The consulting industry faces the challenge of retaining qualified personnel in the long term to maintain its performance. This study examines how data-based analyses of job interviews can help predict employee retention and make HR processes more efficient. Based on 565 data sets from a consulting firm, concepts correlating with employee retention are identified using text mining and the CHAID decision tree method, and are assigned to the Big Five personality factors. The results show that agreeableness and extraversion, in particular, have predictive significance. Furthermore, the analysis reveals considerable optimization potential along the entire HR lifecycle: insights from personnel selection are hardly systematically transferred to downstream processes such as talent management, onboarding and offboarding. The study concludes with concrete recommendations for a lifecycle-oriented, data-based HR design in consulting firms.