Big Data Analytics Support to IT Staffing

By Abhishek Agarwal, Senior Vice President, The Judge Group India

The amalgamation of AI, IoT, and Programmatic has given a new shape and dimension to modern businesses, and Big Data Analytics is the real catalyst for making this amalgamation possible. According to the research report of Gartner, the demand for big data will grow by 800 per cent in the next five years and 80 per cent of that data need will be fulfilled by unstructured data available on social media sites, online resumes & profiles, e-mails, and feed videos.

Big Data has contributed massively to varied industries and IT Staffing is one of its greatest beneficiaries. Amidst the changing global economic scenario, the IT industry is considered as the propeller of the change and its need of desired talent is being taken care of by the staffing industry through increasing use of Big Data.

Despite unprecedented developments in the field of AI and Robotics, technology is still dependent on creative and innovative minds, i.e., competent human resources. On the other hand, IT companies which lag behind competitors in terms of the quality workforce cannot meet the clients’ expectations. So, it is the responsibility of IT staffing companies to provide their clients with effective and efficient human resources. Like all other digital analytical tools, talent analytics also functions using Big Data and Pattern Analysis and helps IT staffing firms in searching candidates with a right blend of knowledge, skills, and experience.

Abhishek Agarwal, Senior Vice President, Judge Group

Yes, staffing doesn’t stop after discovering and short-listing of the candidates on preset parameters; from scheduling interviews with clients to employee verification, Big Data play a vital role at each stage of recruitment & selection. Hence, the benefits that IT staffing companies receiving from Big Data include:

Lower Cost-per-placement

Big Data and AI are effective enough to reduce cost-per-placement as recruiters can more efficiently use their time in productive activities rather than spending time in short-listing the resumes, conducting telephonic interviews, and inviting them for personal interviews without having clear insights about their background and candidature. Earlier, senior-level managers used to spend significant time in the recruitment process that many times end up in failure or dissatisfaction. Now, with the help of Big Data, IT staffing companies pursue only potential or deserving candidates for technical as well as non-technical profiles. Besides, a fast and speedy process helps an employer to recruit the right candidate at the right time.

Selecting the best from the best

Staffing companies do recruitment in a large number which makes it tough to track the ATS (Applicant Tracking System) database. The recruiter needs to skim through hundreds of resumes submitted by the applicants, and thousands of auto-generated resumes to shortlist top 10 for one opening. Many times, recruiter unknowingly skips a few of the best candidates for the position. If talent analytics tools of IT Staffing firms are programmed with the ATS system, it helps the recruiter to cherry pick the right talent by auto-refining the resumes. Now, scanning thousands of resumes and short-listing only the suitable resumes by adhering to all the filtration criteria is not a big challenge in the presence of Big Data analytics.

Prediction of candidate’s behaviour

A lot of IT staffing companies first conduct interviews with the candidates and then schedule the second round with the prospective employer. To find out that the candidate is a right fit for the organization or not, staffing companies do not only judge the person by her/his replies and behaviour in the interview but they try to find out every information related to her/him through Big Data. From knowing one’s hobbies and interests through social media profiles and posts to evaluating buying behaviour on shopping portals, Big Data provides great insights on a candidate’s behaviour and attitude. After such a thorough analysis, employers can expect that employees will stay with them for a longer duration and contribute to the organization as per the commitment.