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| 6 minute read

HR is Full of Numbers; Do You Know Which Ones Matter and WHY?

The Case for Attention to the Specific HR Metrics That Improve or Impair Value

At this year’s HR Technology Conference, one of the standout themes was HR data and analytics. With the emergence of GenAI and skills-based everything, HR data has suddenly become valuable for new and different reasons. You may even find yourself in battle with the IT department about who should own and manage HR data. Concurrently, the work of today’s HR function has increased the scope and initiatives led by HR causing a lack of focus on what HR is expected to do for an organization. For all these reasons, it is imperative to focus on metrics that align with strategic goals while also highlighting HR’s unique value in your organization.   

Just Because You Can Measure It Doesn’t Mean It Matters

Many of us track standard HR metrics like headcount, time to hire, termination, and retention. These metrics are incredibly valuable, but only when they are used to tell a meaningful story that aligns with your company’s strategic focus areas and specifically highlights HR’s role in creating value aligned with that strategy. For example, why focus on turnover in an entry-level role that is not expected to develop within the business? Are you accounting for the full cost per hire, including the impact of role vacancies on business productivity? Understanding why employee retention is critical in your specific company or industry can provide valuable insights.

Dig Deeper: Understand the Context for HR Metrics that Really Matter

Understanding the key levers in any company’s specific business model is essential. Not all HR metrics hold the same value for every organization, as underscored by this quote: 

While all the traditional indicators are valuable and have a role in running your team, the lesson from Moneyball is that we must look beyond the obvious, to dig deeper into what most people can't see. 1

Consider the following five typical metrics and how they can be leveraged when interpreted through the lens of HR value against different business models and scenarios.

1. Turnover

Of all sectors, Manufacturing is feeling the impact of “The Great Resignation” acutely, with turnover rates at 28.6% compared to the national average of 3.6%.In this sector, in particular, high turnover can lead to issues with productivity and revenue. HR should ensure they can track turnover specifically for these critical line workers and further break out turnover by different aspects that could be contributing factors: by manager, by shift, by area/department of the warehouse, etc. It is easy for these employees to feel “out of the loop” with training, company communications, and pay and benefit changes. HR can be part of this solution by considering different communication and training delivery methods for this group – make sure you build in the ability to measure the delivery and success of these new methods.

Turnover can generally serve as an indicator of overall employee satisfaction. Examine upstream data for relevant leading indicators such as employee satisfaction survey results, internal mobility, and employee referrals. Identify key roles or departments crucial to achieving your strategic objectives and monitor turnover specifically within these areas. For companies that prioritize diversity and inclusion, create data segments to monitor and report on these aspects regularly. Begin developing strategies to engage and retain these employees effectively.

2. Retention

Employee retention is especially critical for industries like Technology, Healthcare, and Finance. These employees typically have a wealth of institutional knowledge and expertise that is both time-consuming and costly to replace. Moreover, they give the company a competitive advantage, as these skilled professionals are in high demand.

Here are some specific suggestions related to tracking retention – these may need to be adjusted for your specific industry or organization:

  • Conduct Exit Interviews: gather insights into the reason your employees are leaving and create plans to implement (and track!) improvements in those areas.
  • Track Employee Tenure: this gives you a baseline from which to set goals for retention.
  • Identify High-Risk Employees: data that may help with this includes lack of promotion, low engagement scores, or changes in productivity. Further focus your efforts by understanding which of these high-risk employees are critical to the business.
  • Feedback Mechanisms: ensure employees have the opportunity to provide feedback regularly AND that you are capturing this in such a way that it is easy to summarize, measure, and tie to future remediation efforts (and measures of their effectiveness).

Drive meaningful change by analyzing the information from exit interviews and other feedback mechanisms. Begin by identifying trends and patterns in the data, then address issues through training or adjustments to company culture. Enhance the recruitment process as needed to ensure new hires align well with the company culture and meet job requirements.

