Our behavior at work is changing. While this has been a constant for as long as people have been working, the pace of change has accelerated tremendously over the past few years.

The pandemic permanently shifted traditional expectations of the workplace and prompted workers to begin rethinking the notion of job security and how work meaningfully fits into their lives. The resulting shifts in employee sentiment have left employers to navigate new expectations of flexibility, career choices and job roles, and purpose.

In fact, employees are increasingly prioritizing a deeper range of factors at work, including a company’s ethics and alignment in values. In ADP Research Institute’s annual global study of more than 32,000 workers from 17 countries, “People at Work 2022: A Global Workforce View,” 76% of workers said they would consider looking for a new job if they discovered that their company had an unfair gender pay gap or no diversity and inclusion policy.

These evolving expectations are occurring at a time when the stakes have never been higher for companies. In the current labor market, where there are more jobs than job seekers, recruitment and retention are among the most pressing business issues for employers. This is a critical moment for businesses to think holistically about their employer brands and build meaningful connections with their people.

How can companies begin to address challenges with their own employer brands? The answer involves truly understanding the full cycle of the employee experience and supporting workers’ needs as they evolve.

That journey certainly starts with recruitment and hiring, but it spans career growth and development, workplace experience — from inclusion and culture to team development and productivity — and health and well-being.

Tapping into data to manage your people resources begins with looking at the user experience of the tools you use and the unique priorities and needs of your workforce. Those two focus areas should remain in parallel throughout the employee journey, as you work toward the goal of making your people’s lives easier and better.

Designing Through Data

Most human capital management (HCM) solutions take a one-size-fits-all approach, but companies’ people needs vary across a spectrum based on their geography and size, organizational design, and technical requirements. This is where data really comes in: You need to understand your unique workforce to effectively manage it.