To be on the top, businesses need to have complete control over all functions, be it the production of goods, services, or even their employees. Each department in the business functions in its way and at its efficiency. Likewise, the selection of a candidate and the conversion process in the business take time. These are some of the functions in a business that the human resources department handles.
Sometimes these processes are time-consuming i.e. time in selecting an appropriate candidate, backchecking of the candidate’s profile, making sure that a candidate is fit for work, etc. However, if these processes are automated then it would help the business in performing such tasks effectively and more efficiently. Such a data-driven method is HR analytics.
Defining HR analytics
HR analytics is a process that helps in business decisions, related to HR functions. The process i.e. HR analytics can improve various functions in the business. However, it depends on the quality of the data. It eases in the majority of tasks performed by the HR department, such as:
- Hiring time
- Time to fill
- Application drop-rate
- Talent retention,
- Average absenteeism rate,
- Employee engagement,
- Human capital risk, etc.
Why HR analytics
With relevant data, HR leaders can make successful practices in pointing out areas of imperfection. Predictive HR analytics can help in increasing the productivity level, engagement level, and employee retention level.
In simple words, HR analytics tools aim to set goals for HR teams, like to measure their success and optimize processes, generate better revenue for the business. The analytics tool provides insights, which helps the business organizations to make difficult decisions related to turnover rate, role diversities, etc.
Implementations of HR analytics
Implementation of HR analytics are as follows:
Data management:
It is a practice that ensures that the collected data is uniform, accurate and complete. When a business presents data in all aspects, it can provide facts, figures, and proper insights. It gives reports in the form of reports and dashboards which favor the functioning of the business.
Reporting and dashboarding:
When the report based on business’ data is made available, HR analytics presents those insights that determine the performance index. The dashboards present those insights through charts. The business then decides to either produce an in-house tool or buy a software subscription that fits according to the business needs.
Presently, working with dashboards have also been advanced with features like widget drag and drop to make dashboards show specific data charts according to the business’ needs and understanding.
Pilot analysis and capacity building:
With HR analytics, organizations can understand their basic insights and also prepare strategies. This helps in building performance and maintaining efficiency and effectiveness.
Through HR analytics an organization can determine basic insights. They can understand employee behavior (understaffing and over-staffing) and understand the environment of the organization. Such tools help in managing the employees intelligently and understand the essentials in the life of demanding employees.
Benefits of HR analytics
Some of the benefits from HR analytics are as follows:
Improves employee retention and performance:
With HR analytics, employee engagement rate can be understood. This helps out in marking flags in activities that might hinder the organization from proper functioning, implementation of analytics not only encourages an employee’s performance but also help in retaining them.
Improves recruitment:
With continuous improvement in analytics, there is a better reliance on processes of HR analytics. The analytics is used in video interviews where assessments like psychometric profiling of the candidate is made. Here hundreds of split-second facial expressions are analyzed. The analytics is said to be in an ethnicity-blind state but is accurate in judging the characteristics of an individual. This results in improved recruitment.
Enables better work-force planning:
With HR analytics, a business can measure better employee-engagement, and plan out better work-force planning. HR analytics through its understanding of churn rate can clearly identify roles that have greater responsibility and are deemed critical.
Challenges with HR analytics
Even some medicines that cure us have bitter taste, let us look at what are the problems with HR analytics:
Lack of analytical skills:
No matter how big the organization is, there is always a need for a skilled individual. Someone who can interpret the statistics of the data gathered earlier that is later reported to the higher authority. There is always involvement of an authority related to matters which involve human resources.
Decision related to the tool:
Sometimes, the tools selected by the organization may not be up to the mark. The tools might not meet the operation’s expectations in terms of performance and operation. In such cases, the organizations need to make sure that the tool that is going to implement into the organization’s functioning checks and matches the organization’s objectives.
Maintain privacy:
In the present system, privacy matters a lot. The data collected earlier for analytics needs to be secured/ protected. There are always chances of manipulation with the actual data. In the competitive market, the data has to be encrypted. This procedure has become a necessity.
Since these tools help in collecting information from an employee or a potential employee, the privacy of that information must be considered, as breaching the privacy of its employees might land the firm in legal battlegrounds.
Conclusion
In this world, those who have moved towards automation and have followed Industry regulations have succeeded in their respective industry. So, no doubt that the implementation of HR analytics in an organization would only boost its functioning. However, the business organization must ensure that the opted process adapts to the operation and becomes a helping hand in growing the business.