3. Time to Hire / Fill

For businesses where certain roles are crucial to operations, a short time to hire ensures that key positions are filled promptly, minimizing disruptions and maintaining productivity. Across the universe of businesses, this could be any position from a strategic sales executive to a worker on the warehouse floor responsible for performing a business-critical safety or quality inspection. Additionally, a candidate’s interaction with the recruiting and hiring process is their first glimpse into company operations and culture – an efficient process with a short time to hire can make the company more attractive to prospective employees and can improve the company's brand.

When considering your Time to Hire/Fill metrics, remember that a lengthy hiring process can be costly. It can tie up essential recruiting resources and require existing employees to work overtime to cover the vacancy. According to one study, an average employee's organizational value is estimated to be once to three times their annual salary. For vacancies in revenue-generating roles, such as sales, there's an additional loss of revenue to consider.3

4. Applications per Role

Your company may not be using AI yet, but job seekers certainly are!4 As a result, employers may be seeing a false spike in this metric. The job of HR in this regard is evolving. Be transparent with your stakeholders about potential anomalies like this and tune these metrics in conjunction with getting smarter about AI tactics. Recruiters and other talent specialists must understand this technology and design processes to filter out these false positives. Consider:

  • Consistency Checks: does the information in the application or cover letter align with the applicant’s skills and experience (as noted on LinkedIn, for example).
  • Behavioral Questions: during the interview, ask the candidate to describe a specific experience in detail.
  • Good Old Reference Checks: reference checks are more important than ever. Ask for references, reach out to the references, and verify the credentials of the reference!

If you think you have a clear understanding of your true applications per role, start to analyze this metric to tie back to your value proposition.

  • How do your applications per role compare to industry standards?
  • Are you getting enough applications to fill critical roles? If not, consider examining the content of the job description (keywords, salary transparency, benefits) or where the jobs are being posted.
  • Do the applicants align with the culture of diversity and inclusion valued by your organization?

5. Time to Productivity

In a services business, time to productivity is everything. How long does it take your newly hired employee to start closing sales or to (independently) perform a full day’s worth of service appointments? Understanding how your new hires get up to speed, how to measure it, and how to accelerate it is a huge value add for HR. 

This metric can be used to derive:

  • Improvements in the employee onboarding process
  • Training and development needs
  • Cultural fit
  • Recognition opportunities

Closing

While most companies utilize standard HR metrics, truly leveraging your largest expense—human capital—requires delving deeper to uncover what is most vital to your growth, competitive edge, and shareholder value. Once you can articulate the story within this framework, your role as an HR professional becomes easier, more effective, and more strategic for the business. Highlighting and interpreting these key metrics helps direct your attention, time, and energy. This focus is crucial for market leadership and must be applied across all business functions—not just marketing and sales.

 

Sources:

[1] Treacy, Michael and Wiersema, Fred.  The Discipline of Market Leaders: Choose Your Customers, Narrow Your Focus, Dominate Your Market. New York, Basic Books, 1997.

[2] “How to Reduce Employee Turnover in Manufacturing.”, TeamSense, 03 Nov. 2023,

https://www.teamsense.com/blog/reduce-employee-turnover-manufacturing

[3] “Cost of Vacancy: Definition & How to Calculate it.”, 4 Corner Resources, 24 Oct. 2023,

https://www.4cornerresources.com/blog/costs-of-vacant-position/

[4] “Armed with AI, Workers Are Applying to More Jobs.  It’s Upping the Competition.”, Forbes, 11 Dec. 2023,

https://www.forbes.com/sites/emmylucas/2023/12/11/armed-with-ai-workers-are-applying-to-more-jobs-its-upping-the-competition/

 

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© Copyright 2025. The views expressed herein are those of the author(s) and not necessarily the views of Ankura Consulting Group, LLC., its management, its subsidiaries, its affiliates, or its other professionals. Ankura is not a law firm and cannot provide legal advice.
 

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performance, article, f-performance, talent & culture, leader & team performance, hr, hr data, transformation, operations

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