The Hidden Costs of Screening Calls & How to Optimize Hiring

Screening calls are one of the first human touchpoints candidates have with a hiring organization. Typically scheduled for 20 to 30 minutes, these calls serve as an opportunity to assess a candidate’s qualifications, experience, and cultural fit. While these calls are essential for the hiring process, the cumulative costs associated with them often go unnoticed.

Over time, when recruiters hold multiple screening calls each week, the costs—both direct and indirect—can significantly impact an organization’s resources. In this article, we’ll explore the true cost of screening calls in hiring and offer practical strategies for streamlining the process to improve both recruiter productivity and overall hiring efficiency.

TL;DR

• Screening calls are essential but costly in recruiter time and budget.

• Reducing the cost of screening calls boosts efficiency and enhances candidate experience.

• Recruiter time, technology, and opportunity cost are major direct expenses.

• Shorter, focused screens and asynchronous video interviews cut time without compromising quality.

• Use pre-screening questionnaires, group sessions, and ATS integrations to streamline processes.

• Balance speed with fairness to maintain the employer brand and hire quality candidates.

• Practical steps: analyze costs, pilot tech solutions, measure results, and refine processes.

The Hidden Financial and Operational Impact of Screening Calls

Direct Costs of Screening Calls

While many recruiters are familiar with the time commitment required for screening calls, the actual financial cost is often underestimated. Let’s break down the direct costs involved:

1. Recruiter Time:
Screening calls usually last between 20 and 30 minutes. This time adds up quickly when recruiters are conducting several calls a day, week, or month. When considering recruiter salaries and overhead costs, the time spent on each screening call directly contributes to the operational cost of hiring.

2. Technology and Tools:
Recruiters often rely on applicant tracking systems (ATS), scheduling software, and video conferencing tools to manage screening calls. These tools come with subscription fees, licensing costs, and maintenance expenses that add to the overall cost of the screening process.

3. Opportunity Cost:
Each screening call represents a missed opportunity for recruiters to engage in other high-value tasks, such as building relationships with top candidates, optimizing job descriptions, or improving the hiring strategy. The more time spent on screening calls, the less time recruiters have for more strategic activities.

Indirect Costs of Screening Calls

Beyond the direct financial cost, screening calls also contribute to several indirect costs, which are less obvious but equally impactful:

1. Candidate Experience:
Only 26% of candidates rate their overall hiring experience as positive; poor communication and delays are major pain points. A lengthy and inefficient screening process can lead to a negative candidate experience. Candidates may grow frustrated with repetitive questions or long wait times, which can damage your employer brand and deter top talent from applying in the future.

2. Recruitment Delays:
The more time spent on screening calls, the longer it takes to make a hiring decision. This can delay the entire recruitment process, causing organizations to lose out on qualified candidates who may accept offers from competing companies.

3. Recruiter Burnout:
Conducting multiple screening calls daily can lead to recruiter fatigue, impacting their performance. A tired recruiter may miss crucial details during the call or fail to engage candidates effectively, ultimately reducing the quality of the screening process.

Why It's Crucial to Understand the Cost of Screening Calls

Understanding the true cost of screening calls is a key step in optimizing the hiring process. When recruiters and hiring teams are aware of the financial and time-related implications, they can make more informed decisions about how to streamline the process.

Making Data-Driven Decisions

Tracking the cost per screening call helps organizations assess whether their current process is sustainable. By evaluating the time and resources spent on each call, organizations can identify areas where technology or process changes might reduce inefficiencies. For example, if the time spent on administrative tasks during screening calls is high, automating some of these steps might be a viable solution.

Improving Resource Allocation

By understanding the cost of screening calls, hiring teams can allocate resources more effectively. For example, they can ensure that recruiters spend less time on repetitive screening calls and more time on high-value tasks, such as in-depth interviews with top candidates. This helps to optimize the entire recruitment process and leads to quicker hires without sacrificing quality.

Strategies to Optimize the Screening Call Process

Reducing the costs associated with screening calls doesn’t mean sacrificing quality or thorough evaluation. There are several practical strategies that companies can adopt to streamline the process while maintaining effective candidate assessment.

1. Leverage Asynchronous Video Interviews

One of the most effective ways to reduce the cost of screening calls is by leveraging asynchronous video interviews. In this format, candidates record their responses to predefined questions at their convenience, allowing recruiters to review the answers when it fits their schedule.

