hiQ Labs' Blog

The Global Standard For People Analytics

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hiQ  Labs is featured in  Deloitte 2015 Trends People Data Everywhere....

HiQ Labs was featured in the Deloitte University Press article "People Data Everywhere" as an innovative start-up quantifying the next generation of HR data - publicly available people data.  The article points out that leading organizations routinely use publicly available external employee data to monitor our company brands, industry sentiment and especially within recruiting functions as we search out top talent.

In today's information age, you'll miss the boat if you aren't aware of what your employees are doing and sharing out there. In fact, the article sites that 52% of their survey respondents indicated that capitalizing on "people data everywhere" is an "important" or "very important" priority for 2015.

Deloitte’s research confirms that "today’s forward-thinking HR organizations are well aware of the treasure trove of data available through outside sources—such as social networks—that can help monitor and build employment brand, identify and recruit talent, better understand compensation strategies, recognize flight risk, and monitor employee satisfaction and engagement."  And it's no surprise why that information is so valuable- information volunteered by employees on social networking sites is more complete and accurate than what is housed inside our own HRIS system.  

HiQ Labs takes that rich, external data and uses complex statistical algorithms that monitor and predict patterns of job-seeking behavior, as well as position, industry and geographic risk factors (such as hot market skills), to determine individual attrition risk, and it turns out that the external data is more predictive than internal data alone. 

“For applications like predicting flight risk or understanding the drivers of retention, our experience shows that public data can be significantly more predictive than internal HR data about people.” - Darren Kaplan, CEO, hiQ Labs

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hiQ CEO, Darren Kaplan and Mckesson's leader of the Workforce Intelligence Center of Expertise Amit Mohindra, Keynote at Morgan Stanley's HR Data Analytics Event

hiQ Labs CEO Darren Kaplan was invited to speak at New York’s largest HR Data Meetup hosted at Morgan Stanley.   It was a standing room only event attended by some of the most powerful brands from every sector including IBM, Avis and Pfizer .

The event was held on of the top floor overlooking the NYC skyline and was the perfect venue for this blue sky People Analytics conversation.   

 Amit Mohindra,  Vice President, Talent Management & Diversity at McKesson kicked of the program with a compelling talkabout his experience and his vision on where Workforce Intelligence is heading.  His talk was framed around what he calls "Mohindra’s laws." It was smart, sophisticated and spot on. It was easy to see why he is one of the most sought after HR Speakers.

Darren Kaplan, CEO hiQ Labs continued the momentum  focusing his TED talk around the importance of public data and data integrity at hiQ Labs.   The hiQ Labs team of PhDs who are all based in San Francisco, CA,  has proved that public data variables can increase the accuracy of  ANY company's retention  models, ensuring the right talent doesn't leave for the wrong reasons.   Mr. Kaplan applauded the audience for being the new breed of HR People Analytics and asked them to challenge themselves to continue being disruptors in this space by using public make data driven decisions.

hIQ Labs known as the Global standard of People Analytics, spent the rest of the session answering smart questions about how our other Fortune 100 customers are using hiQ Labs models for retention selection and workforce planning.   Many attendees asked about our data sources, how our models work, and the importance of using public data.

 hiQ Labs is looking forward to many future HR technology discussions including a presentation at NYU in the coming months and we look forward to sharing these learnings with the HR community.

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Congratulations to hiQ Labs Corporate Council Member McKesson for being featured in The Rise of Adaptive Analytics – Five Principles for Maintaining a Competitive Edge in Workforce Analytics

hiQ Labs Corporate Council member Amit Mohindra of McKesson, was recently featured in a piece called The Rise of Adaptive Analytics.  As the Vice President of  Workforce Intelligence Center for Excellence at McKesson, Mr. Mohindra shares five principles for maintaining a competitive edge in workforce analytics and planning:

   1. Don’t let workforce planning be an island.  By connecting with other analytics groups within the company, you can ensure that there is a large internal labor market for analytics  talent to expand and diversity career options.

   2. Diversity your workforce analytics talent profiles.  Mohindra recommends hiring people with various backgrounds – he’s hired internal talent  from HR, Finance,  Operations and IT, as each person brings a new perspective, skills and relationships to the team.

   3. Create matrix relationships across your organization. Avoid building an ‘ivory tower’ where all of the data and understanding stay with your unit.  Look for ways to build analytics infrastructure in your business units and across other divisions.

