Avoiding inaccuracies and the misuse of employment data

Business intelligence is only as good as the data that supports it

Having access to accurate, up-to-date Business Intelligence (BI) supported by data is a source of competitive advantage. But there is always a need to make sure that you understand exactly what the BI is telling you.

Also, the exact meaning of a statistic is critical. It is very important to clarify the definitions of what a statistic actually refers to, if we are to interpret it properly and make decisions based on it.

When we are dealing with the systems we use within a recruitment agency it is relatively easy to guarantee the integrity of the data, the definitions and the conclusions that we might draw.

However, the real problem with trusting in the integrity of statistics comes when we do not have control of, or access to, the primary sources of data.

The misrepresentation of employment data

This opens up the potential for the misuse of employment data. There is more than one way that data may be misrepresented to us.

As a broad definition, the misuse of statistics can be said to be using numbers in such a manner that – either by intent or through ignorance or carelessness – the conclusions are unjustified or incorrect.

Some common ways of misrepresenting what data may actually mean include:

• Ignoring data that is not favourable so that it cannot provide a counterpoint to a trend or relationship
• Dredging data so that trends or relationships that seem to be there are accepted without further investigation
• Manipulating data so that reporting seems to support a relationship that someone wants to prove
• Ignoring distinctions between related statistics so that the exact definition is blurred

Repeated misuse of employment data for political purposes

One misuse of employment data has been repeatedly made by the British government over several months. The essence of the remarks that have been made is typically that: ➣ There are more people in work now than there were before the pandemic.

This has been repeated a number of times in parliament and by ministers when appearing in the media. It is used in the context of inferring that the overall number of people in work has increased.

However, it has been fact-checked to show that it actually only refers to employees on payroll and doesn’t include those in self-employment. The true figure for the overall number of people in work has actually decreased.

The Full Fact fact-checking platform investigated this in April and the Ferret Fact Service also looked into it in May.

The data gospel according to ETZ!

ETZ’s Caspian business intelligence platform plugs in and uses the data from all the software that you use in your recruitment agency to provide you with insight.

You don’t have to worry about the integrity of the data because you already control the primary sources. When you identify trends and relationships in your business data with Caspian you can take it as gospel!

This complements ETZ’s leading timesheet, invoicing and payment platform that streamlines the recruitment back office. To find out more about releasing efficiency in the back office and unleashing the potential of your agency data, call us on 0800 311 2266 or book a demo.