Three Primary Steps – And How Workforce Analytics Makes Them Possible
Over half a year has passed since the emergence of COVID-19, and we have started learning how to live with it. Businesses have slowly begun reopening. Right now, we are just testing the waters and seeing whether or not it is safe to bring everyone back, and what safety measures need to be implemented in order to avoid a resurgence.
That’s where workforce analytics comes into play. Workforce analytics can measure vast arrays of data and can clue you in on what is going on with your organization so that you can make better, safer, and more informed decisions regarding how you will operate within the confines of this new normal.
There are three major areas where workforce analytics can help bring your workforce back safely:
The Analysis
Before you bring back your workforce in full, be sure to analyze its characteristics carefully. It’s important to understand more about the people who are working for you, so that you can understand what your best and safest options are.
Look at:
- Where your workers are located geographically
The effects of the pandemic are different in different parts of the country. Companies with a nationwide presence may need to develop unique plans for their workforce based on the regions in which they reside.
- What their risk profiles are
Determining the health of your workforce is crucial in deciding if they are able to return to work, and if so, how to safely re-engage. Having employee health profiles to analyze makes this an effective process.
- What critical roles they play within your workforce
Taking a tiered approach to understand the role of each employee and the level at which you need them to contribute is a key way to plan for their return in a logical, phased manner.
Collecting and analyzing all of this data can help you determine which locations to open first, when to open them, and at what capacity once you do.
The Strategy
As you slowly bring your workforce back, it’s important that you not do so blindly. Be strategic. Everyone is eager to reopen as soon as possible, but bringing everyone back too quickly and carelessly adds unnecessary risk for your business. Instead, spend some time on developing and tracking your mitigation strategy.
Your strategy may include things like:
- Education and training
- Screening and testing
- Work scheduling and rotations
- Employee assistance and well-being
Coming back to work is intimidating for employees. These precautions will allow them to work much more effectively with the peace of mind knowing they are taken care of.
With workforce analytics, you can track who has been trained and when so that you can be sure everyone is following the right protocols. Then, monitor the results of health screenings. Your findings can clue you in on the potential for outbreaks within your facilities so that you can direct your workers to isolate and implement more stringent safety measures when necessary.
Should any of your employees actually contract COVID, you’ll be able to monitor the situation and determine what types of assistance programs to put in place so that your employees can get better as soon as possible and return to work.
The Fine-Tuning
Once you’ve developed your strategy, it’s important to look at key performance indicators (KPIs) and compare them against the strategies you’ve implemented.
KPIs you’ll want to check for:
- Internal case rates
- Voluntary turnover
- Absenteeism
- Revenues and expenses
This can help you determine their effectiveness, and whether or not you need to adjust your strategies for optimal workforce safety and productivity. This can give you critical information on more than just overall profits. You’ll know whether your workforce is motivated and empowered, or stressed and concerned for their safety, and how you can alleviate these issues to maintain a healthy and productive workforce.
Respond and Adapt
The pandemic has caused massive disruptions to the workforce, and business owners are continuing to delay reopening because they are unsure of how they can do so safely. When the goals change from simply maximizing productivity to maximizing safety as well, the way you approach managing your workforce will change. That’s why it’s such a critical time to apply workforce analytics software to your reopening strategy — so that you can understand how your workforce is changing and evolving, and how to better respond to it to make sure you are meeting the needs of your employees.
Let ZeroedIn help. Schedule a Demo today to see how we can harness the power of workforce data to support you on the front lines at this unprecedented time.
