My thoughts on attacking this metrics question in a PM interview…
Clarification segment :
Candidate(C): Since you mentioned Linkedin, can I use Linkedin as a case study for this exercise.
Interviewer(I): Sure, you can use Linkedin, answer as if you are the PM for LinkedIn.
(C): Can I focus only on the US market? The metrics to closely track will be different for the mature market and developing market.
(I) Ok, the USA is acceptable for the discussion.
(C): Are there metrics for any specific goals for the company? The general health of your offering, profit generation, etc.
(I): It is a great question; I like you to identify what Linkedin should be monitoring for the USA market today considering its position.
About the company/product.
Linkedin provides a platform for industry professionals to network with others in the industry. Before Linkedin, there were no easy means to stay connected with other professionals in the field. With such an extensive collection of professionals(Also candidates), Linkedin is currently the most significant source of candidates for companies to reach. In its business model, providing/making candidate information to recruiters, the hiring manager is the most crucial revenue source for LinkedIn. The access to candidate information is a subscription service; there are various subscription levels for candidate search. Linkedin also hosts job posting for a fee. There are NO fees for candidates to join or publish their profiles. Among all of the engagements and traffic, advertisements are also Linkedin’s source of revenue. It also offers a premium subscription option for professionals if they want to track their profile activities, which is also a source of income.
Success criteria:
The following are some of the areas we like to see a steady uptick monitored weekly/monthly and year or year. Seasonal factors should be factored in.
# The large pool of people on the platform. (Acquisition/Activation)
# Frequent updates by the professional, i.e., Job changes, information on some events, etc. (Engagement/Retention)
# Number of subscriptions of recruiters (Monetization)
# Number of premium subscriptions(Monetization)
Users :
There are three user groups for a company like linked in.
– Professionals (Non-paying)
– Professionals with Premium membership (Paying & also seeing opportunities)
– Recruiters & companies posting job openings. (Paying and searching for suitable candidates)
User journey for these three segments is different, with some overlap in paying & non-paying professionals.
Professionals:
1) Through friends, media, or other means, come to know of LinkedIn (Awareness)
2) Professionals(P) reach the LinkedIn site, read through the information, and decide to signup, or some may abandon at this time. (Failed conversion)
3) (P) adds the career information & all set (Activation)
4) Time to time, updates profile, provides recommendations, comments on colleagues (Engagement)
5) Able to reach out to long lost or current friends, can see some job posts, etc. (Helps Retention)
6) Optional, some may upgrade to Premium membership for a job hunt or to raise their profile, etc. (Helps with Monetization and contributing to Engagement and Rendition)
Recruiter & Companies:
1) Awareness is assumed, so not going to elaborate on it. As we are focusing on the USA, it is not metrics I would track for either (p) and Recruiter(R)
2) Post the job opens if any.
3) Search for candidates they are looking for the open positions (may or may not be posted on LinkedIn)
4) Try to reach the potential matches and follow through as they get responses.
5) Check for responses for their job openings
Along the way, I have labeled some of the activities and will be using them as candidates for metrics. I will walk through them and justification.
Top Metrics:
The following are the metrics to be monitored.
1) Number of active members (Updated their profile in last year or provided recommendations or reacted to post or posted any news)
This is the basis for attracting the recrutiers and job posting.
2) Number of outreach from Recruiters to candidates (It is an indicator that the recrutiers are finding the suitable candidates for their needs)
3) Number of Job posting (active) & active recrutier subscriptions
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