Chapter 2
Why Does HR Analytics Matter?
HR analytics harnesses existing workforce data for better organizational performance.
HR analytics helps you understand the factors that impact the productivity and engagement of your workforce. It synthesizes the data your workforce already generates and makes it accessible, so you can spot patterns in hiring and talent management more easily. By tracking key workforce metrics, HR analytics can help your organization overcome challenges it may be facing, such as:
Weak Talent Pipeline
When your recruiting efforts aren’t yielding the candidates you need for open positions, your organization feels it. Given that the average cost per hire is more than $4,000, you need a solid pipeline to help you efficiently fill positions.
With the aid of HR analytics, you can do just that. HR analytics helps you track key metrics such as time to hire, cost per hire, and which sources yield the best candidates. As a result, you can make changes in your recruiting activities and improve the quality and quantity of candidates in your talent pipeline.
Several factors can impact your recruitment success, including talent availability, your employer brand, candidate sourcing methods, and your interview and selection process. However, given the variability of these factors and the differences between open positions, it can be difficult to determine the causes of recruiting success (or failure). HR analytics delivers the transparency you need to identify both recruitment triumphs and opportunities for improvement.
High Turnover
According to a Glassdoor analysis of data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average voluntary turnover rate in January 2021 was 25 percent. Although turnover varies by industry and between organizations, your organization’s turnover rate may be higher than it should be. If so, you can use HR analytics to understand the causes of turnover and what you can do to reduce it. You can track the following metrics to help you manage turnover more effectively:
- Turnover by manager and department: Breaking down turnover according to manager or department can help you identify issues unique to a specific part of the organization.
- Early turnover: By tracking resignations within the first year of employment, you can determine if onboarding needs improvement for better retention.
- Employee satisfaction: Using feedback in employee surveys can help you uncover possible drivers of turnover.
Remote Workforce Engagement
The COVID-19 pandemic required many employees to work from home, and some are likely to stay there. A Gartner survey found that 74 percent of company leaders plan to keep at least part of their workforce remote after the pandemic. Given that your organization is likely to have a mix of employees working at home, on-site, or in a hybrid arrangement, you can benefit from using HR analytics to identify ways to keep employees connected and engaged.
By tracking metrics such as employee participation in virtual training courses and employee performance over time, you can pinpoint areas of the workforce that need more skill-building or manager support to maximize performance. From there, you can test new training methods and identify ways for managers to connect with their fully or partially remote teams.