How Should Big Data Be Used in Hiring Decisions?

Dear Analyze This:

The impact that big data has on talent acquisition is far reaching. It also often begins well before hiring decisions are required. Organizations can access applicant data on perceptions of Employee Value Proposition to inform attraction strategies, use information on the source of applications to inform job posting and leverage cultural metrics to understand the drivers of retention and engagement.

The clearest benefit of big data to talent acquisition is through predictive analytics, the process of identifying the characteristics, skills and abilities with a proven link to an applicant’s potential to perform in role. Although the size of the data set is critical, quality of data is important as well.

Large samples of high-quality data are used every day to predict performance, retention rates and levels of employee engagement accurately and quickly.

While the application of big data can drive quality of hire, its most exciting use going forward, involves integrating multiple sources to provide talent acquisition professionals with broader evidence on which to base more strategic based decisions. A client recently merged candidate rejection data with their consumer data over an 18-month period to reveal that over 2,000 applicants had cancelled their contracts within one month of being rejected. Linking hiring data to commercial outcomes enables an evidence based approach to resourcing and ensures a data driven link to an organization’s top line.

Perhaps going forward it’s not just the size of your data, but its breadth and quality. that is the key.

SOURCE: Chris Small, Saville Consulting (a Towers Watson company), Kingston upon Thames, United Kingdom, Sept. 1, 2015.