HR metrics refer to quantifiable measurements used to assess various aspects of the human resources function within an organisation. These metrics help HR professionals and organisational leaders track and analyse key indicators related to workforce performance, employee engagement, talent acquisition, retention, and overall HR effectiveness. The importance of HR metrics lies in their ability to provide data-driven insights and support strategic decision-making.

Listed below are the four key themes that companies can incorporate into their HR metrics for effectively managing their employee journeys and sustained organisational success.

Employee engagement metrics aligning the workforce with organisational goals

In the post-COVID era of hybrid working, measuring and sustaining employee engagement levels has gained greater importance. This is particularly significant for service-based businesses like insurance, which rely heavily on their human capital for organisational output and excellence. In this context, organizations must embrace new digital tools and solutions to support better workforce collaboration, enhance ways of working, improve workplace flexibility, and encourage employees to perform at their best. While employee satisfaction and engagement scores have always been monitored, their significance has increased significantly in the context of hybrid working. HR leaders must ensure that these metrics are aligned with the organization's business objectives and are prioritized as part of leaders' key performance indicators (KPIs) in line with the overall goal.

Focusing on improved talent acquisition and monitoring retention rates

With the rise of new technologies in the workplace, larger organisations need to adapt to changes to attract and retain talent. This is crucial due to the considerable costs associated with these processes. Being adaptable is necessary, leading organisations to rethink and update their traditional recruitment methods. Metrics like time-to-hire, cost-per-hire, and quality of hires become essential to evaluate the effectiveness of talent acquisition. At PNB MetLife, we focus on a balanced mix of sourcing methods and leverage digital hiring processes to streamline the hiring process. We also closely monitor attrition and retention rates at different hierarchical levels, implementing interventions like coaching or training to address issues proactively. Consistent efforts in these areas are important for overall organizational effectiveness. I believe such focused efforts are required consistently to be effective across the organisation.

Holistic performance management supported by impactful training and development

Recognising the fact that a happy and motivated workforce is more committed to achieving the organisation’s goals, it is important that the performance management system appropriately recognises individual contribution and performance to encourage every employee to strive for excellence. Towards this end, individual contributions and team performance must be measured objectively, leaving no room for subjectivity or bias to creep in. While this may seem like an obvious element of the company strategy, setting individual Key Result Areas (KRAs) that are linked to the organisational goals using the SMART framework, setting clear performance expectations and providing regular feedback to employees are some notable measures that need to be incorporated into the performance management system. Additionally, as a follow-up action and to take this process to its logical conclusion, individual gap areas or skillsets that need to be developed to fulfil business objectives should be met with an internal and customised training and development program, taking ample care to assess the impact of all development initiatives undertaken. 

Incorporating HR technology and automation to enhance operational efficiencies

And lastly but most importantly, as the pace of digitalisation gains pace across industries, HR too needs to undergo significant technological transformation to keep up with the times. Integrating HR technology solutions that deploy state-of-the-art software and cloud-based solutions to automate HR functions has become basic hygiene. Still, it is imperative that organisations also assess the efficiency and effectiveness of these HR technology solutions, thereby analysing the business impact created by automating HR processes and workflows. Notably, assessing how these solutions positively influence the eNPS score and treating employees as customers for the HR function, is essential.