New research on what increases employee productivity and satisfaction is changing the way that employers look at their decisions. Recent research has shown that supervisor attitudes can have a large impact on productivity, and that past work history is not a good indicator of future performance. By collecting new data, researchers have been able to look closely at what works and what does not in the workplace.
See "Big Data, Trying to Build Better Workers", Steve Lohr, The New York Times, April 21, 2013