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Key performance indicators (KPIs) are metrics that measure how successful your company is at accomplishing a goal or objective. They are the strongest indicator of whether or not your business is successful. The challenge is knowing which metrics are the most effective for achieving your goals, as well as how to present those metrics to the key stakeholders in your organization.

Defining the Right KPIs

There is no “one-KPI-fits-all” solution when it comes to defining your company’s key performance indicators. KPIs should be tailored specifically to your business model and objectives, so you can get a solid understanding of the health of your company by simply looking at the status of your KPIs. If your KPIs are on track, your business is as well.

Steps to Building Custom KPIs For Your Business

1. Evaluate your goals and objectives: What is the purpose of your company? What determines whether or not you are successful? The answer to these questions can help you better understand what metrics will help you reach your goals.
2. Focus on between 4 and 10 KPIs: There are so nearly infinite things in your business that can be measured, but less is more when it comes to monitoring KPIs. These should be the metrics that are the most critical towards your success. If you track too many, it can become overwhelming and pointless.
3. Reassess and review: Be critical of your KPIs and check to make sure that monitoring them is a good use of your time. They should be moving the needle and improving your company’s performance. If they aren’t, it may be time to think of some better KPIs.

Presenting Your KPIs

Data presentation matters. In order for a data analyst’s recommendations or analysis to generate real action, they need to be heard (and understood) by stakeholders. When information is not presented clearly and effectively, it may be hard for business-minded people to understand the importance and value of the data in front of them. The goal of KPI presentation, then, should be to make data understandable and easily comprehensible. 

The Psychology of Data Visualization

Data visualization allows you to maximize pre-attentive processing and quickly absorb complex information. When you are looking at a chart or graph, your brain will automatically identify unique elements and patterns. On the other hand, numbers on a spreadsheet require the viewer to actively analyze and examine to find key insights, which can be mentally exhausting.

Data visualization takes those seemingly random numbers and turns them into aesthetically pleasing visuals. You can tell a narrative with your data and integrate already learned information for quicker and more established connections. This connects your short and long-term memory, which helps you more permanently remember the information.

3-Step Process for Processing Information

1. Visual Sensory Register: Information first processes through here, which is part of pre-attentive processing. Before you are even aware you are processing information, certain things will stand out and objects may be unconsciously grouped together.
2. Short-Term Memory: Your short-term memory has a limited capacity. Anything that is not considered useful is discarded, so you can only retain about 3-9 “chunks” of visual information.
3. Long-Term Memory: Your long-term memory retains meaningful information, not the precise details.

Tips for Communicating KPIs

1. Keep it simple: Don’t overwhelm your audience with data. A clear and concise message is easier to comprehend and remember.
2. Choose the appropriate chart: Not all chart types will accomplish the same goal or tell the same story. That’s why it’s important to take some time to understand the different chart types so you can select the best option for your visualization. This infographic can help you choose the right chart for your KPIs:

1. Use color with intention: Color is a crucial element of data visualization design. It can simplify complex graphs, influence the feel of the data, or add contextual depth to data. It’s important to be consistent with your color choices and use plenty of contrast to make your visualizations easy to read and understand.
2. Tell a story: It’s easier for stakeholders to understand the data if you accompany it with a narrative and helpful context. They should be able to quickly sum up what action needs to be taken based on what they learned from the information you presented.

Author Bio: Samantha Marsh is the Marketing Content Coordinator for iDashboards, a data visualization software company on a mission to transform reporting into meaningful dashboards.

A lot has been changing since technology has seeped into almost all processes and changed the whole dynamics of how they function. Talent acquisition is no exception. The workforce demographics have changed, the demand for talent has increased, and the knowledge marketplaces have gone highly competitive. These changes have made talent management a highly discussed topic in the conference rooms of many organizations.

One of the major challenges the talent acquisition departments faces is ensuring that the right talent is hired for the right role. In today’s candidate-driven and resource-conscious market, to develop a competitive edge in talent acquisition, recruiting strategies have to be revisited to optimize them to bridge the skills gap. In order to stay at the top of the game, implementing a robust talent acquisition and management strategy is the key. Here are top 5 tips to help win the talent war, boost the recruitment process, manage the current talent and prepare for the future.

1. The Recruitment Process on Auto-mode

Manually screening through thousands of resumes is not only time-consuming but also a tedious task. Most of the valuable time is lost, leaving very less time to concentrate on other important aspects of the hiring process. The end result: the whole process becomes slow and the risk of losing a candidate increases. Embracing new and innovative technologies in recruitment through automation of time-consuming tasks can – lower the recruitment costs, filter better quality hires, free up resources – all at a faster pace. The new landscape of talent acquisition has brought in innovations, which are driving the evolution of automation in the recruitment process through the use of recruitment software. With automation, the recruitment process becomes simpler, faster and effective, thus saving a lot of time to carry out other important tasks. The software can screen resumes, perform low-level administrative tasks, recommend candidates on the basis of data, and make bias-free recruiting decisions.

