The Much Sought-After International HR Taxonomy is Almost Here (and Not Before Time)

lance mercereau rosslyn data technologies people analytics

By Lance Mercereau

Chief Marketing Officer

Rosslyn Data Technologies

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development and The Society for Human Resource Management have done a wonderful job of advancing careers in human resources, providing guidance and training to individuals.  They, and others, have also been involved in the setting of HR standards.

At the international level, standards for the HR professional have been developing and progressing, often under the watchful eye of national associations; a shining example of which came in February 2014, when the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) and Investors in People (IIP) joined forces with the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD).

Together, they led a major collaboration among the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), the Chartered Management Institute (CMI), Lancaster University Management School and the Royal Society for the Arts (RSA), to help businesses measure the effect of their people on organizational performance, and better equip them to improve workforce skills and productivity. Under the auspices of “Valuing your Talent,” participants from private and public sector organizations have strived to create practical tools to help businesses value their talent.

October 2014 brought about a further example, when the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) called people to action to become actively involved in creating international standards for Human Resource Management (HRM).

Fast forward to February 2017             

We are in an era of data-insight recognition. Businesses have come to understand the critical need for data-insight for informed decisions and business direction. And, yet, HR teams are struggling to capitalize on the potential value of data and analytics. For many organizations, this comes down to the lack of a taxonomy, without which consistent, accurate and effective data analysis and reporting are impossible.

So, why has HR failed to adopt taxonomies uniformly across organizations? Well, quite simply, it comes down to the lack of an internationally recognized HR taxonomy standard. And why is this? While this is a complicated mater, I believe a core reason is due to professional development associations, international standards bodies and software/service providers not having the desire to work together. This may sound harsh, but it’s my humble view that more collaboration is needed – and, as I previously wrote, some work has happened but it’s not enough, and definitely not fast enough for companies grappling how to perform better via employees.

I’ve previously written about my own experiences with those facing this issue; having interviewed many HR professionals in late 2016, I gained a thorough understanding of the analytics challenges that they were facing, and that they still face today.

In response to a market need, and with the urgency communicated to me by everyone I spoke to, Rosslyn Data Technologies (aka Rosslyn Analytics) is doing what others have failed to create: we are facilitating and developing the HR professional’s first standardized taxonomy for more effective reporting and analytics.

Over the next few months, 20 HR business executives and analytics experts from large private and public sector organizations, along with Big 4 Accountancies, have agreed to put aside rivalries to progress data analytics. In a series of workshops (facilitated by Dr. Max Blumberg), starting in February - the much-needed standardized taxonomy will transform into a reality. The taxonomy will be released at People Analytics World, in April 2017.

At the same time, I hope to work with members of national professional development associations and international standards bodies, who have expressed interest in our work, to promote the continued development of HR standards.

If you would like to get involved, including reviewing the new taxonomy when it’s made available, please do get in touch. Let’s establish the solid tool which HR professionals the world over are in such dire need of.  

This Post Has 2 Comments

  1. James

    I’d love to be involved please. First time I’ve read bout this and it’s something we’ve been working on.

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