Step 1 | Talk to business people
Step 2 | Select the data you need
Step 3 | Build a database
Step 4 | Learn the stats!
Step 5 | Keep your HR policy updated
What is HR Analytics?
Human Resource Analytics is the collection, storage, and analysis of employee data, with the goal of making the impact of employees on organization performance measurable (CAOP, 2017) and predicting what works best for the organization. The latter is known as talent analytics. Research by Snell (2011) shows that up to 70 percent of a company’s value depends on the skills and experience of its employees. However, there is little insight in HR departments on how to take advantage of this to achieve better business results.
Anticipating performance, capabilities, and business turnover
Therefore, Snell (2011) rightly describes it as one of the biggest cliches to take seriously: “Your employees are your most valuable asset.” Despite the technological possibilities, the vast majority of HR professionals and managers still choose based on assumptions and gut feeling. Although some people may have a “nose” for it, a lot of talent is lost in this way. A data-driven HR policy ensures that you can manage talent in a scientifically sound manner.
This means that you know in advance what exactly to look for and what not to look for: do you know the efficiencies that predict leakage? Do you know what a competency profile is for the people who will succeed in your organization? Once inside, you also want to keep it inside, but are you aware of the ever-changing needs of your people? Do you know what they need to stay happy? Often the answer is correct, in the form of data.
The 5 Steps to a Data-Driven HR Policy
The search term ‘human resource analytics’ is searched twice on Google compared to something as basic as ‘human resource policy’. In fact, ‘data dependence’ goes far beyond that. It is clear that HR professionals are looking for ways to make management more data-driven. However, many HR departments have yet to take the lead. It is brand new and far from their bed view. Because, how do you do something like that? Where do you start? And is this really something for us at all? Every HR department, no matter how small or large, will benefit from a data-driven HRM policy. By following these five steps, you will also be data-driven and no longer have to waste talent.
Step 1 | Talk to business people
The result of your HR policy is that it should ultimately contribute to the success of the business. So talk to managers and management to find out what is important to them. How do you feed a business with HR data? What topics are important to them? Take an inventory so the final product matches the needs of the business.
Step 2 | Select the data you need
You know from step 1 the important topics, now you can decide which data belongs to this. The biggest problem with data is that there is a lot of it. very much. It is very easy to get completely lost in the sea of data. Before you know it, you’re too busy doing things that don’t benefit anyone. Formulate research questions based on the information you have abstracted; What problem will you solve? What data do you need to answer this?
Step 3 | Build a database
Now you know what you want to know and the data you need for it. First, go see what you already have, from what data sources can you actually derive from? Build a database with it and most importantly: keep that database up to date! Make sure you are working with pure data, otherwise any conclusion that follows this will be worthless. Numbers are a reliable alternative to assumptions and gut feelings, but this only applies if the data quality is high. So invest time and energy in this.
How do I build a database?
An effective way to automatically create, populate and update a database is to use the online platform of HFMtalentindex. The various assessments not only give you insight into every step of the candidate and employee journey, but also provide a wealth of data that you can dive into and learn a lot from. Are you not very analytical or simply do not have the time? Our consultants are happy to help you with this.
Step 4 | Learn the stats!
It’s nice to have all this data, but you can’t do much with it if you don’t understand the stats. can i google it? You can, but don’t expect to have all the wisdom after reading one article. You have to dig into this or hire someone who understands stats and analyzes data. People who aren’t good at (mis)interpreting research results often come to very large conclusions. Do you have a specific problem statement? Our consultants can also help you with this. They are all organizational psychologists with great experience in performing statistical analyzes to be able to predict the behavior of their employees based on the data received from our clients.
Step 5 | Keep your HR policy updated
Being driven by data is not a project, but a process. There is no beginning or end, but it is an ongoing way to keep HRM policy up-to-date and relevant. Additionally, you can educate managers and management on issues related to human resources and talent solutions. The great advantage of this way of working is the removal of many uncertainties. Ditch your assumptions and say goodbye to bias, bias and deception based on the moment. Finding talent isn’t magic, it’s science.
