As data and analytics have become more common in the workplace, a growing number of employers are tracking precisely what workers do.  Whether it’s where we go, what we do or who we talk to, there are increasingly ways to track the behaviors employees engage in whilst at work.

The scale of such ‘workplace analytics’ was highlighted by a recent report from Accenture, which revealed that 62% of organizations are now collecting data on employees.

The report, which was compiled from a survey of some 1,400 executives and 10,000 workers from 13 different industries, revealed that whilst more and more companies are collecting data, very few employees believe that the data is being used responsibly.  Employees increasingly believe this will damage the psychological contract that exists in the workplace.

Missed opportunities

Whilst employees are concerned about misuse of their data however, they aren’t against data being collected in the first place.  Indeed, a whopping 92% of workers reported being open to data being collected on them and their work, with the only caveat being that this data is used to improve their performance or wellbeing.

“At a time when companies are using newly available workforce data to drive greater value, responsible leadership is the key to building employee trust,” Accenture say. “Trust is the ultimate currency — it’s the path to innovation and fuels growth by unlocking people’s potential.”

The impact of this is considerable, as Accenture argue that failing to address the trust-related concerns of employees could put at risk up to $3.1 trillion in revenue growth, which they believe can be achieved through effective use of workplace analytics.  On a company by company level, this would represent 12.5% higher revenues in those who tackle it versus those who don’t.

Doing things better

The data suggests that executives are broadly split between holding off from investing in analytics until they figure out the ethical way to do it, and venturing forth anyway in the hope that they will figure it out eventually.  To help, Accenture provide a number of tips that are designed to get executives off on the right foot:

1. Give workers control over their data – Some 73% of workers said they wanted full control over their work-related data, and to be able to take it with them if they leave the organization.  Doing this would help to build the trust that’s so important for analytics to succeed.
2. Share the benefits and the responsibility – As with so many change projects, involving those affected helps to ensure the change succeeds.  Unfortunately, at the moment just 29% of organizations co-create systems with employees, suggesting a big missed opportunity.
3. Use technology responsibly – 82% of employees thought that technology, such as AI, could make the workplace a fairer environment, especially in areas such as pay, promotions and appraisals.  Such technologies have to be used responsibly however to ensure these hopes aren’t dashed.

“Trust has evolved from a “soft” corporate issue to a quantifiable metric with bottom line impact on revenue, EBITDA and, ultimately, growth through competitive agility,” Accenture conclude. “Today’s leaders must put employee and consumer trust at the heart of their business strategies with a clear actionable plan to get it and keep it.”