2. The Use of Social Media

The largest pool of most talented, top quality applicants are on social media. Therefore, recruiters need to be present where the most potential candidates are. Social media presence is a must and the most effective marketing tool to attract and hire top talent. However, not all social media channels are great for social recruiting. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter harbor the potential talent. The key to use social media to its optimal potential is to be consistent and post regular updates.

 

3. The Complete Package Offer

Salary is not the only thing candidates look for while considering a job application. They’ll look at the complete package the company has to offer. The package may include salary, growth opportunities, responsibilities, bonuses, perks, reputation of the company, etc. If the candidate is a right fit, determine what they are looking for in a prospective job position and offer a complete package that meets their requirements, not just the salary.

3. The Boomerang Employee Advantage

In a talent starved market, a boomerang employee can be a boon. Hiring an ex-employee has its own set of advantages – the candidate is aware of the company culture and can easily settle in. However, the decision of hiring boomerang employees has to be taken with due diligence. The best way to decide is to treat boomerang employee as a first-time applicant through which an unbiased decision can be made and that will help in deciding whether the boomerang employee is a good fit or not.

4. The Power of Employee Referrals

An employee referral programs not only boost the morale of the existing employees, but are an excellent way to reach potential talent. Research says that employee referred candidates make better hires and stay with the company for long.

5. The Plan to Retain Employees

Recruiting new talent can be an expensive affair. A lot of HR activities, such as job posting, advertising, screening, interviewing, follow-ups, etc., demand investment of time, manpower and money. Training new employees also adds up to the investment.

The overall recruitment costs can be lowered, if a robust employee retention plan is in place. Usually, employee retention rates are influenced by salary, work environment, growth opportunities, benefits, etc. A great retention plan will offer great promotion opportunities, vertical as well as horizontal while enabling them to apply for them.

Author Bio: Kelly Barcelos is a progressive digital marketing manager specializing in HR and is responsible for leading Jobsoid’s content and social media team. When Kelly is not building campaigns, she is busy creating content and preparing PR topics. She started with Jobsoid as a social media strategist and eventually took over the entire digital marketing team with her innovative approach and technical expertise.

 

All our life, we try hard to be successful. But, what we do not realize is that in our careers, we cannot attain long-term success by just performing daily work chores without focusing on professional growth.

If we plan our professional goals in life meticulously, no matter which office we work at or which field we have chosen to work in, it can play a significant role in our endeavor towards professional development.

Creating a development plan for your career goals will help you accomplish your ambitions whether you are looking for your progress in a particular position or if you are trying to land a better job. And this planning of career goals essentially relates to the skills and knowledge that you have acquired from both your personal life and your workplace environment.

So, let’s see how you can effectively plan your professional goals that will help you achieve success in your career:

Know Your Goals Properly

A successful career is not an overnight thing—neither does it happen by itself nor can you develop it in a day, week or month.

Knowing your career goals is critical, as otherwise, you will keep confusing yourself when you are trying to get a promotion or looking for a new job in a different field of industry, with regards to what you want to achieve and how you think you are going to go about it.

So, when you have a proper plan in place, it will guide you throughout, so that you can choose a career that suits your skills and knowledge and you get the maximum value for your talents.

Sharpen Your Focus

When you are trying to shine in a career that suits you, proper focus and attention towards attaining your goals is crucial.

If you lose your focus, you will not be able to attain your career goals and you will have to stop pursuing your dreams in the middle of your way. Therefore, having a proper career development plan that sums up your goals, aspirations, and objectives, will help you stay focused on your journey.

When you are focused and determined, challenges on your way will hardly trouble you, and you will be in total control of your journey as well as your destination.

Assess Yourself Personally

The beauty of having a professional development plan is that it also helps you immensely in carrying out your personal assessment.

This is very important when you make a decision to follow a particular career path as well as to find success in that career. When you assess yourself personally, it gives you a perfect idea about where you are in your life at that point in time, where do you want to go from there and how you want to be in the future.

When you set clear career objectives, you will know perfectly what needs to be done, what steps need to be taken, to reach where you would like to be in the future. Then you can easily work your way around all challenges and reach your goals in a seamless way—as you would know what needs to be done, when it is to be done and how it needs to be done.

