Webinar: How Workforce Intelligence is Changing Financial Strategy

The Missing Link in Financial Strategy: Workforce Intelligence

Financial decision-making has always been about the numbers. Revenue growth, EBITDA margins, and market trends are still critical, but they often lag behind what is really happening inside a company. By the time they appear in financial reports, the best investors and consultants have already made their moves.

Workforce intelligence is now a key part of financial strategy. It provides an outside-in, real-time view of a company’s operations, showing where it is investing, where talent is leaving, and how sentiment is shifting. These are all indicators of future performance that traditional financial analysis often misses.

Aura Intelligence recently hosted a LinkedIn Live webinar with CEO Evan Sohn and Client Success Manager Luis Lopez to explore how workforce analytics is changing due diligence, competitive analysis, and investment strategy. 

Want to see workforce intelligence in action? Watch the full webinar and discover how real-time workforce data gives investors and consultants a competitive edge.

Revolutionizing Due Diligence with Workforce Intelligence

Private equity and consulting firms need to assess companies quickly and accurately. The traditional due diligence process relies on financial statements, third-party reports, and conversations with leadership. These methods are useful, but they leave gaps in understanding how a company is operating day to day.

One of the most interesting discussions in the webinar focused on how workforce intelligence is reshaping the due diligence process. Instead of waiting for company-reported data, investors and consultants can now track hiring trends, attrition rates, skill distributions, and leadership structures as they happen.

Evan shared an example of a financial institution that thought it had a normal attrition rate. When compared against competitors, the company was actually losing talent at twice the industry average. This insight changed the conversation from an internal HR concern to a strategic problem affecting long-term profitability.

This kind of comparative workforce data is a necessary tool for modern investors. It does not just show what is happening inside a company, it shows how that compares to the broader market.

Competitive Benchmarking in the Buy Now, Pay Later Market

One of the most practical moments of the webinar was a workforce benchmarking analysis of the Buy Now, Pay Later sector. Klarna, Affirm, Afterpay, and Sezzle were compared based on their workforce strategy rather than their revenue figures.

Several patterns emerged. Klarna significantly increased hiring for AI-related roles, reflecting its investment in generative AI for customer support. Affirm allocated more of its workforce toward sales and general operations, suggesting a focus on expanding market share rather than automating processes. Klarna’s middle management layer grew more than its competitors, raising questions about whether the company was preparing for further scaling or if additional oversight was needed to manage complexity.

Workforce allocation is an indicator of company priorities. Traditional financial analysis might show revenue growth, but it does not reveal whether a company is scaling efficiently or misallocating resources. A workforce that is becoming more technical, more sales-driven, or more top-heavy all indicate different strategic directions.

Workforce Sentiment as a Risk Indicator

Culture, leadership effectiveness, and compensation strategies all affect financial performance, but they are difficult to quantify. Most investors and consultants rely on employee reviews or anecdotal evidence to assess workplace sentiment.

In the webinar, Luis shared how workforce sentiment data is helping investors track these factors more systematically. Klarna’s employee sentiment dropped in 2024, particularly around compensation and senior management trust. This shift happened while the company was preparing for an IPO, which raised questions about whether cost-cutting was affecting morale or whether employees were losing confidence in leadership.

For investors, declining sentiment can be an early warning sign of retention risk, lower productivity, or a coming wave of resignations. It can also highlight leadership missteps before they are visible in financial results.

Workforce sentiment data is not only useful for identifying risk. It can also confirm positive momentum. If sentiment is rising alongside hiring, it can indicate that a company is strengthening its workforce, improving leadership, or gaining an edge in recruitment.

Why Traditional Workforce Research is Holding You Back

Another important point raised in the webinar was the inefficiency of traditional workforce data collection. Many firms still rely on manual web scraping, third-party reports, and in-house research teams to gather information. This process is slow, expensive, and often incomplete.

Luis explained how firms using Aura’s platform have significantly reduced the time spent on workforce analysis. Instead of spending weeks compiling hiring and attrition data, analysts can now access it in real time. This allows consultants and investors to spend more time interpreting the data rather than gathering it.

For firms still using manual workforce research methods, the opportunity cost is clear. Speed matters in financial decision-making, and inefficient processes create delays that competitors will take advantage of.

Why Workforce Intelligence is a Financial Signal Investors Can’t Ignore

Companies are not static. They adjust strategies, restructure teams, expand into new markets, and experiment with emerging technologies. Traditional financial analysis does not always capture these shifts in time. Workforce intelligence fills this gap by providing real-time insights into how companies are evolving.

For investors, consultants, and business strategists, workforce data is no longer just an HR concern. It can be an important financial signal. Understanding where a company is hiring, what skills it is prioritizing, and how employees feel about leadership provides a clearer picture of its future success.

For those who want to see how workforce intelligence can support better investment and business decisions, reach out to Aura for a closer look at the data shaping today’s markets.