Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is not the sole organization that is utilizing employees’ data to boost productivity. Experts opine the type of data-driven employee management that Amazon utilizes is becoming more prevalent as technology goes on transforming workplaces in the US.
Both small and big companies are ditching the conventional human resource reviews that are based on yearly performance evaluations. They are increasingly adopting an increased data-driven approach with more often feedback, check-ins and other such metrics.
Consulting organizations Accenture Plc (NYSE:ACN) and Deloitte both declared this year they would overhaul their existing performance review procedures. For instance they would deploy a more data driven process that includes more often ratings by managers and other kinds of internal feedback as well as data that can be analyzed and consolidated to give a better performance benchmark than an individual rating.
Tech organizations have been even faster in harnessing data analytics in staffing. Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) leverages data to assemble optimal-size teams for different projects and determine the qualities of effective leaders. A California based entity Glint Inc dispatches to staff what it terms pulses or brief surveys regarding their emotions and how they perceive their jobs.
Glint CEO, Jim Barnett opines the surveys enable executives to know how their staff and organization are coping in real time at the same speed they can view sales results or marketing impacts. As the pulses to staff are much more frequent than conventional reviews, results are more accurate. Also data can be consolidated to give better insight on overall staff progress.
A recent article in New York Times depicted Amazon’s work environment as Darwinian as well as bruising because of the manner in which the tech company utilizes data to manage its employees.
The article described a work culture where employees are subject to constant pressure to be productive on a host of detailed metrics the organization tracks in real time. Staff is prodded to report compliments or brickbats about peers to management to accumulate more data related to workers’ performance.
Clearly the days of annual reviews are over. The world today is much faster and requires a different and more frequent performance evaluation approach.
Sources: chicagotribune, dispatch
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