What do you call recruiting that doesn’t result in a hire?

A complete waste of time.

There’s no better (worse?) way to spin your wheels than focusing on things that don’t get you any closer to a hire. Because your metrics have you focusing on all the wrong things.

Good metrics keep you on track. Bad metrics lead to unproductive busy work. 

James Hornick and Jeff Smith break down the pitfalls of managing the recruiting process by spreadsheet in episode 89 of The 10 Minute Talent Rant, "Recruiting Is Not The Goal. Hiring Is.”