‘People analytics’ is going mainstream

Monday 22 July 2019 - To ensure the success and robustness of their company in the coming years, as many as 83% of Belgian CEOs consider it crucial to rely on information and data about their employees. So-called ‘people analytics’ is on the rise. Over the past decade, big data analysis has already radically changed the way many companies do business. People analytics is thus increasingly becoming an important link in day-to-day decision-making, concludes PwC’s Talent Trends 2019: Upskilling for a Digital World.

Even more data needed

Analysis of employee data helps companies identify their key drivers for success and solve key organisational challenges. Yet 66% of CEOs surveyed feel they need even more information to make better decisions.

Matthias Reyntjens, Partner at PwC Belgium: “So far, companies have done little with insights into their greatest asset: their employees. Employee engagement, performance levels, diversity, skills or employee turnover - these are all examples where companies can gain insight into how they can better motivate their people, and also create added value for the entire company. People analytics - within the GDPR boundaries - enables companies to transform not only HR but also their strategic decision making, and to remove possible human cognitive bias by way of artificial intelligence”.

Analytical talent required

However, the transition to a more data-driven business decision making process is not going without a hitch. Belgian CEOs see many shortcomings and challenges, including a lack of data reliability (58%) or the fact that information is not accessible for analysis (48%). Another important barrier is the lack of analytical talent to draw useful conclusions from the large amount of information (45%). 

Matthias Reyntjens, Partner at PwC Belgium: “Companies often sit on a mountain of dormant data. It’s an opportunity for them to make more informed business decisions. However, this requires very specific analytical skills, which many companies simply don’t have in-house. Moreover, the analysis is not just about making correlations or connections, but about forecasting tangible business results. In this way, more than ever before, employees really become the human capital of a company”.

To download the full report, click here:

https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/ceo-survey/2019/Theme-assets/reports/talent-trends-report.pdf