The amount of data being generated has skyrocketed in recent times thanks to the rise in adoption of modern technologies. As such, Big Data has grown in stature and is playing massive roles in a number of sectors around the globe. Human Resources is one of those sectors that has been tapping into the trend.
One way that big data can be used in the HR world is to measure employee productivity. However, most HR workers dont know what big data is and where to start. In a study done by Talentia Software, it was established that 56% of HR directors in the UK still do not understand what big data means and how it beneficial it can be. This sample study shows that the field is yet to be well explored and adopted. So, how can big data be used to improve employee productivity?
How Big Data Improves Employee Productivity
Human capital is a colossal component of any business, meaning that enough investment has to be allotted into determining factors that keep employees engaged. Now this is where big data comes in the form of analyzing relationships between employee engagement and retentions in a bid to get a clear picture of how you can assimilate such metrics into business growth. Apart from improving employee engagement, big data adds value to acquisition of talent, retention and training.
In training for example, an organization can use big data techniques to get an overview of how to improve employee training and development. This can be done through measurement of the level of effectiveness of training programs before they can be implemented. Plus, this ensures that only effective programs can be designed as training initiatives.
Big Data Methods in HR
Big data techniques in HR come in a wide variety of forms depending on what one is looking to achieve. If you are looking to acquire any talent, you could use schemes such as tracking social media profiles, online games, and databases that will give you an overview of traits of a candidate. To get better retention, there are some pretty sophisticated tools that can get you the analytics you need. Tools like team assessments, employee satisfaction surveys tools and social media platform could be very vital. Furthermore, companies can use wearable devices to track their employee activity with an aim of getting those vital insights in human resource.
Challenges in Using Big Data With Employee Tracking
Of course with every trend there is a challenge and big data has had its critics. The question of privacy comes in when one thinks of tracking down employees to that minute level. In fact, there have been some research regarding employee attitude towards the use of this trend.
Industrial Organization Psychology did an interesting research and uncovered some facts pertaining employee attitude towards data mining techniques employed by businesses across the globe. The research contained a number of studies with the key result showing employing are generally not comfortable with the trend. This shows that some tweaks are needed if the trend is to be viable in future as we expect big data to grow stronger in the coming years. The line between infringement of privacy and getting invaluable data is thin, meaning we have to strike the balance. The question is how do we do that?
The Best way to Perform Big Data Mining in a Business
To mitigate the challenges that come with employee data mining, it is important to lay down a procedure to guide you through the process. First, make a plan to ensure that you have a reason for tracking your employee rather than just data mining without a foreseeable goal. The next key thing is to keep the procedure transparent in the sense that you need to make sure that employees have a clear picture of the data being tracked, the time of tracking and the necessity of the data mining procedure.
The other important thing is to make sure that you always try to give a positive overview in the realm of results especially in the case of electronic monitoring data mining procedures. Keep in mind that it is advisable to give the feedback instead of using computerized techniques do so for you.
Moreover, always understand that people are affected differently, thus desist from using a collective view in making decisions. For example, electronic monitoring systems affect people differently depending on things like age, gender among others.
Big data will not only revolutionize the HR industry, but increase employee productivity and motivation.