ATLANTA, January 8, 2013–According to a survey of U.S. employers conducted by ACT Bridge, 56% do not measure the return they’re receiving on their talent investments despite a widespread reliance on the use of analytics to make evidence-based decisions. Equally troubling is that among those employers who do measure the return on their talent investments (RTI), only 42% measure the RTI of their education and training programs, 32% measure the RTI of their HR information management tools and systems, and 25% or less measure the RTI of the recruiting firms, job boards, social media sites and other key resources they use.
“These findings are disconcerting for two reasons,” said Kurt Ballard, ACT Bridge principal and chief marketing officer. “First, organizations that actively measure RTI gain a quantifiable metric that can be tracked and used to establish critical performance benchmarks that are instrumental in making decisions that produce desired results. Second, measuring RTI is a powerful way to establish and reinforce the strategic value of HR to senior management–which is especially meaningful in today’s data-driven, cost-conscious business environment.”
Other findings from the survey:
– Among employers who do measure RTI, just 33% use software to do so while 71% use spreadsheets, which are significantly less reliable.
– 61% of employers do not know how their talent investments are impacting their profitability.
– 59% of employers do not know how their talent investments are impacting their growth.
The complete results of the ACT Bridge survey are available in a new report that the company is offering as a complimentary download.
The survey was conducted online in November. A total of 360 individuals participated, representing a wide variety of employers from numerous industries including health care and pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, finance and financial services, education and government. Participants’ organizations ranged in size from those with fewer than 50 employees to those with more than 10,000 employees. Participants also represented various corporate functions including Human Resources, Operations, Marketing and Finance, among others.
“We conducted this survey because we want to help employers and HR professionals better monitor the impact of their talent investments on the organization’s performance,” Ballard said. “Profitability, growth and customer satisfaction all depend directly upon the quality of an organization’s talent. But you can’t maximize your talent investments or move the needle on the organization’s performance unless you’re actively measuring RTI on an ongoing basis. And, as our survey shows, too many employers aren’t doing that.”
About ACT Bridge
ACT Bridge helps employers improve their talent acquisition and management initiatives through a comprehensive suite of solutions including job profiling, cognitive and soft skills assessment, skills gap analysis, career wellness programs and targeted training. Our innovative ideas and proprietary processes take the guesswork out of hiring and deploying the right people with the right skills into the right roles. ACT Bridge’s evidence-based workforce tools and professional services have been implemented by Fortune 500 clients to attain measureable and sustainable business results. For more information, visit http://actbridgeinc.com/.