Human capability and capacity are what determine what an organization can
do, and thence, managing human resources (HR), or human capital, is one of the most
important, if not significant, functions of an organization. Considering the size of the
organization, and in a day and age where organizations have thousands of employees
that are spread across a wide geographical area, HR analytics comes into play. HR
analytics, in a true sense, provides the necessary scientific support to decision-making
and process improvement concerning a firm/organization’s HR and the organization in
general. The way organizations are growing, and the dynamic role that the HR
ecosystem plays makes it pertinent that a robust HR analytics system is in place. With
more organizations realizing that qualitative data helps to hire, engage, and retain the
right talent, the investment in HR analytics has seen an increase. It is right to say that
HR analytics aims to provide insights into how best to manage employees and reach
business goals. Because of data availability, it is important for HR teams to identify
data relevance and its usage, leading to maximizing return on investment (RoI). The
chapter places a perspective on how HR is i) identifying high-performing applicants, ii)
supportingthe analysis of pertinent aspects of engagement, iii) identifying high-value
career paths and leadership applicants, iv) analyzing strengths of prospective and
existing associates, v) ushering in a qualitative and metric oriented performance
management system (PMS), and vi) managing/predicting attrition.
Keywords: Data, HR analytics, Leadership, Performance management systems (PMS), Prediction, RoI.