Be Confident

A lot of people lack confidence and optimism in their life. The main reason is they don’t have a proper plan in place and an idea to believe in.

A proper goal-oriented professional development plan will give you the confidence that you require to be successful in your career.

When you know what to do, how to act on it, when to take the next step, what to choose and more importantly what not to, you will be confident of the fact that you have all your bases covered. You will be ready to encounter any big hurdle on your path to success.

CONCLUSION

In order to achieve success in your career, you need constructive planning, strong determination, and unfragmented focus. The more efficient you are in your planning, better are your chances of success. So, put everything down on a paper, evaluate the pros and cons of every possible situation, work hard and be disciplined. Do these and professional success will come knocking at your door.

With more and more families in need of finding a balance between work and personal lives, flexible work arrangements have become a necessity. Workers need non-working time for personal obligations and family responsibilities, and companies must adapt their culture to the new trend.  

 

In fact, “workplace flexibility” is one of the most important elements millennials are looking for when getting a job. That’s why you business owners are coming up with efficient solutions to meet employees’ expectations:

• Compression of workdays–More and more companies are already experimenting with the 4-day working week
• Flexible daily hours–Quitting the 9 to 5 schedule brings a new perspective for many employers
• Telecommuting–Employees work from home

 

Implementing these new trends asks for resources and a willing to change. You need to invest time and money in a system that allows flexible work arrangements. Yet, these methods bring significant benefits, not only for your employees, but also for the company. Here are some reasons why you should be doing this in your business:

You Boost Productivity

When your employees get control over their working time, they tend to organize daily activities better. This way, they’re more efficient, finish activities in time, and respect milestones and deadlines.

 

Flexibility makes your employees happy. They get to work from comfortable places–their homes, coffee shops, parks, which allows them to focus on their creative tasks and come up with innovative solutions. In the meantime, they can easily remain connected to what happens inside the office.

 

If your company uses a business management tool, your employees can access any information they need, right from their computers. As an employer, you get to keep track of their progress.

 

Flexible working hours contribute to a healthier working environment. Employees deal with lower levels of stress when they don’t have to follow a rigid schedule. Even more, they get to reduce hours spent in traffic going and coming from work.

 

Studies show that flexibility at work has positive effects over employees’ mental health. It also influences sleep quality, sleep duration, blood pressure, and heart rate. Healthier employees are more productive, even more, they tend to recover easier when they’re sick and their periods of leave are shorter.

You Get to Increases Loyalty and Engagement

Around 60 percent of the American office workers would leave their jobs for new opportunities. This lack of engagement brings in bad performance, which translates to low productivity.

 

In context, you should analyze how engaged your staff is with the company. You could also create a friendlier working environment, where your employees can find meaning in their work.

 

Working flexibility influences how employees feel about their jobs. If you give them the freedom to organize when and where to work, you will see an improvement in how your employees align with the company’s values.

 

Higher engagement levels reduce absenteeism at work, as employees will be more motivated. Furthermore, they have fewer reasons to miss work in special situations, like childcare or eldercare. It’s easier to respect work obligations when you have a flexible schedule that allows you to take care of your family needs at the same time.

You Reduce Costs with Recruiting and Hiring

Loyal employees bring further advantages. First, they’re more productive, as they’re working not only for their salaries, but also for the company’s progress. Second, you get to save money, by not having to substitute them.

 

Companies spend a lot for recruiting, interviewing, and training personnel. Moreover, new employees have low productivity levels and can have negative effects over workflows and deadlines.

 

According to HR specialists, replacing an employee means spending around 20 percent of his or her annual salary. These are significant costs for a company, as the same study says one in five employees leave their job each year. Employee retention is essential, not just for keeping recruiting costs low, but also for growing your company in the long run.

You Can Boost Your Company’s Value  

It’s been stated that work-life balance policies have a positive impact on firm profits. In fact, many companies that had announced initiatives in this field registered higher stock prices.

 

This comes because of how perception over company’s value changes. The impact of flexible policies on productivity makes the company more appealing to investors.

 

This has effects on small businesses, too. When a small company incorporates flexible policies, it becomes more credible among business partners and possible clients.

A Flexible Schedule is A Crucial Consideration for Employers

Business owners and managers need to create a culture of flexibility and open-mindedness. This way, their employees will become more efficient, more productive, and more creative. You might even consider going further into just changing their schedules. By implementing schedule flexibility inside your company, you’ll get significant benefits:

 

• You increase productivity through happier and healthier employees
• You reduce turnover rates and cut costs with recruiting and hiring
• You motivate your employees to engage with the company
• You reduce absenteeism and burnout.
• You grow your company and increase its value