As we put the finishing touches on the newest version of this book—the first to appear in English—the first edition from 2015 is already four years behind us. As we anticipated at the time, interest in and enthusiasm for the HR analytics and data-driven HR will only continue to rise worldwide.
An interview about HR analytics brought us together in the spring of 2013. When the interview was over, we continued chatting about the subject. We were in agreement that there was a lack of clarity as to what HR analytics actually encompasses and how HR can use it to make policy formation and the implementation of HR tools more data-driven. We got down to work in the autumn of 2013, and by February 2015 we had a complete manuscript. In the intervening year and a half, we learned a lot about the subject, about each other, and about the people named below. They made the first Dutch-language book about HR analytics possible.
In the years following the publication of the first edition, we have seen more and more companies, institutions, and governments discovering the potential of data analysis and ever more colleges and universities expanding their educational programs with subjects such as data-driven HR, HR analytics, and HR metrics. This has a broader context: society is learning that data technology now touches every aspect of our lives. This offers opportunities but also poses challenges and risks, such as in the fields of data security and personal data protection. Both are a precondition for being able to apply the full extent of data-driven HR and make the most of it. Organizations and everyone who works in them—management, leadership, and employees—need insight into how data technologies work and how to best use them.
To do justice to recent developments and changing regulatory environments, especially in the area of privacy, we have updated, augmented, and refined the book; we have also had it translated in response to the regular requests we have received from colleges, universities, and HR managers at multinationals to publish the book in English. We trust that this English edition will continue to help everyone who wants to understand all aspects of data-driven HR for years to come and serve as a guide and go-to reference for work and study.
Many people were involved in creating both the Dutch and English versions of this book. In particular, we would like to thank Gerard Evers, former professor of human capital valuation at Tilburg University; Tiny Beks, lecturer in human resource management at Avans Hogeschool; Mark de Lat, director of consultancy Randstad Nederland; Michiel van Asbeck, director of RaymakersvdBruggen; Jelle Dijkstra, professor of applied science; privacy lawyer Sergej Katus and computer science and privacy consultant Koen Versmissen, partners at Privacy Management Partners; data scientist Jilske Hupkes from AnalitiQs; and editor and translator Bill Nagel for their contributions.
In the interests of fairness, we should also note that as co-authors, we did not spare each other our criticism. We bombarded each other constantly with difficult questions, and if one of us didn’t agree with a passage, illustration, or even a particular word, we discussed it until we came to an alternative that worked for both of us.
Others whom we want to thank for their advice, criticisms, and valuable suggestions include MindCampus, the first publisher of the book; Patrick Coolen, manager of HR analytics at ABN AMRO; Rolf Baarda, director of Bureau Baarda; Jan Cees Marijt, VP of Group Compensation & Benefits at Sandvik; Maarten van Riemsdijk, lecturer in strategic HRM at Saxion; Jeroen Terstegge, partner at Privacy Management Partners; Karin Sanders, professor of organizational behavior and HRM at the University of New South Wales (Australia) Business School; Frank Verbeeten, professor of accounting at Utrecht University; Geert-Jan Waasdorp, director of the Intelligence Group; Diederik Gallas, director of Gids in Bedrijf; Peter van den Hout; Jancees van Westering, management coach; and Barry Condon, head of IT at Cedar. They all helped make this book possible.
Toine Al and Irma Doze
Amsterdam, September 2019