This month, we’re sitting down with eqtble CEO Joseph Ifiegbu. eqtble is an HR Analytics platform that assists companies in deciding whom to hire, promote, and retain.

Here is a slightly edited version of the conversation:

Q: Tell us a little about your background and why you decided to become a founder.

A: I’ve known I wanted to be a founder since 2007; I vividly remember the day – I was reading a magazine and saw 21-year-olds creating incredible companies, and I thought, “I want that; I want to create something that will influence a generation.” I’ve worked as a data scientist throughout my career in various domains. However, 7 years ago, I entered the HR Analytics space and worked for WeWork and Snap, building and scaling their People Analytics Teams and Infrastructure. We identified an opportunity, and that experience laid the foundation for what you see today as eqtble.

Q: What sparked the inspiration for this company?

A: While at WeWork, one of my now co-founders, Gabe, and I established the People Analytics Team. We developed the data pipeline to connect our HRIS & ATS data, integrated it into the database, and then created a BI layer. Once we achieved that, we could access all the different analytics and insights for our then rapidly expanding company. We performed all this internally because we couldn’t find an adaptable tool for the job. Realizing we likely weren’t the only ones facing this issue, we decided to embark on this journey.

Q: What challenges did you face in starting eqtble? Why has this never been done before?

A: One of the primary challenges was devising a unified data model. Creating integrations for various HR Systems is one aspect, but accommodating data variations is tricky because each company utilizes data distinctively. For instance, how two companies define their metrics in Greenhouse can differ significantly, even though they use the same system. Hence, we needed to devise an integration flexible enough to cater to each customer’s unique metric definition variation. I must commend our CTO, Ethan, and CPO, Gabe, for engineering such an exceptional solution.

Another challenge was learning how to market to HR practitioners effectively. To a certain extent, it is a continuous educational journey. We’ve adapted to changes in buyer patterns and learned to determine if a buyer is qualified within the first two minutes of a conversation.

Q: In what specific ways will your technology help to improve the future of people analytics and HR?

A: There’s significant research by entities like Deloitte and Gartner indicating that 7 out of 10 individuals acknowledge the importance of HR Analytics to an organization. Yet, fewer than 1 in 10 decision-makers claim they have the necessary data for informed decision-making. This discrepancy is stark. We envision eqtble as the solution to bridge this gap between data and decision-making. Our platform aims to provide users with the pertinent information required for effective decision-making and assist customers in addressing the “now what” question.

Q: What advice would you give to other founders looking to build in a similar space? What do you wish you could tell your younger self?

A: Run! Just kidding. I would advise anyone aiming to create in this field to engage in as many discussions as possible before even starting to code. HR professionals are generally open to discussing their issues and proposing solutions. Concurrently, I would recommend developing a minimal viable product and attempting to market it initially to gauge the market’s reaction before allocating substantial resources. Establishing trust is crucial when selling into HR, and that takes time, so it’s important to enjoy the journey.

The advice I’d give my younger self would be to relish the process and stay present. I used to overlook current achievements, always focusing on the next goal without appreciating past successes. Reflecting on it now, I realize how impressive some of our achievements have been. So, indeed, I would emphasize being present.