   4. Organize for success.  Mohindra believes in a separate of reporting and analytics. At McKesson the basic HR reporting is housed within HR, and the more complicated analysis are escalated to his team.  Their team is organized into three pillars: Analytics, Workforce Planning and Operations & Technology.            

   5. Have an array of tools.  Their team uses many tools including Excel, Stata, SPSS, and as a team they are learning R for its flexibility and positive budget impact (it’s free, compared to SAS)

Contact us for more information about the article. To learn more about our Corporate Councils visit www.hiqlabs.com 

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Meet hiQ Labs, The Market Shaper says...The Economist

“Big Data is all the buzz these days. And with good reason.  It is a vast storehouse of information that – with the right algorithms and filters – can be turned into actionable insight. Nowhere  is Big Data more valuable than in Human Resources and Talent Management,” said  Meghan Biro of Forbes in this recent article.  And we’re just getting started.  With companies earmarking astronomical consulting and HR software budgets, you’ll continue to see new and innovative tools disrupting the market.

hiQ Labs featured as one of the market shapers in the HR Data space.

hiQ Labs Chief Data Scientist  was featured this month in The Economist article, “Meet The Market Shapers” as one a market shaper of this multi-billion dollar space.

 “The data team at hiQ Labs reckons machine learning can revolutionize business. For most firms the cost of losing a senior employee is far greater than keeping existing workers happy. Leavers take knowledge and contacts with them and often induce loyal underlings to follow them out the door. In response big firms try to identify angst building in the workforce, using staff-wide surveys and blanket interviews to spot dissatisfaction. The result of this approach—a pay rise here, tax-free bikes or child care vouchers there—are then rolled out across all staff.

This blanket approach could be improved if firms knew who was most at risk of leaving, says Ms Graves. Algorithms devised by hiQ Labs solve this. Using a firm’s in-house data—from pay scales to organograms and job titles—and comparing it with information on pay and vacancies in competitor firms, it can predict who might defect, and for what reason. Managers then hone in on the potential deserters, offering a tailored solution which often turns out to be something other than a pay raise.” According to the article, “the empirical technique [we] employ at hiQ Labs, known as ‘machine learning’, is at the core of the new world of business economics.”

hiQ Labs couldn’t agree more.

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hiQ Labs Talks about Retention Programs and the Frustrating Cycle of Too Little, Too Late.

We all know that employee retention is critical to company success. And the longer a good employee stays with our company, the more valuable they become -They learn our systems, our clients, and how to work within our organization, making a good employee critical to smooth operations. Knowing that it's critical to keep our best employees from leaving, many HR Business Partners turn to retention programs to address the problem of employee turnover. It's common practice to take information from exit interviews, create sweeping retention programs to address problems, implement the program and then measure its success.  It takes months and costs big bucks.

 If you’re on the HR Analytics side, you do the same thing, but gather data from a wide variety of sources, sometimes exit interviews or HRIS data.  We gather that data to retroactively explain what correlates with leaving the firm and come up with another retention program.  This has been the way that HR has approached turnover and retention in the past. We call this the cycle of WHY – focusing only on why we think employees are leaving.

 In some ways, it’s incredibly valuable to know this information. But it shouldn't be the only information you act on, because it's not enough. Traditional retention programs only look BACK trying to create causational relationships out of correlates. The retention programs we create take months to implement, are costly and are not effective for everyone. So how do organizations break free of this cycle of too little, too late?  If we are going to be able to keep up with an improving economy, easier professional networking (allowing our best employees to be poached away), and the highest-ever mobility of employees, then we must move from reactive to predictive. And we must move from guessing at what most people want to focusing on the highest risk individuals.  

 The good news is, new technologies not only allow us to do this, but we can do it with fewer resources using predictive analytics products like hiQ Labs Control Center.  hiQ Control Center is a next generation tool that allows HR Executives and Business Partners to proactively identify employees who are at the highest risk of leaving.  The complex algorithms search publicly available data, which has been shown to be more accurate than internal data alone, and assess the turnover risk of each individual.

Using hiQ Labs predictive retention model, HRBPs are then freed up to focus on the key employees with the highest turnover risk and use their existing toolkit on an individual level - all with less time, fewer resources and lower cost than traditional retention programs.  And it's a win-win for both companies and employees because the best employees benefit by getting access to exactly what they need to thrive at your organization. 

It's time to move away from the too little, too late Cycle of Why and look forward to Predicting Who.

