LSE explores why HR generally failing to use analytics effectively. Agree that too often they go for large, complex and lengthy projects whilst ignoring simpler projects that would make a major difference. For example.
1) Analyse the free form text in performance and exit interviews where you'll often find the illuminating insights ignored by HR
2) Be able to access and analyse all the documents, reports, emails, letters, texts, SMS messaging to have a complete picture of past, present and predictively future employee & HR issues
3) Apply same to Health & Safety data
If insurance companies, Police and HMRC can do this across structured, semi-structured and unstructured data with 360TRetrieve why can't every enterprise and public sector organisation do so today?
Despite the potential suggested by this example, few organisations have made much progress in developing Maersk’s level of HR analytics capabilities. Our research suggests two key reasons. First, there is a lack of understanding of analytical thinking on the part of the HR profession. Many HR professionals are motivated by an interest in people, not data. Second, this lack of understanding is being compounded by the HR analytics industry, which is focused on offering complex products for data management, storage and reporting, which consume large amounts of money and time to develop, without offering the capabilities to perform more than simple strategic analyses. Government regulation may also play a role. Maersk are headquartered in Denmark; Danish companies are required to report annually on how people contribute to value creation.
http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/businessreview/2016/10/26/why-hr-is-set-to-fail-the-big-data-challenge/