As people leaders, we’re tasked with solving complex problems, executing at speed and accuracy, and leading and inspiring talent. On top of the day-to-day activities, one aspect of being a people leader that has become increasingly complex in today’s world — accessing the live data needed to effectively hire and retain talent.
Think about supply chain, technology, finance, product, marketing, and sales departments. These are all critical areas of a business that have products or tools to allow leaders to understand their current state, where they have gaps, and where they have opportunities. They have the access to data-driven intelligence to inform decision-making and predictions.
That leaves only the HR and people space behind, and the 2022 PwC HR Tech Survey reported that 39% of HR leaders are finding insights and data analytics to be their biggest challenge this year. But there is a change coming. The shifting world of work has placed talent at the top of the value chain and with that, people leaders have to shift their decision-making from gut instinct/intuition to one that is data-driven.
Across industries, the investment in HR and people tech is increasing at scale. It’s now critical for hiring managers and leaders in organizations to access the right tools to make critical decisions with speed and agility in order to remain competitive and react to the current talent market.
The rise of workforce intelligence is becoming the key tool for leaders to thrive in an environment that demands more visibility, planning, and meaning for incoming talent and employees.
What is workforce intelligence?
Workforce intelligence integrates insights about your entire talent ecosystem — the skills, capabilities, experiences, career aspirations, performance, demographics, learning needs, and development opportunities of internal and external talent — to build a unique picture of your organization at a macro level.
“Workforce intelligence will not only revolutionize how we as people leaders work, but it will also enable us to create more equitable and impactful organizations by ensuring no one is hidden. The new world of work will be designed with inclusive, data-driven decision making with every people leader having a Zero Wasted Potential people strategy that they report to shareholders on.”
Siobhan Savage, CEO & Co-Founder, Reejig
What does this help you do as a leader?
1. Anticipate needs and gaps
Now you can think about your people’s needs in a different way. You can understand the skills you have and target those you need in the future, where the skills are in the marketplace, where your competitors are growing or investing, and where your workforce is heading.
Workforce intelligence elevates the strategy behind sourcing and reskilling talent. With full visibility, you can make a deliberate decision about where you want to invest your organization’s time and resources over the next few years and know what you’ll get in return.
2. Drive career growth and retention of employees
Employees want to be understood and supported by their leaders. They seek career growth and investment more so today than ever before. A workforce intelligence platform is there to act as an expert career coach, giving you the information you need to guide employees to their potential.
Think about a one-on-one with your most valued employee. Instead of walking in empty-handed, you know how likely they are to leave and have a career map of all the current opportunities in your company that match them today and can offer them pathways to grow in the future. Think about the experience that you’re creating for that team member when you have the information to act as their career coach.
3. Hire faster, hire right
Heading to market to hire today is harder than ever. The talent landscape has shifted — talent is now mobile, global, and in demand. But with a workforce intelligence platform, you know exactly what skills you need to make your team successful. Knowing what you need allows you to be deliberate and targeted about where to look and who to approach.
You can now see who has the skills you need, how much they cost, and how engaged they are with your company. Minutes after posting your vacancy you have in your hands a diverse, targeted shortlist of the people that can help you in and outside your company. Now you can focus on proving a meaningful candidate experience with the right person, not on finding them.
What workforce intelligence can do for your organization
- Plan the shape of your workforce. See the leading indicators that will accurately forecast your recruitment needs. Understand which departments are ready for growth, see what your current skills intelligence is made of, and predict — and solve — future skills shortages before they happen.
- Manage attrition and turnover. Know exactly who is at risk of resigning and take steps to mitigate that risk by focusing on engagement, identifying different career pathways, and giving your most valued employees more meaningful opportunities.
- Understand the flow of talent. Start mapping your workforce trends by understanding where new recruits come from, where your employees are going when they leave, and who’s acquiring those critical skillsets.
- Track your DEI&B performance. Measuring diversity, equity, inclusiveness, and belonging in your workforce to key to managing it. Gain the visibility to understand, track and report on how you’re performing against internal DEI&B targets.
Reejig is transforming the way people leaders accelerate their decision-making. We’re creating a competitive advantage for all our partners and helping them achieve their talent and business goals. Reejig provides workforce intelligence that acts as the central nervous system for your organization, giving you the data to source new roles, predict change readiness, recommend future pathways, and nudge talent to new opportunities.
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