An Exploratory Study of Human Resource (HR) Analytics: Implications for Human Resource Management Practice

Abstract

Effectively managing human capital is very critical to organisations today. This has strategic implications for businesses that want to gain competitive advantage over others. HR analytics is gaining widespread attention in businesses with the goal of increasing their competitiveness. This study, therefore, sought to investigate the implications of HR analytics on human resource management practice in Ghana. Adopting a qualitative approach to research, twenty organisations were purposively sampled with ten each from public and private organisations. Data was collected in a span of two months with the appropriate institutional approvals. The interviews lasted for thirty (30) to forty (40) minutes where responses were audio recorded. The data collected were analysed using the thematic analysis. The findings showed that Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Power BI and regression and decision tree were the predominant tools and methodologies used in HR analytics. The study further found that the use of HR analytics use has brought great gains on how applicants are recruited in job roles, performance has increased both at the individual and organisational levels and the best talents retained for continuous growth and effectiveness. Finally, the study revealed that organisations that use HR analytics have faced several challenges as: lack of HR analytics competency, lack of management support and poor data and tools management in appropriately digging into their employee data. Through the study findings, it was recommended that, the Government of Ghana draft a policy document to promote the use of HR analytics in public organisations due to the benefits that comes with its usage. Also, educational and professional institutions need to review their course catalogues to include courses in HR analytics to train experts in the field. The Ghana Employers Association need to encourage their members to take advantage of HR analytics especially to member firms that are currently not using it and to recommend to other sister companies. Conducting further research into the field will help establish strong connections between HR analytics and other Human Resource Management practices. Value can be created by promoting the use of analytics in the HR unit or organisation to reap the enormous benefits