This approach can save significant time for both recruiters and candidates. Since candidates can respond on their own time, scheduling becomes less of an issue, and recruiters can assess responses quickly without committing to a live call. This approach also enhances the candidate experience by providing more flexibility.

2. Automate Scheduling with AI Tools

Manual scheduling is often time-consuming and inefficient. AI-powered scheduling tools can automate the process, allowing candidates to choose available time slots without back-and-forth communication. This reduces the time recruiters spend on administrative tasks and improves the overall candidate experience by making scheduling easier.

Scheduling tools can also integrate with your ATS, ensuring that the process is seamless from start to finish.

3. Use Pre-Screening Questionnaires

Before committing to a 30-minute screening call, use pre-screening questionnaires to assess whether a candidate meets the minimum requirements for the role. These can include questions related to the candidate’s experience, skills, and salary expectations.

By filtering candidates early on, you can ensure that only those who align closely with the role’s requirements move forward to the next stage. This eliminates the need for unnecessary screening calls, saving time and resources.

4. Group Screening Sessions

Instead of scheduling individual calls with each candidate, consider group screening sessions for evaluating multiple candidates at once. These can be especially useful for assessing common skills or cultural fit. Group sessions allow recruiters to evaluate multiple candidates efficiently and fairly, reducing the total time spent on screening calls.

5. Streamline the Screening Call Agenda

Another simple yet effective way to optimize the screening call process is by streamlining the agenda. Focus on asking key questions related to the candidate’s core qualifications and motivation for the role. Avoid redundant questions that can be answered through the resume or pre-screening questionnaires. A well-structured and concise agenda ensures that recruiters use their time efficiently while still gathering the necessary information.

The Impact of Screening Call Optimization on Hiring Efficiency

Optimizing the screening call process can have a significant impact on overall hiring efficiency. Here’s how:

Reduced Time-to-Hire

By automating and streamlining parts of the screening process, organizations can shorten the time-to-hire. Candidates won’t have to wait as long for calls, and recruiters will be able to make decisions more quickly. This leads to faster hiring, less candidate drop-off, and a more competitive edge in attracting top talent.

Improved Candidate Experience

A streamlined screening process provides a better experience for candidates. When candidates don’t have to wait for long scheduling windows or endure repetitive questions, they are more likely to feel engaged and respected. This results in higher candidate satisfaction and can enhance your employer brand.

Enhanced Recruiter Productivity

Optimizing screening calls enables recruiters to focus more on high-value activities. Instead of spending hours on screening calls, they can devote more time to interviewing top candidates, engaging with hiring managers, and improving overall recruitment strategies.

Conclusion: The Case for Optimizing Screening Calls in Hiring

The cost of screening calls is often underestimated, but it can have a significant impact on an organization’s recruitment efforts. By understanding the direct and indirect costs involved, companies can take steps to optimize the process, improving both efficiency and candidate experience.

From leveraging asynchronous video interviews and automating scheduling to using pre-screening questionnaires and group sessions, there are numerous strategies that can help organizations save time and resources. Ultimately, optimizing screening calls leads to faster hiring, better candidate experiences, and increased recruiter productivity.

By rethinking how you approach screening calls, you can unlock more efficient, cost-effective hiring practices that attract top talent and drive organizational success.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. How do you measure the cost of screening calls?

Measure the full-time investment by adding prep, call, and follow-up minutes per screen. Multiply by the recruiter's hourly cost and the number of candidates screened per role. Include indirect costs such as lost sourcing time and candidate attrition to assess total recruitment cost.

2. Can asynchronous video interviews replace live screening calls?

They can in many cases. Asynchronous video interviews allow structured evaluation earlier in the process and reduce scheduling overhead. Use them for initial fit checks and reserve live calls for final alignment and cultural fit conversations.

3. Will reducing screening time harm hire quality?

Not if you replace long calls with targeted assessments and structured scoring. The key is to evaluate the same competencies more efficiently rather than removing the assessment altogether.

4. What are quick wins to reduce screening time?

Quick wins include standardising questions, using a short live script, introducing asynchronous recordings for initial answers, and automating scheduling and follow-up through ATS integrations.

5. How should teams pilot screening changes?

Choose one role or team, define baseline metrics for time to hire and quality, implement shortened screens or video interviews, and compare outcomes after a defined period. Use data to decide whether to make scale changes.

6. What metrics should be tracked?

Track recruiter hours per hire, time to hire, candidate drop-out rate, interview-to-offer ratio, and quality of hire measures such as hiring manager satisfaction and early performance indicators.