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Human Resources and Quantitative Scientists

This past year, hiQ Labs met with many Fortune 500 companies to discuss how Public Data is impacting their people decisions. One of the recurring themes we've been hearing is that it’s an exciting time to be a quant person in HR. It's been well documented that there is a talent shortage when it comes to big data, and Human Resources is no exception. A 2011 McKinsey report estimates there will be 140,000 to 190,000 unfilled positions of U.S. data analytics experts by 2018. This is an exciting time to be a quant person in HR, as these skills are in high demand by Fortune 500 companies looking to build out their internal capacity for HR data analysis.

In the past, HR reporting has been focused what we'll call familiar data-  internal reporting on things like performance reviews, compensation, benefits - all important things to track and understand for your organization. Now, we're seeing leading companies turn to hiQ Labs to incorporate public data into their people models on both individual and industry levels.  Data saavy companies are starting to incorporate this public data into their operations and the big winners are employees who are getting more access to internal opportunities as companies work to stay competitive and develop their people rather than lose them.  And all of this analysis is made possible with the help of quantitative scientists.

We want to highlight a few top tier US universities that offer one and two year graduate programs in  data science to help companies find their next quantitative scientists

Berkeley- Designed for data science professionals, the Master of Information and Data Science prepares students to derive insights from real-world data sets, using the latest tools and analytical methods to interpret and communication findings in ways that influence decision-making.

Rutgers - Masters of Business in Science, interdisciplinary program unites the fields of data management, statistics, machine learning and computation. It prepares students for careers as predictive modelers, data mining engineers and analysts in a wide variety of industries

MIT Sloan - Master in Business Administration, (and offers a 20 month executive MBA track), allowing candidates to create their own customizable curriculum and specialized tracks include Enterprise Management, Finance and Entrepreneurship and Innovation.

Michigan State - Master of Science in Business Analytics (one year program); Core courses include business strategy, data mining, applied statistics, project management, marketing technologies, communications and ethics. In the final semester, students complete a capstone practicum in business analytics.

Northwestern University - Online Master of Science in Predictive Analytics and Master of Science in Analytics covers areas like data mining, predictive modeling, and advanced statistics, but also works to help students hone business-focused skills like project management and communication, with the aim of preparing students to lead business initiatives based on data analysis.

Stanford - Master of Science in Computer Science, Information Management and Analytics track covers the principles underlying modern database and information management systems and methods for mining massive data sets.

Written by: hiQ Labs Data Scientist

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Professional Networking outpaces Employee Referrals as #1 Source of Hires.

It has taken ten years for professional networking to become part of mainstream hiring, but it’s now considered to be one of the most important sources of quality candidates by almost half of US companies, outstripping even the reliable employee referral.

Employee referrals use to be a company’s bread and butter and it’s easy to see why;  typically employee referrals cost less to acquire, perform better and stay longer.  So what is so important about professional networking?  And are you missing the boat if you’re not considering its effects in your strategic workforce planning?

Professional networking can cause serious heartburn for strategic workforce planning.  Because employees have access to a vastly larger field of contacts and employment opportunities through networking sites, such as LinkedIn, employees can easily see what else is out there -and with very little risk to their current job.  Many employees now see changing employers as the easiest way to advance in their careers.  Gone are the days of assuming a new hire will be on your roster for the next five years – and it wreaks havoc on a company's ability to plan for future work force needs. 

Even though it causes headaches for workforce planning efforts, social networking is also a critical tool that companies can't afford to ignore.  Cultivating relationships with people outside of your organization who have key skills (even though they may not be ready to join today), is as critical as identifying employees inside of your organization to take on future roles.   And it’s easier than ever to find and connect with them using professional networking tools.

 Employee referrals were a wonderful way of learning of new talent- but passive.  You had to wait until an employee (who knew of the job opening in the first place) decided to tell a qualified friend, who in turn decided they were interested, and who then reached out to you.  Now, you can find the right talent and then figure out who they know within your organization.  Or lead them to someone if they don’t already know anyone. Professional networking is a valuable way to cultivate relationships well in advance of hiring, and to reach people your organization couldn’t have reached in the past.

Professional networking is a key driver to improve company referrals.  It’s time to take control of the heartburn and make professional networking work for you.

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Building a People Analytics Team

It’s well recognized that HR is starting to reposition itself as a strategic partner within their organizations. The word is out on HR Analytics, and you probably already know that the future of HR lies in developing data-driven analysis that can help organizations make better strategic decisions. 

As companies embrace analytic decision making within HR, they are not only incorporating disruptive technologies –such as our predictive retention model  –  but are also creating internal capacity to gather, analyze and act on that information. 

