Even though this is a true statement, you can manage what you can’t measure, it’s not easy. In today’s increasingly data-filled business world, there’s little room for managing what you don’t understand. Because technology is so vastly intertwined in organizational practices, including talent acquisition, although it’s possible to measure what you can’t see, it’s much more difficult (and quite frankly, less accurate). Despite the potential flaws in data calculation, it’s becoming a necessary facet of the talent acquisition field.
We haven’t forgotten our humanity
Some HR and recruiting professionals have been rather obstinate to the idea of data integration into their human resources. But honestly, as those in talent acquisition, you already measure people. With each new job posting, you know how many people have applied, how many candidates made it through and where the best candidates came from. Likewise, you want to know how to spend your recruitment budget effectively. Liz Ryan (@humanworkplace), CEO of the Human Workplace, said:
“Now I’m not complacent about the dangerous, anti-human and soul-crushing lens we apply to the business world. I’m militant about it, these days.”
But technology, unlike the way Ryan and others see it, doesn’t negate the humanity of recruiting… it augments it. As I noted in a previous post, specifically in regards to big data, technology is the way we are able to connect information and humans in a way to make everyone on both sides of the recruitment table happy with the hiring decisions companies make.
Some Things Can’t Be Quantified
While this is true, it’s somewhat misleading. Although workplace aspects like employee satisfaction can be difficult to measure on a consistent level, you can measure a multitude of important things in human capital management. Talent acquisition professionals need to understand how to best allocate their budget so they can source the best candidates in the least amount of time with the least expenditure. So, understanding where great employees come from is a crux in the human-data relationship.
“Just because our contributions can’t be measured by any standard metric, it doesn’t mean they’re not worth making. There’s an infinite value to things that can’t be measured.” - Srinivas Rao (@UnmistakableCEO), Best-Selling Author of The Art of Being Unmistakable
However, by stating that everything we do in the workplace has value, whether we have the metrics to measure it or not, suggests these actions can be measured. It’s a matter of how you measure them and with what importance.
"There's an infinite value to things that can't be measured." -@UnmistakableCEO
The Future of Work is Human
Your employees will always be the front lines of your business, but that doesn’t mean they can’t have the right technology to help them work more efficiently. Better technology in the workplace isn’t just a luxury anymore, it’s becoming more of a necessity. With the increasing demands of business, employees want - they need - these more advanced pieces of technology to work better, and 16.9% of employees agree.
Your recruiting staff is no different; they want the platforms, the analytics, the tools to fill open positions better in less time. This requires measurement in relation to human analytics… Ultimately, these numbers will help your recruitment team reach their goals and your organization maintain a higher retention rate.
Although some believe you can manage what you can’t measure, it’s much more difficult for those in talent acquisition. The modern business world requires data to accurately spend budget and find the best candidates for open roles. In this sense, you do need to measure everything you can so management is easier. The integration of data doesn’t mean we’ve lost humanity in recruiting nor does it negate the future of humanity in work. The flood of data into recruiting means we have better ways of sourcing, recruiting and hiring the best possible candidates - all we need is a little measurement.