Canadian HR Reporter Weekly

3 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2018 July 4, 2018 Linking people analytics such as employee engagement to business performance is helpful, for example, he said. Having a CHRO who fully believes in the power of data is also beneficial in terms of identifying key business problems, connecting stakeholders and turning insights into action. "is isn't about creating a team within HR that's siloed," said Green. "It's about cross-functional collaboration… e ability to leverage resources from outside of HR is really the key." "Advanced people analytics teams use multiple data sources," he said. "It's not just around internal HR systems or surveys." "Not everyone in HR needs to suddenly learn how to become a data scientist — rest assured on that." Green recommended a methodology including the framing business questions and building a solid hypothesis before gathering data and conducting analyses to reveal actionable insights. From there, excellent storytelling can compel senior leadership to move on recommendations, he said. Road ahead While HR trends further towards people analytics, man- aging expectations will be necessary — at least initially. "Unfortunately, when people invest in people analytics, they expect a return straightaway," said Green. "It doesn't necessarily happen, unless you happen to strike gold with the first project that you work on." Personalized career trajectories are a natural benefactor of people analytics, with data recommending skills paths for workers to earn roles they covet, he said. "is is great for the employee, because it really supports career development and it really personalizes it for them as well... You can't do any of this without data and analytics underpinning it." Ethics and privacy of data collection require early consideration, as all employers operating in the European Union are now required to adhere to data protection rules laid out in the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Eighty-one per cent of analytics are "jeopardized" by ethics or privacy issues, said Green. "If you can't articulate the benefit of collecting data or doing a people analytics project to employees, maybe you shouldn't do it." But while data, analytics and other emerging technologies can increase HR's impact within organizations, human capability will remain at the forefront of the practice, he said. "is is not about replacing judgment or experience," said Green. "is is about augmenting it and hopefully making it better." Balancing humans with tech In the age of analytics, maintaining a human touch within HR remains important, according to Marc-Etienne Julien, CEO of Randstad Canada, a human resources and recruitment service provider. "Leveraging the benefits of technology and maintaining a human-forward approach do not need to be mutually exclusive," he said. In a time of labour market shortages, organizations should be leveraging technology to simplify the job search and application processes for candidates, as well as automating repetitive tasks in the HR process. "This allows employers to reinvest that time in creating a more human experience by building human connections through face-to-face interaction," said Julien. And while the world of work changes rapidly, HR practitioners would be wise to begin implementing analytics in an effort to remedy specific and immediate challenges such as high turnover or problems in hiring for specific skill sets, he said. The user experience should be a central focus throughout the process, said Julien. "Prioritizing the user experience is central to the development of accessible and usable workplace tools, both for candidates and for your employees. Involve your employees early on as they're the main users." Time saved through technological solutions should be reinvested through training programs, he said. Credit: Marcel Vander Wier Employers are turning to data to "support better decision making, improve employee experience, and actually raise the impact of HR," according to David Green, an expert in the field.

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