Ask any organisation about their top HR challenges, the odds are good that recruitment and retention of best-fit talent are somewhere on that list.
While the digital age has increased the flow of information and the mobility of ideas, it has also made it harder to retain talent, as employees become increasingly aware of other employment opportunities. We have been hit by a multitude of digital disruptors affecting many aspects of our lives over the past decade, but little has changed in the talent management space, until now.
One technology solutions provider set to disrupt the status quo is Pivotal Talent, a global leader in artificial intelligence (AI) solutions for talent management. Juan Swartz, co-founder of Pivotal Talent, explains the company's vision was to develop a solution which would change the talent management landscape by using the power of next-generation technology to create a performance prediction model.
"We wanted to make the process of recruitment more effective, helping organisations match candidates to performance criteria and culture requirements; manage career progression of employees; and ultimately, lower the risk of attrition," he says.
Using next-gen technology to leverage human decision-making expertise, alongside powerful computing intelligence, Pivotal Talent believes it has achieved this vision.
Swartz explains that AI in this context is focused on people-centred augmented intelligence rather than intelligent, human-like machines of the future. In simple terms, he explains, augmented intelligence is the combination of technology, human intelligence and coded knowledge to enhance the decision-making process, rather than attempting to replicate the full scope of human intelligence and perceptions.
"We envisage that AI will help HR professionals and recruitment consultants make more accurate and measurable decisions that will improve their talent management," says Swartz.
In essence, Pivotal Talent has created a technology solution, using AI and data analytics at its core, to understand performance criteria and intelligently decide which criteria to use when, in which role, in order to predict performance.
"Our solution does not work in the same manner as traditional machine learning or big data models. All the performance criteria we consider in our model have a sound theoretical basis. This means we can distinguish between causality and mere collinearity. Traditional big data and analytics solutions make no such distinction, as the deterministic manner in which traditional machine learning solutions are often used do not cater for the complex interactions between the performance criteria that make up a suitable candidate."
The real power behind Pivotal Talent's AI solution is its core: a research integration model with objective, validated research from top global institutions compiled over the last 60 years - including multiple disciplines such as the fields of neuroscience, ethnology, organisational theory and organisational behaviour, among others. The solution uses this information in a proprietary AI model, using algorithms to more accurately predict candidate and employee performance, potential and retention.
"By integrating the theories of different fields of study into a non-contradictory decision-making hierarchy, we are able to identify reliable and valid criteria that underpin performance, whether these are multi-tasking abilities of an airline pilot, customer service skills in a contact centre environment, or strategic decision-making and problem-solving skills for an executive," explains Swartz.
Pivotal Talent has created four solutions:
Talent Recruitment scientifically profiles, screens, shortlists and ranks candidates for culture fit, attrition risk, job and performance requirements. The solution uses proprietary algorithms to match key success factors, skills and competencies of candidates to specific tasks, organisational requirements and culture.
Talent Development scientifically measures the "gap" between the employee's profile and the optimum success criteria required of an employee in a role. The solution enables HR to individually tailor career development plans, address skills 'gaps' and deploy targeted training to reach potential and future requirements. The solution also identifies high-potential employees and future leaders.
Talent Retention accurately predicts, manages and reduces attrition risk. It provides a heat map to show employees at risk of attrition and provides HR with insight-driven data to intervene.
Career Guidance accurately matches scholars, students and sports professionals to suitable career paths. The solution identifies potentially viable career paths, taking into consideration job fit, capabilities required and demand in the workplace.
Swartz explains the analyses are not based on psychometric or behavioural self-assessments, like traditional systems. Decision-making based on personality traits can be unreliable when it is based on self-reported measures, especially when candidates have a preconceived idea of what a position would require. Pivotal Talent instead focuses on independently analysed predictors of performance, potential and retention.
This disrupts the approach followed by other solutions, which are one-size-fits-all, and do not consider specific job requirements or corporate culture. The latter path often leads to confusing recommendations. "For example, a chemical engineer and a finance executive might have a similar psychometric profile and analytical abilities, but the one is clearly a better recommendation for a CFO position than the other," he explains.
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