Egglife Foods

HRIS and People Data That Shape HR Decision-Making

My experience with HRIS and people data has taught me that strong HR decisions should be supported by both data and human context. Data can identify trends in turnover, attendance, compensation, recruiting, engagement, performance and workforce movement, but the numbers alone rarely tell the entire story.

Throughout my career, I have worked with HRIS implementations and migrations, including leading a transition from a PEO to an ASO model and integrating payroll, onboarding, recruiting, training, performance, finance and IT systems. I have also worked with UKG migrations and multiple HR technology platforms. These experiences taught me to look beyond simply collecting data and focus on whether the information is accurate, actionable and connected to business outcomes.

I use data to ask better questions. If turnover increases in a particular department or shift, for example, the goal should not simply be to report the turnover rate. HR should examine why it is happening, identify patterns, talk with employees and leaders and determine what can realistically be changed.

Using Technology to Strengthen Employee Engagement

Technology strengthens engagement when it makes the employee experience easier, more transparent and more accessible. It should reduce barriers rather than create them.

HR technology can improve onboarding, communication, training, career development, benefits access, performance feedback and recognition. At the same time, technology cannot replace relationships.

Some of my strongest engagement and retention results have come from combining data with direct employee interaction. In one distribution environment, we achieved 98 percent participation in the employee engagement survey with an 87 percent positive rating while reducing hourly workforce turnover by 25 percent.

The lesson for me is that technology helps us listen at scale, but HR and leadership still have to respond to what employees are telling us.

Addressing Workforce Challenges in Food Manufacturing

Food manufacturing presents unique workforce challenges because HR decisions directly intersect with production, safety, quality, attendance, training, staffing and labor costs.

“Technology helps us listen at scale, but HR and leadership still have to respond to what employees are telling us.”

Technology can help organizations better understand turnover by shift, absenteeism patterns, overtime, staffing requirements, training completion, skills gaps, internal mobility, compensation and succession planning. It can also create clearer career paths by identifying the skills and training employees need to move from entry-level positions into advanced operator, technical, lead or supervisory roles.

For HR, the opportunity is to connect people data with operational data. When that happens, HR becomes more proactive. Instead of responding to staffing shortages after they occur, we can identify trends earlier and partner with operations on solutions.

Managing Labor Relations and Organizational Change

Labor relations and organizational change have taught me the importance of consistency, communication, credibility and listening. I have managed union negotiations, grievances, investigations, organizational transitions and significant workforce changes. Earlier in my manufacturing career, I negotiated and maintained three union agreements, including two five-year agreements.

Those experiences reinforced that employees do not always expect to agree with every decision, but they do expect leaders to communicate honestly, apply policies consistently and treat people with respect.

My leadership approach is therefore collaborative but accountable. I believe HR should understand operations, listen to employees, coach leaders, use data and be willing to have difficult conversations when necessary.

Building Strong HR Careers in a Technology-Driven Workplace

My advice is to become comfortable with both people and data. Learn HR fundamentals, employment law, employee relations, compensation, benefits and organizational development, but also develop technical skills in HRIS platforms, Excel, analytics, reporting and emerging technologies.

Do not become so dependent on technology that you lose the human side of Human Resources. A dashboard can tell you that turnover is increasing, but it cannot always tell you why someone decided not to come back tomorrow.

The HR professionals who will be most valuable in a technology-driven workplace will be those who can translate data into a story, turn that story into action and still build trust with the people behind the numbers. Technology should make HR more informed and efficient, not less human.