefined Source IDs. These job boards generally add their Source ID to the URL of the job so that Recruiting can track the source of the candidate and identify this job board.

Note: Some customers have an agreement with LinkedIn to do the same. They do not post jobs to LinkedIn through eQuest; Linkedin directly scrapes their jobs and tries to add the source as a parameter to the job URL.

This above described works with links pointing to jobs on the Career Section, but does not work with links pointing to Sourcing. If you append a source parameter to a Sourcing URL, this parameter will not be recognized.

https://customer.referrals.selectminds.com/job-title-id?src=JB-10288

However, the jobs are still posted to the Career Sections and there is a site map available. The job boards should not be scraping Sourcing sites directly for jobs, they should instead be scraping the customer's TE Career Sections using this sitemap. To do this, substitute customersubdomain with the customer TE domain in the following URL:

http://customersubdomain.taleo.net/careersection/sitemap.jss

From here, you should be able to scrape all jobs from OTAC. When the job boards advertise the customer jobs on their site, they should advertise links to the OTAC Career Section job descriptions, not to Sourcing directly. Then, the redirection from the Career Section to Sourcing will preserve the source code as we have explained above.

The sitemap provides URLs like the following:

https://customer.taleo.net/careersection/10043/jobdetail.ftl?job=1606754&lang=en

Then, the job boards will append their source code to the following URL:

https://customer.taleo.net/careersection/10043/jobdetail.ftl?job=1606754&lang=en&src=JB-001

When the candidate clicks on the URL, the Career Section will redirect the candidate to Sourcing and send the parameters, Source and Language.

Path: Configuration > [Sourcing] > Jobs [ATS Parameters]

The screenshot shows the source codes in the ATS Parameters of the Sourcing Configuration.

Troubleshooting Source Tracking

There are several common issues and questions that come up concerning source tracking. We will go through troubleshooting the most common scenarios.

The candidate is applying on a job board but the source is not visible in Recruiting

Check if the job has been posted through eQuest, Broadbean or Multiposting, and whether a source is properly defined for this job board in Recruiting.
Check if the link available for this job on the job board contains a source code parameter. The URL should be of the type below:
```
https://customer.taleo.net/careersection/10043/jobdetail.ftl?job=1606754&lang=en&src=JB-10288
```
Check that the redirection URL for each Career Section linked to Sourcing is properly set. The redirection URL should have the following syntax:
```
https://customer.referrals.selectminds.com/taleo/jobdetails
```
OR
```
https://customer.referrals.selectminds.com/taleo/Site/jobdetails
```
Analyze the HTTP headers from the click on the job board up through the application form in Recruiting Career Section. You may find using tools like the plugin HTTP Headers in Google Chrome helpful in doing this. The URLs should sustain the parameter src=JB-xxx until the redirection to the Career Section.

The candidate is applying from Indeed, Glassdoor, LinkedIn or others, but the source is not visible in Recruiting

Note: As previously explained, if the job board is scraping Sourcing directly then the source will not be tracked.

Check if the link on the job board is pointing to Sourcing or is pointing to a Career Section in Recruiting. If the link is pointing to Sourcing then get in touch with the job board and see if they can use the sitemap instead. If the link is pointing to a Career Section and has an src parameter in the URL, then go through the checklist described above in The candidate is applying on a job board but the source is not visible in Recruiting.

Candidate has applied from a social network but the source is not visible in Recruiting

Note: Remember that we only track the source if the candidate clicked on a link created via a Social Network Campaign in Sourcing.

If the candidate clicks on a link shared by an employee or other candidate on a social network, this will not be tracked in Recruiting. In this case, you may get statistics in Sourcing Analytics or in Google Analytics if that was set up. If the link is posted through a Social Network Campaign, then go through the check list described above in The candidate is applying on a job board but the source is not visible in Recruiting.