The Bradford Factor has long been the go-to metric for measuring unplanned employee absences. But when HR teams rely too heavily on this formula, it can create a narrow view of attendance issues.
Ciphr analytics enables HR teams to take a more meaningful approach to absence management. So you can go beyond simple scoring to provide deeper insights through drill-down capabilities, custom reporting, and historic data access.
We’ll explore how Ciphr analytics enhances absence management, and makes HR reporting more insightful, efficient, and data driven.
The Bradford Factor and its limitations
The Bradford Factor formula helps quantify the impact of frequent, short-term absences on business productivity. As a quick reminder: Bradford Factor scores (also known as “sickness scales”) are based on the frequency and length of an employee’s absence during a defined period, usually 52 weeks.
The formula used is:
B = S² x D
B = Bradford Factor score
S = total number of instances of absence for the individual in the given period
D = total number of days the individual was absent during the given period
Modern HR systems, like ours, can automatically calculate this score for you as part of their absence management tools. Free online calculators are also available.
While it’s a useful tool, it doesn’t always tell the full story. For example, it can’t distinguish between genuine long-term sickness, unauthorised absences, or employees who require additional support.
For a clearer picture of absence trends, HR teams need to look beyond a single metric. But how can you ensure you make fair, data-backed decisions when it comes to managing absences? This is where Ciphr analytics comes in.
How Ciphr analytics supports smarter absence scoring
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Drill down to underlying data
One of the most powerful features in Ciphr analytics is the ability to break down summary totals instantly. Rather than relying on a single absence score, HR teams can uncover the context behind the numbers. This is a great way to make fairer, more informed decisions on a case-by-case basis.
Real-time access to individual absence records means you can:
- Find trends in specific departments or job roles
- Spot patterns of seasonal absences
- Cross-reference with other HR metrics such as employee engagement and performance
Managers can also home in on key insights without relying on HR to extract data. Instantly draw down a rounded view of absence patterns and causes, and plan team holiday requests more effectively.
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HR-specific dashboards for quick insights
Traditional HR reporting tools often need to be customised before they can provide meaningful insights. Ciphr analytics comes with pre-built HR dashboards tailored for key employee metrics. These dashboards are a quick starting point for understanding absence trends without needing specialised data expertise or teams. The data HR needs, when they need it.
With these dashboards, you can:
- Monitor absence levels across different teams
- Compare absence rates to industry benchmarks
- Highlight areas that need intervention before issues escalate
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Extract and explore views for advanced reporting
Ciphr analytics lets HR teams create custom reports in a few clicks, and ensures they’re always ready for ad-hoc queries from senior leaders and line managers. You can dig deeper into each analysis and present your findings in a format that suits the organisation’s reporting conventions, even if that means exporting data to Excel. Better reporting without the hassle.
This feature helps HR teams to:
- Build detailed absence reports in minutes
- Compare absence patterns across different timeframes
- Provide leadership teams with recommendations backed by data
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Access to historic HR data* without extra uploads
A major pain point for HR teams is the need to load old data separately when analysing long-term trends. Ciphr analytics fixes this because it provides instant access to historical absence records (*dependent on system setup and subscription level), and allows you to track trends over several years.
This means:
- No more manual data imports or duplicate records
- Easier year-on-year comparisons of absence data
- A clear view of long-term attendance trends
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Built for analytical reporting and deep insights
Unlike generic HR reporting systems, Ciphr analytics is designed for deep analysis. The user-friendly interface offers filtering and reporting tools that make it easy to extract meaningful insights and simplify complex queries. Built with HR in mind.
With its intelligent design, HR teams can:
- Apply advanced filters to focus on specific absence types
- View real-time data updates to support great decision-making
- Generate visual reports that simplify complex data
Our enhanced reporting encourages managers to ‘think like HR’. Accessible return-to-work compliance data helps managers stay on track with absence policy guidelines, and clear views of holiday uptake patterns help with better resource allocation and planning.
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Year-on-year analysis for smarter absence management
A single absence score doesn’t paint the full picture over time. Ciphr analytics allows HR teams to compare year-on-year performance and can help identify whether absence trends are getting better or worse. Analytics that answer the tough questions.
Benefits of this feature include:
- Quickly spotting long-term patterns in employee attendance
- Assessing the effectiveness of absence management strategies
- Demonstrating how HR initiatives impact absence rates
Why HR teams need to look beyond over-simplified absence scores
There’s no denying that the Bradford Factor is a useful starting point, but HR teams and managers alike could make better use of available tools to take a more meaningful look at absence patterns. Ciphr analytics ensures that organisations aren’t just measuring absence, but actively understanding and improving it.
You can reduce the risk of biased absence-related decisions, better support employees with genuine health (or personal) concerns, and provide leadership teams with data to enhance workforce planning.
Take the next step towards smarter absence management
A single formula can’t be the foundation of understanding employee absences. Ciphr analytics provides you with the tools they need to manage absence proactively and fairly.
Handle people problems with a people-centric approach. Download our analytics factsheet or book a demo today to see it in action.
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