With increasing talent-skills gap in a post-recession job market, 90 percent of the CEOs are of a unison consensus and opine that HR leaders of tomorrow must understand workforce analytics and apply them to recruitment approaches. According to a recent CareerBuilder survey of CEOs in United States, it shows that top executives are more reliant on HR leaders for innovative business strategies grounded in data.

However 60 percent of the CEOs are of a belief that inability to find bright talent and qualified candidates for the most suited positions limits their ability to grow in a competitive business landscape. The role of a HR professional is integral to maintain the bottom lines of a company, while generating a data-driven strategy to maximise returns on investments and boost profits.

In a changing recruitment landscape, CEOs acknowledge the need for HR teams to be more data-driven with competitive approaches and use of efficient technologies is more critical than ever before. “HR leaders are becoming more influential members of the executive team. CEOs are looking for HR to be just as data-savvy and digitally-savvy as other areas of the company, and take quick, measurable actions that move the business towards its goals,” said Matt Ferguson, CEO of CareerBuilder and co-author of ‘The Talent Equation’.

In an era marked by increased competition, shortage of skilled talent pool, shrinking labour market and demand for higher salaries, Ferguson adds, “”HR is the new frontier for data science applications in business.”

The evolving recruitment landscape calls for a more efficient recruitment process that provides for a better candidate experience. There are higher expectations from the HR teams to interpret data and be able to ascertain the right talent mix.

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Nearly 48 percent of CEOs are of an opinion, that their companies have lost money due to inefficient recruiting efforts by the HR managers. CEOs in United States are more than willing to provide HR professionals and leaders with a much wider role and scope of operations with room for growth.

65 percent of the CEOs agree that post recession, opinions of HR professional carry greater weight in the senior management and almost 73 percent of the CEOs have already implemented the data analysed into their corporate business strategy. 92 percent of business leaders think that a great HR leader can influence change widely by providing actionable talent data and other research to help management devise strategies that meet larger business goals.

Furthermore, 57 percent of the business leaders are of an opinion that by using the company’s human capital optimally, organisations can increase efficiency by leveraging talent and thus reduce costs significantly. 51 percent of CEOs suggest, proactively working with other business leaders will help the company to strategise efforts and solve problems amicably.

CEOs are clearly worried about the impact of HR issues on company performance. They also want the head of HR to play more of a strategic role in handling these issues. Heads of HR would perhaps be best advised to increase their influence, and that of the overall HR function, by continuing to be useful to the CEO.

According to a report by IBM, ““If the relationship between these two individuals is good, then CEOs tend to give the HR function more licence without interfering too much, and there is less negative scrutiny of the HR function in general.”

Also read: How to Prevent Productivity Burnout? Tips for HR Leaders