The key to success for senior HR leaders: Evidence and reporting
Until the data revolution arrived, management teams had to make complex business decisions mostly based on their intuition and judgement - but limited facts. Thankfully things have moved on and with the right data management and analysis tools, business leaders can make far more informed and confident decisions - still backed up by experience of course. But are HR professionals making the most of evidence and reporting to achieve better business outcomes?
The fundamental role of HR is to drive business performance and achieve competitive advantage through people. It has long been the case that the HR department is not necessarily known for its numbers and data - yet this is a department which hosts a gold mine of valuable and insightful business information. Data on recruitment, absenteeism, productivity, competencies, employee engagement levels, success profiles - the list is endless. Some companies are not only maximising all of this, they’re even looking beyond their own internal data sources to get a wider view of core areas such as employee sentiments and workplace expectations expressed on social media and discussion forums.
Accessing HR data has changed
The days are long gone where HR data only languished in an inaccessible database or a paper filing system, either unused entirely or pulled on periodically to make a limited appearance in a spreadsheet or an unwieldy board report pack. Today’s appetite is for timely insights which help business leaders to stay one step ahead. Knowing where to recruit the best people, the factors that the most successful employees share, what improves employee satisfaction levels (and what doesn’t), even predicting when employees are likely to leave: all of this is now possible with big data and workforce analytics.
Step up a level and the power of HR data and analytics not only supports better HR decisions but it also supports the senior leadership team when faced with decisions that impact staff.
Using HR software and analytics opens up a new world of insight
The benefits of delving deep into the world of HR analytics are numerous, but for starters consider that this could help you in developing your strategy and tactics for recruiting more effectively, increasing employee satisfaction and retention; even improved HR productivity overall and finding efficiencies to put into place for HR processes.
What could be done better with improved HR analytics capabilities?
Consider the amount of time HR professionals in your business spend on reporting at the moment. There are various requirements – both from a business perspective and from a legal one – which must be satisfied. Reporting to the board on HR performance and a whole host of workforce metrics is so much easier with a modern software solution. But don’t forget the ever-increasing number of legal reports that HR must produce from measuring the gender pay gap to managing diversity to proving consent for GDPR. HR data management responsibilities are increasing.
What NEW insights could HR analytics deliver?
Payroll is the most expensive budget line for the majority of businesses so getting compensation right should be high on the HR (and the organisation’s) priority list. HR analysis tools make it easy to get to grips not only with your internal trends but also to compare with wider market data to understand the real value of your employees and new recruits. Deeper insight into the factors influencing why valued employees leave or stay is also worth its weight in gold from an HR perspective. Use it to cut churn, reduce recruitment fees and set out a workable strategy for improved employee satisfaction rates.
Time to get started?
No matter how large or small your business, there will be useful insights to be gleaned from your HR data using workforce analytics – you might discover a whole new slant on your HR and business decision-making. With software and usable tools designed with HR teams in mind, it really is possible to avoid information overload and transform a sea of data into powerful new insight that propels your business forward.
For more details about what is possible with the latest HR technology, speak to one our HR technology specialists who will be happy to answer any queries you might have and even book you a demo of our software so you can see it in action for yourself.
