Where Data Meets Humanity: Making Better Talent Decisions without Losing the Culture

Laura Caron, Global Director, Talent Acquisition, Edgewell Personal Care

Laura Caron, Global Director, Talent Acquisition, Edgewell Personal Care

Talent acquisition sits at a unique intersection of data and humanity. On one hand, we have more information than ever, market benchmarks, funnel analytics, predictive insights. On the other, hiring remains deeply human, shaped by values, judgment, and the lived culture of an organization. The most effective TA leaders learn to hold both truths at once.

Talent acquisition today is defined by this duality. Data has expanded what we can see and measure, but culture continues to shape how decisions are made and how they are experienced. The challenge for TA leaders is not choosing between the two, but learning how to integrate them thoughtfully.

Balancing data-driven insights with cultural add starts with clarity of purpose. Data should inform decisions, not replace them. Metrics can tell us what is happening, where candidates drop off, how long roles take to fill, and how diverse a slate may be, but culture helps us understand why certain decisions feel right or wrong. When data and culture are treated as complementary rather than competing forces, hiring becomes both more disciplined and more human.

To understand the health of a talent acquisition function, I focus on a mix of efficiency, quality, and experience metrics. Time to fill and cost to hire matter, but they are incomplete on their own. I pay close attention to quality of hire indicators, hiring manager satisfaction, candidate experience feedback, and early attrition. Together, these signals tell a more honest story about whether we are building teams that perform, stay, and thrive. Metrics should spark better questions, not drive narrow conclusions.

“Metrics should spark better questions, not drive narrow conclusions.”

Organizational culture plays a significant role in how hiring strategies are designed and refined. Culture influences how decisions are made, how risk is perceived, and how much weight is placed on potential versus pedigree. In some environments, speed and decisiveness are prized. In others, consensus and long-term fit matter more. Effective TA leaders design hiring approaches that reflect those realities while still challenging the organization to evolve. Hiring is often one of the clearest mirrors of culture, revealing both its strengths and its blind spots.

One responsibility is especially critical in modern TA. Ensuring that data enhances, rather than overrides, human judgment starts with transparency. Stakeholders must understand what the data does and does not tell us. Guardrails also matter. Algorithms and dashboards should support equitable decision-making, not create false certainty. Human judgment must remain central, particularly when evaluating potential, values alignment, and leadership capability.

Aligning TA practices with leadership expectations while protecting culture and candidate experience depends on trust and partnership. Leaders want outcomes, strong talent, speed, and confidence in decisions. TA leaders earn that trust by being fluent in both business outcomes and people impact. That means bringing data forward with context, advocating for thoughtful process when needed, and never losing sight of the candidate’s perspective. A positive candidate experience is not at odds with business goals. It is often a leading indicator of future engagement and reputation.

For TA leaders looking to strengthen both analytical skills and cultural awareness, my advice is simple but not easy. Stay curious. Learn the language of data, but also spend time listening to employees, candidates, and hiring leaders. Walk the business. Observe where culture shows up in small, everyday moments. The strongest TA leaders act as translators. They turn data into insight, culture into action, and business needs into human decisions.

In the end, the future of talent acquisition does not belong to data alone or intuition alone. It belongs to leaders who can integrate both, using data to sharpen judgment, culture to guide decisions, and humanity to anchor it all. When that balance is right, hiring becomes more than a function. It becomes a strategic advantage.