This article explains how Personio calculates conversion rates for Passthrough Rates charts in the Recruiting app. These charts help you explore conversion rates between recruiting stages in your pipeline.

You can access the main Passthrough Rates chart in Recruiting via Metrics > Pipeline Health. There is also a job-specific Passthrough Rates chart in the Metrics tab of a job’s details. 

Example 1: Standard calculation

Tip:
The Passthrough Rates chart calculates percentages based on the previous recruiting stage in your pipeline, not the total number of applications. The example below assumes that you move candidates through the pipeline in the correct order (and don’t skip any recruiting stages).

Example:

You have an Intern position. The pipeline for the Intern job category contains three recruiting stages:

1. Stage 1: Screening
2. Stage 2: Interview
3. Stage 3: Offer

The chart calculates the conversion rate as follows:

• You receive 1,000 applications.
• 500 move from Screening to Interview: This shows a conversion rate of 50% (500 / 1,000).
• 10 move from Interview to Offer: This shows a conversion rate of 2% (10 / 500).

Example 2: Conversion rates over 100%

Conversion rates can exceed 100% if candidates skip stages in your pipeline. This is because the chart calculates the rate based on the previous recruiting stage in your pipeline (and not the total number of applications). 

Example:

• 10 candidates are in Stage 1 (Screening).
• Two candidates move to Stage 2 (Interview).
• The two candidates from Stage 2 move to Stage 3 (Offer).
• Additionally, one candidate moves directly from Stage 1 to Stage 3, therefore skipping Stage 2.

The chart calculates the conversion rate as follows:

Stage 3 receives three candidates in total:

• Two candidates from Stage 2 (Interview).
• One candidate directly from Stage 1 (Screening).

The chart calculates the conversion rate based on candidates in the previous stage (Stage 2). In other words: [candidates in Stage 3] / [candidates in Stage 2] = conversion rate.

Since one candidate skipped Stage 2, the total number of candidates entering Stage 3 exceeds the number of candidates in Stage 2. This results in a conversion rate over 100%. Therefore, Personio calculates the conversion rate for Stage 3 as 3/2 = 150%.

How to avoid conversion rates over 100%

If you want to avoid conversion rates over 100%:

• Move candidates through the pipeline in the order you defined. You can review your defined pipeline for each job category under Settings > Categories.
• Don't skip stages when moving candidates between stages.
• If you import candidates into your pipeline, assign them to the correct stage based on your pipeline's order.