- Employers will use big data to manage life experiences of their employees
The number of trained-analytics professionals in businesses is rising as organizations prioritize using data for decision-making. As another year begins, employers will be looking to leverage employee data to assess their current skill sets and determine whether there is a gap that needs to be filled. Furthermore, employers will take advantage of big data to find qualified people to fill the existing gaps. Considering the competition in the market for some skills, employers must move beyond the traditional methods and notions of qualifications but focus on the ability of the potential employee. 2021 is a year of people analytics where employers will embrace new realities of remote work and technologies. Expect more adoption of big data in the assessment of employees in such a setup.
- The gender wage gap will increase as normalcy in workplaces return
Most organizations are currently using a hybrid approach in their workplaces or are planning to adopt it this year. This approach is a perfect response to the coronavirus restrictions, which have forced employees to work from home. With this scenario expected to go on for some time, men are likely to return to work while women will continue working remotely. According to a Gartner survey, 64% of all managers believe that office workers work better than those working remotely. Based on performance, employees are likely to increase pay for those working in the office –most of who are men- than those working remotely. Therefore, if men work more in the office and get pay rise more than women, the gender-pay gap, which has long been a source of argument, is likely to grow big in favor of male employees.
- New regulations will emerge limiting employee monitoring
During the pandemic, companies invested in monitoring technologies to track the performance of their employees passively. While these technologies ensured production is maximum, there has been a debate on balance between employee privacy and productivity. Most of those against these technologies argue that employees are frustrated by this technology, and their privacy is always at risk. According to Gartner Research, less than 50% of employees trust their organizations with their data, while 44% do not get any information concerning data collected from them. In 2021, new regulations are likely to come up limiting what employers can access and what they can track.
- Data translators will help drive action
No one can dispute the fact that collecting data is crucial for decision-making. However, having massive amounts of data but failing to transform it into insights amounts to nothing. For people analytics to mean anything both in the short and long term, translation is necessary. This calls for a robust data strategy that will address the aspects of resources and training needed to achieve specific tasks. Data translation in human resource management determines what specific employees an organization attracts and allows savvy HR professionals to look for more than just the skills and capabilities of an applicant. Data also can determine if a candidate is a good fit for the organization in terms of culture. Adopting big data in strategizing for HR will be a big win as it will lead to insightful management of human resources.
