Look for the value of work done, not the analytics
23 January 2015
Relying too heavily on outdated analytics software could damage your business performance
Mon, 26 Jan 2015
Relying too heavily on outdated analytics software could damage your business performance
Over the years, I’ve witnessed the increasing reliance on analytics software; in fact, I’ve worked with many of them. They certainly have their place, but here is the issue that I have with them as a marketer: they have the potential to damage a business and wreak havoc on branding.
The problem with analytics software is that it only plugs into the database. The metrics that are recorded are therefore the ‘traditional’ ones; a good example is phone times. Flashed up onto screens around the offices and with handy graphics, they show who has been talking the most and, conversely, who has been unproductively sat on their backside. But do they? What they don’t do, and I believe this is a fundamental flaw, is plug into the entire and ever-expanding toolbox available to a consultant.
What some businesses end up doing, because of the software, is encouraging behaviour that is not actually constructive. Take the consultant who is engaging with an online community that has been developed in a niche area; the consultant who creates a blog post; and the resourcer who spends time engaging on Twitter or LinkedIn.
Their interactions may reach hundreds of people, be of premium quality and establish relationships based on shared knowledge. Yet they will be compared negatively with the person who has sat making 15 pointless cold calls and got nowhere. Why? Because the analytics do not show the value of the work done.
Of course, the argument will be that if that person is billing, then it doesn’t matter if the analytics say they are doing nothing because they will be hitting target. But the issue is that, by having this software installed, companies are managing their businesses through very narrow KPIs [key performance indicators].
Without a strong voice to counter this (normally the voice of a marketer), then innovation is stifled and consultants are forced into narrow, traditional methods.
Take the line manager under pressure at the end of the month. He or she forces everyone in the team to hit the phones and bulk-send emails, abandoning potentially profitable channels in order to massage figures while simultaneously damaging the brand.
As a marketer, I am constantly looking at innovative ways to engage with the candidate and client to drive sales. I also have to look at the medium- and long-term branding issues. This kind of software can often make that an invidious task.
Recruitment is sales-led and has to be, but the impact some leaders are having on their long-term branding and sales success by over-reliance on this type of analytics software is worrying. In short, the software out there seems massively behind the times and not geared up for the digital and social revolution.
Of course, you have the added complication that LinkedIn will shut down any API [application programming interface] that it thinks can make money; job-posting software isn’t integrated into all database systems (at least not in any meaningful way); email marketing software options are limited by preference of database providers — the list goes on.
I understand it is difficult. I also understand that sometimes we can over-complicate recruitment. But it cannot be beyond the wit of man to support recruitment leaders in ensuring they have a full picture of their business and where they can make money — without the sole reliance on analytics software.
The software out there seems massively behind the times and not geared up for the digital revolution
Over the years, I’ve witnessed the increasing reliance on analytics software; in fact, I’ve worked with many of them. They certainly have their place, but here is the issue that I have with them as a marketer: they have the potential to damage a business and wreak havoc on branding.
The problem with analytics software is that it only plugs into the database. The metrics that are recorded are therefore the ‘traditional’ ones; a good example is phone times. Flashed up onto screens around the offices and with handy graphics, they show who has been talking the most and, conversely, who has been unproductively sat on their backside. But do they? What they don’t do, and I believe this is a fundamental flaw, is plug into the entire and ever-expanding toolbox available to a consultant.
What some businesses end up doing, because of the software, is encouraging behaviour that is not actually constructive. Take the consultant who is engaging with an online community that has been developed in a niche area; the consultant who creates a blog post; and the resourcer who spends time engaging on Twitter or LinkedIn.
Their interactions may reach hundreds of people, be of premium quality and establish relationships based on shared knowledge. Yet they will be compared negatively with the person who has sat making 15 pointless cold calls and got nowhere. Why? Because the analytics do not show the value of the work done.
Of course, the argument will be that if that person is billing, then it doesn’t matter if the analytics say they are doing nothing because they will be hitting target. But the issue is that, by having this software installed, companies are managing their businesses through very narrow KPIs [key performance indicators].
Without a strong voice to counter this (normally the voice of a marketer), then innovation is stifled and consultants are forced into narrow, traditional methods.
Take the line manager under pressure at the end of the month. He or she forces everyone in the team to hit the phones and bulk-send emails, abandoning potentially profitable channels in order to massage figures while simultaneously damaging the brand.
As a marketer, I am constantly looking at innovative ways to engage with the candidate and client to drive sales. I also have to look at the medium- and long-term branding issues. This kind of software can often make that an invidious task.
Recruitment is sales-led and has to be, but the impact some leaders are having on their long-term branding and sales success by over-reliance on this type of analytics software is worrying. In short, the software out there seems massively behind the times and not geared up for the digital and social revolution.
Of course, you have the added complication that LinkedIn will shut down any API [application programming interface] that it thinks can make money; job-posting software isn’t integrated into all database systems (at least not in any meaningful way); email marketing software options are limited by preference of database providers — the list goes on.
I understand it is difficult. I also understand that sometimes we can over-complicate recruitment. But it cannot be beyond the wit of man to support recruitment leaders in ensuring they have a full picture of their business and where they can make money — without the sole reliance on analytics software.
The software out there seems massively behind the times and not geared up for the digital revolution
