Data... it’s not only for integration...

…..it is a strategic driver to achieving your digital transformation.

I recently participated in a Latin America CHRO Roundtable, after continued pondering, I felt a bit compelled to dive into the topic a bit more and thought a broader point of view may be helpful.

The question, “Brett you head up a critical part of our customer organization focused on HR Transformation. Part of the transformation that many organizations are undergoing is captured in one of the trends we covered today: Setting New Directions for Work and the Workforce. In the Deloitte survey,  97% of respondents indicated they needed additional information about their workforce. This data gap is sometimes a tools issue, sometimes a collection issue, and sometimes a trust issue. As part of your work in the HR Transformation Advisory you survey business and HR Leaders and help them leverage the insights for more successful transformations. What are some of the parallels you see between the need for real time insight to set new directions for work and HR Transformation?”

Prior to the Q/A portion of the session, Deloitte had the opportunity to share the cliff-note version of “The social enterprise in a world disrupted - Leading the shift from survive to thrive - 2021 Deloitte Global Human Capital Trends. Prior to the session, we had an opportunity to review the findings and one of the key areas that stood out to me in the Governing of Workforce Strategies section is that “only 11% of organizations said they were able to produce information on their workforce in real time….”

As Deloitte pointed out and I fully agree, this is truly staggering in a world where workforce data is informing decisions such as where we work, DE&I, skills, hiring, productivity, engagement, experience…………..., etc. However, the one area I would have liked to have drilled down on is what makes up the 11% of the information? Is it relevant, is it meaningful, is it usable? Therefore the more philosophical question is, if it is not of the prior, which is worse, to be part of the 89% (not have data at all) or the 11% (have data that isn’t usable)? A little food for thought during your upcoming summer holidays.

In a research document I read (I don’t recall which one), it stated the average time for an organization to pull an accurate headcount report was 4-6 weeks. Again, this begs the questions, is accuracy better than access? It may not be timely, but at least at one point you know it was accurate :).

If you have read any of my prior blogs, articles, or listen to the B&B Express - This HR Life Podcast, you will know that I don't focus a lot on the technology aspect of transformation, but focus on everything around the technology. However, this question and the Deloitte research really made me think about HR’s digital transformation progression and the common challenges we see and hear across the industry. 

Time and time again, when I speak to organizations, they open up regarding their challenges with the Why and How to effectively transform. Many HR organizations, as research also indicates, do not have a clear direction to the future nor can quantify the compelling drivers to establish that direction. Which again begs another question, if you do not know where you are going, how do you build a plan to get there??? 

Unfortunately most organizations don’t look at data as a strategic tool, but as an integration point, data field, etc. When will data start to become a strategic priority for HR? An area that my organization started to study last year was the readiness of HR to transform and what are the leading and lagging indicators. Interesting enough, the top two lagging indicators are data readiness and value realization. Which of course, if you can’t get access to the right information and data, how are you able to manage, track, measure and articulate your value?

It goes without saying, HR must prioritize data not only as a foundational object, but as a strategic tool which provides real-time, relevant, and meaningful data to make informed business decisions . In today’s world, HR processes and data are continuously interacting and integrating with business processes and data.  

HR can no longer accept 11% as the norm, but must strive to deliver actionable, relevant, and meaningful data to make informed decisions about our workforce.