Asian companies stuck in HR data hell

The state of big data for human resources in the APAC region is still very much in its infancy.

According to the Asian HR Big Data Survey 2014 by HRBoss, only 23% of human resources professionals in the region are aware of what big data is.

The study, which surveyed 427 HR professionals in Asia Pacific, also found 98% of them had no big data strategy in place.

This is despite the fact that close to eight out of 10 (79%) of those surveyed acknowledged big data's importance in driving organisational growth.

"This study provides a glimpse into the landscape of HR big data in Asia and proves that big data remains a concept that most HR professionals here are unfamiliar with," Bernie Schiemer, CEO and founder of HRBoss, said.

In addition, the survey revealed 92% of HR personnel are frustrated by their reporting process and how long they need to take when creating these reports.

According to the poll, 88% of respondents spent two days or more making reports and 22% spent a minimum of six days per month on reports.

"Multiple data sources and a demanding reporting cycle means that HR is spending a disproportionate amount of time on reporting," Schiemer said.

"C-level leaders' appetite to consume increasingly detailed reports on the workforce is growing and, in accordance with this, we're seeing a mounting pressure on HR to meet this demand."

The report highlighted the top two biggest roadblocks hampering HR big data initiatives were inadequate IT systems for data management and reporting (21%) and lack of in-house data analysis expertise (19%).