Employment Hero unveils SmartMatch for real-time payroll data

Employment Hero has introduced a new tool called SmartMatch, designed to provide unprecedented real-time transparency in the employment marketplace.

SmartMatch leverages up-to-date data from over two million employees and 300,000 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) worldwide to offer precise insights into salary and employment trends.

Unlike traditional salary benchmarking tools, which are often based on outdated surveys and self-reported data, SmartMatch uses real-time payroll data. This approach aims to offer both employers and job seekers a more accurate understanding of market salaries and job opportunities.

Ben Thompson, CEO of Employment Hero, stated, "SmartMatch is providing unprecedented transparency for both employers and job seekers. Employers are now able to view salaries and talent in a way that traditional job boards and benchmarking tools—which lack live, accurate data—simply cannot match. We have live, region-specific payroll data, so we know the exact salary ranges for specific roles, all across Australia."

For employers, SmartMatch provides several functionalities that enhance decision-making in compensation, retention, and hiring. These include accessing the latest salary data in real-time, ensuring fair pay, and analysing competitor salaries. The tool also enables employers to hire top talent within their budget by adjusting parameters such as location and experience level. Additionally, businesses can explore the impact of expanding their salary limits to attract higher expertise.

Job seekers, on the other hand, can use SmartMatch to discover their market worth and find higher-paying opportunities. The tool allows users to compare their value against the market, explore strategies to boost their pay, and find roles that make the most of their skills and experience. By entering their current or desired job title, job seekers can access real-time insights and potentially maximise their earning potential.

Employment Hero's inaugural SmartMatch Employment Report has highlighted the need for such a tool. The report revealed an 8.8% year-on-year growth in median wages, a figure more than double the Australian Bureau of Statistics' (ABS) reported annual wage growth of 4.1%. The lack of real-time transparency in the employment marketplace means that many employers and job seekers are making decisions based on outdated or unverified data.

Thompson elaborated, "There is a current lack of real-time transparency in the employment marketplace and what someone is worth today is not necessarily what they were worth yesterday. As it stands, the data that employers and job seekers have access to is either out of date, unverified or not revealing the complete employment picture. This is especially true with wage data. Because of this, the market is negotiating blindly."

The CEO also pointed out the broader economic implications of the data revealed in the SmartMatch Employment Report. "For example, the ongoing wage inflation that our 8.8% wage increase reveals is an important metric that must be considered by decision makers, especially when viewed in the context of the Reserve Bank of Australia's ongoing battle against inflation. The impacts of potentially unsustainable wage growth must also be weighed against ASIC's findings that business failure rates are nearing recession levels."

SmartMatch aims to address these issues by providing live, payroll-informed data, thereby increasing transparency and helping both businesses and employees make better decisions regarding employment and remuneration. "In fact, this is exactly why we launched SmartMatch and for anyone interested in these wage insights, I would urge them to SmartMatch themselves via our SmartMatch tool," concluded Thompson.

The SmartMatch Employment Report contains figures broken down by state, industry, age, and employment type, offering valuable insights for both employers and job seekers. The real-time data is expected to support more informed decisions in the employment market, benefiting both parties involved.