Beyond Dashboards: Ben Eubanks on Shifting HR Tech from ‘Viewing’ to ‘Doing’

In a recent LinkedIn post, Ben Eubanks, a veteran of the HR and recruiting world, argues that the current approach to HR technology is failing frontline teams by prioritizing data visualization over actionable execution. Eubanks contends that the industry has become overly reliant on dashboards and reports, leading to a situation where organizations are inundated with data but lack the practical application to solve critical hiring challenges.

Eubanks highlights a common paradox in modern HR departments: an abundance of data paired with a deficit in decisive action. He states:

“We’ve been sold ‘insights’ for a decade, but an insight without execution is just a more expensive way to watch your candidates ghost you.”

This perspective challenges the prevailing notion that simply having access to data equates to progress. According to Eubanks, the reality for those on the front lines of hiring is often one of increased administrative burden rather than enhanced efficiency.

The Frontline Reality: Data Overload, Action Deficit

Eubanks elaborates on the daily struggles faced by managers and recruiters, painting a picture of operational inefficiency exacerbated by a misplaced focus on reporting. He points out the detrimental effects on team productivity and candidate experience.

He identifies several key issues:

• Managers spending valuable time reading reports instead of engaging with their teams or operations.
• Recruiters caught in a cycle of trying to fill immediate needs while administrative tasks and system disconnects cause delays.
• A widening ‘Trust Gap’ where crucial communication, the primary driver of trust in hiring, is being reduced due to staff or effort cuts.

Eubanks finds this last point particularly concerning, noting the irony of diminishing the very element that builds candidate confidence.

“We are literally cutting the one thing that builds the most trust.”

This situation, in Eubanks’s view, signals a need for a fundamental shift away from tools that merely present information towards solutions that actively perform tasks.

Rethinking HR Tech: The ‘Doing’ Paradigm

The post introduces Fountain’s new offering, Cue, as an example of this necessary evolution. Eubanks suggests that technologies like Cue represent a move towards what he terms ‘Frontline Superintelligence,’ which goes beyond merely displaying metrics.

As Ben Eubanks explains, the goal is to move past the limitations of traditional HR tech:

“Instead of showing you a chart of your ‘time-to-hire’ and wishing you luck, it actually executes the work (everything from moving candidates, filling shift gaps, and handling that critical communication) based on a single prompt.”

This approach, he argues, is not solely about speed but about restoring operational sanity and freeing up leaders’ time. By automating tasks such as candidate movement, shift gap fulfillment, and essential communications, these new tools aim to alleviate the administrative burden.

Reclaiming Time and Rebuilding Trust

Eubanks emphasizes that solving the current crisis in frontline hiring and restoring candidate trust requires a strategic change in the tools provided to HR professionals. The focus must shift from making leaders data analysts to equipping them with technology that handles the heavy lifting.

He concludes his post by inviting engagement, asking readers about tasks they wish could be automated. This reflects his belief that there is significant potential for new technologies to reclaim valuable time for HR and talent acquisition leaders, addressing a wide range of needs from screening and sourcing to validation and reporting.

Eubanks’s partnership with Fountain on the Cue launch, as disclosed in his post, stems from his desire to see more proactive solutions in the HR tech space.

“If we want to solve the frontline crisis and rebuild candidate trust, we have to stop asking our leaders to be data analysts and start giving them tools that actually do the heavy lifting.”

This perspective underscores Eubanks’s call for a future where HR technology is defined by its ability to execute and support, rather than just inform.