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May 15, 2018

Hive Rolls Productivity Platform

(Syda Productions/Shutterstock)

Among the latest pitches for adopting predictive analytics are worker productivity tools that help enterprises understand what’s around the corner. The ability to forecast tomorrow’s workload is touted as a way to improve efficiency and even reduce workplace stress by eliminating “reactive work.”

That’s the value proposition being offered by Hive, the productivity startup that unveiled an analytics feature this week combining task management and request messaging. The new platform adds a predictive capability to the company’s suite of project management tools.

“You’re not just managing tasks or projects, but your company’s productivity itself,” said John Furneaux, Hive’s co-founder and CEO. “Teams from multinationals to small businesses told me that their number one request was a way to know not just what’s happening today, but what’s coming tomorrow.”

The predictive analytics dashboard is designed to visualize productivity trends using existing data and machine learning to spot resourcing and other bottlenecks. It then notifies design teams while providing “actionable suggestions” for boosting productivity. For example, the platform can gauge future workloads to determine whether a company is understaffed either tomorrow or next month. It can also help determine the most and least productive times of day.

The platform helps manage project tasks, using machine learning to issue alerts about possible bottlenecks that would require, for example, hiring freelance designers to get a project out the day on schedule.

Along with the familiar refrain, “working smarter,” Hive insists its approach helps eliminate “stressful, reactive work.”

The new platform reflects the evolution big data and analytics in the workplace, where companies are looking for new ways to use those tools to improve productivity. “We’re seeing the wave of productivity driven by data and analytics, enabling organizations to refine the way that people work together, the way that processes perform and the way assets are productive,” said Bill Wiseman, a senior partner with business consultant McKinsey Analytics.

New York-based Hive said Tuesday (May 15) a standard analytics dashboard is available now to current customers, and is generally available for trial.

–Editor’s note: This story has been updated.

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