HR organizations around the country are beginning to grow this in-house capacity with new HR People Analytics roles.

Director of People Analytics – The hottest role of 2015!  This specialized role that didn’t exist until recently at many organizations is becoming a must have strategic role. Directors help guide teams of analysts and functional directors with a laser focus on business strategy.

Dr. Janice Presser, CEO of The Gabriel Institute, says, “The current trends in big data will provide new ways for HR to prove its value, so we can expect HR departments to want to add people who can analyze and make projections using these tools, and people who can drive positive change using the information derived from the analysis.”

"The future of the HR director is going from the generalist role to the strategist -- the people strategist," said Ron Thomas, Director of talent and human resources solutions and New York City based Buck Consultants.

Data Analysts and Scientists – Listed as one of the hardest to fill jobs, Data Scientists have the skills necessary to manage and structure massive amounts of data.  And the need for specialized skills in data analysis and HR is growing.   Currently, most Data Analytics teams have an average of 3 employees. You’ll continue to see HR data teams grow as demand increases for more access to their unique skillsets and new titles such as Workforce Analyst and Data Scientist.

Written by: hiQ Labs Data Scientist

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hiQ Labs’ team was mentioned in  Forbes , “The Top 10 Disruptions in HR Technology: Ignore Them At Your Peril” by Josh Bersin.  Mr Bersin recognized our “innovative new analytics solution for retention, [and for attracting] some of the top data scientists in Silicon Valley”. 

Our first product - hiQ Control Center, referenced by Mr Bersin- is a SaaS tool using predictive analytics to address key employee turnover.  The driving minds behind our predictive power include PhDs from Harvard, MIT and Stanford.  They are from a range of backgrounds including former Data Scientists and HR Analysts from companies such as LinkedIn and Merck.  Our team has a deep HR Knowledge and a strong understanding of applying science and math to HR problems. Our team members have been guest speakers at prestigious conferences including Predictive Analytics World and  HR Technology. We have a select group of very smart people working behind the scenes on cutting edge data analytics.  But what we deliver to our clients is practical and implementable.

hiQ Labs believes that sophisticated analytics are only valuable when they lead to simpler and more powerful solutions.  That’s why hiQ Labs predictive analytics allows companies to focus on the most valuable employees at the highest risk of leaving;  making customized intervention possible months ahead of two weeks’ notice.

Contact us to learn more about what our team has accomplished and our predictive people analytics tools.

written by: hiQ Labs Data Scientist

#predictiveanalytics #talentanalytics #forbes #disruptiveHR #peopleanalytics #hrdata #hr #shrm

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hiQ Labs' predictive employee retention analytics was featured in the Forbes article, “The Talent Analytics Market Heats Up With New Cloud Offerings”  by Josh Bersin.    

Mr. Bersin validates the people analytics market by highlighting the increased demand for “data-driven HR”.  He also points out that organizations are working feverishly to build out their HR Data Teams.

 How big is this market opportunity? According to Deloitte research cited in the article, only 4% of HR departments are currently using any form of predictive analytics and more than 60% are struggling to get any usable information from the internal data they already have.    

hiQ Labs' predictive employee retention SaaS tool mentioned by Mr. Bersin, gathers massive amounts of public data, analyzes and then makes highly significant predictions about who is most at risk of leaving an organization through ‘push’ or ‘pull’ factors (such as competitive pay or other job offers). 

 hiQ Labs' public data retention predictions are four times more accurate than internal data alone.  This actionable insight gives organizations the power to individually intervene with their most valuable – and most at risk – employees well ahead of two weeks’ notice.

Written by: hiQ Labs Data Scientist

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Forbes named hiQ labs as one of the Top 10 Disruptions in HR Technology. We want to thank all our customers and hiQ Corporate Council Members  for always pushing us to build the best in-class people analytics tools. 

hiQ Labs - The Global Standard for People Analytics

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McKesson hiQ Experience table.  Great conversation about People Analytics, Workforce Planning and HR Machine Learning Models. Thank you McKesson!  

hiQ Labs - Find | Build |  Keep

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GE Aviation talking about their People Analytics team at hiQ Labs Corporate Council. Predictive HR is the future! It was exciting to hear Ross speak about how GE Aviation's HR team makes data-driven people decisions. 

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hiQ Corporate Council | October 15 |  Silicon Valley

People Analytics | Predictive Retention 

Keynotes: GE, COKE and Pfizer