This webinar on HR Data brought home the importance of understanding the value of people data not just to HR but to the business as a whole.
Sponsored by Cezanne HR the webinar featured insights and experience from Craig McCoy, Senior Interim HR professional & Chair of London HR Connection, John Hixon, Chief Operating Officer, Cezanne HR and Peter Hall, Head of Customer Success at Cezanne HR.
With data technology now more available and sophisticated than ever before, the panel affirmed that businesses need to understand why they want to collect, analyse and use HR data in the first place in order to get the most from their solutions. Systems are no longer simply there to support businesses, but also to identify trends, outliers and issues which require HR’s work. Data can show ROI on people related initiatives as well as underpinning business operations. And while the panel agreed company Boards sometimes appear to under-value HR data and the systems around it, there is no doubt that the use of HR data can give the function a stronger voice at higher levels of an organisation.
The conversation highlighted the reasons for HR to build effective HR data systems, identifying the important data within their organisations as well as how to ensure the correct data is being used. While people data is certainly important to HR there was a recognition that data should also come from other areas of the business and correlate with other departments such as finance and operations.
The advent of SaaS solutions has certainly made HR systems more accessible for some businesses and they have the potential to bring together a wealth of information for the good of the organisation. However, this hasn’t removed the need for careful and systematic work by HR recognising the way data is created by a business and the value that can be derived from its use and analysis.
