Survey reveals the truth about HR big data in Asia

SINGAPORE: As the spotlight continues to shine on HR Big Data and with no sign that interest is waning, the state of Big Data for human resources in the APAC region is, in reality, still very much in its infancy.

This is according to a new study sponsored by HRBoss, which exposes the many challenges the Asia-based HR department faces in adopting a data-driven approach in 2014.

HRBoss surveyed 427 professionals - including C-suite level senior executives, managers, and directors - from a broad range of industries and companies including Mitsubishi Corporation, Samsung, Baker& McKenzie, McDermott Asia Pacific, DHL, Fuji Xerox, Motorola, Mondelez, Delaware Consulting and Wal-mart.

Today's publication of the whitepaper marks the first of its kind for Asia, investigating how HR is prepared for and coping with the ‘Big Data Deluge'. A sample of takeaways from the survey report include the following:

* Only 23 per cent of Asia-based human resources professionals know what HR Big Data is

* 79 per cent claim that a Big Data strategy is a priority in 2014 - but 98 per cent have no Big Data strategy in place

* HR is stuck in Excel Hell: 92 per cent are frustrated by their reporting process

* HR want to be strategic - but 80 per cent do not have the right tools to get there

"This study provides a glimpse into the landscape of HR Big Data in Asia and proves that Big Data remains a concept that most HR professionals here are unfamiliar with," said Bernie Schiemer, CEO and founder of HRBoss.

The survey reveals that 92 per cent are frustrated by their HR reporting process and how long they need to take to create these reports. 88 per cent of HR professionals spend 2 days or more creating reports and 22 per cent spend a minimum of 6 days per month on reports.

Responses also show that while HR wants to be strategic, 80 per cent say they do not have the right tools to get there. According to the report, the top 2 biggest roadblocks hampering HR Big Data initiatives are lack of in-house data analysis expertise and inadequate IT systems for data management and reporting.