Dive Brief

• A recent piece in Vice explores the ways in which big data may help reshape the American workforce.
• As Americans increasingly live their lives online, they leave more and more data available to employers to mine.
• Increasingly, HR-related projects across the U.S. are using data-driven approach to workforce development, mainly by using data scraping tools in "a really analytical way."

Dive Insight

In an interview with Vice, Lesley Hirsch, the director of the New York City Labor Market Information Service, or LMIS, said she sees big data's value primarily as a way of "keeping your finger on the pulse of industry demand."

According to the article, big data in action means hoping that millions of individual actions, taken together, can paint a picture of a larger trend. For HR, that means using it to fill talent needs.

Big data's move into the world of workforce development is just beginning, as are the debates around its use and its content. But with sites such as LinkedIn combining with government initiatives such the TechHire initiative, a set of actions meant to encourage training and close the skills gap for tech jobs, big data will someday have a serious impact on how people look for work and are hired.