How can leaders build a data-driven and digitally literate culture in HR?

We’ve just wrapped up Series 33 of the Digital HR Leaders Podcast at Insight222 , which was sponsored by our friends at Visier Inc. While the conversation with guests in each episode explored a myriad of different topics, the one common question for each episode was: How can HR leaders build a data-driven and digitally literate culture in HR?

?A summary of each episode together with associated links follows:

?

EP1: LEXY MARTIN - How to Democratise Data for People Manager Effectiveness

In the first episode of the series, I was joined by a very special guest: Lexy Martin , who recently announced she was ‘redirecting’ after a phenomenal career in technology, HR technology and people analytics spanning 55 years. This includes, as Lexy recounts in our conversation, working on the original market research for Microsoft Word with Bill Gates!

As well as reflecting on her remarkable career, Lexy and I discuss:

• The link between people analytics and firm financial performance.
• The standout findings from her final research report for Visier on democratising people data to people managers – and we also discuss FIG 1, which summarises the potential benefit for a 10,000 person organisation of successful democratising people data to managers - close to $400m in cost savings and almost $200m in revenue expansion.
• The symbiotic relationship between data-driven practices and fostering diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging.
• The future of people analytics and how organisations can stay ahead of the curve.
• Concrete strategies to cultivate a data-driven and digitally literate HR culture.

Listen to my conversation with Lexy on Apple, Spotify or your podcast app of choice, by visiting the Digital HR Leaders podcast homepage and clicking the corresponding logo.

Connect with Lexy on LinkedIn and on X at @lexymartin, access the report Lexy and I discuss in the episode: Unlocking Manager Effectiveness: The Next Driver of Value, and read the article on Lexy’s Learnings from 50 Years in the Tech Industry.

?

EP2: YVES VAN DURME - How to Prepare Your HR Data for EU CSRD Reporting

There's a bit of a paradox where most HR business partners love to contribute to decision-making. They feel very good when they're involved into more strategic conversations, but they sometimes lack a bit of that insight. This is where the people analytics teams can provide more and more of these insights.

In the second episode, my guest was Yves Van Durme , Global Human Capital Leader of Organisational Transformation at Deloitte, and an acknowledged thought leader at the forefront of HR innovation. One of the topics we discuss in depth is the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), which mandates that organisations in the EU report their impact on the environment, society, and workforce by 2025.

In our conversation, Yves and I also discuss:

• The readiness of HR functions to comply with the data requirements of the CSRD, and how to close the gap
• Key metrics and actionable steps for HR to initiate and accelerate their data-driven journey
• Opportunities for leveraging workforce data to create value for individuals, teams, the organisation, and society
• The shift towards a ‘One Workforce’ perspective prompted by the CSRD
• Strategies for empowering HR Business Partners in embracing data-driven practices

Listen to my conversation with Yves on Apple, Spotify or your podcast app of choice, by visiting the Digital HR Leaders podcast homepage and clicking the corresponding image.

?Connect with Yves on LinkedIn, and read the three reports Yves and I discuss in our conversation: the 2023 Deloitte Global Human Capital Trends, Deloitte’s Beyond Productivity: The Journey to the Quantified Organisation study, and the Insight222 report: Upskilling the HR Profession: Building Data Literacy at Scale.

?

EP3: PAUL RUBENSTEIN - Boosting Managerial Efficiency: The CHRO's Outside-In Approach to Productivity

Getting beyond HR data is a means to an end. The end is a business outcome, and you can't understand how people impact business if you don't have as much business data in that discussion as you have people data

In the middle episode of the series, my guest was Paul Rubenstein , until recently CHRO of Visier Inc. , and now Chief Customer Officer for the firm.

In our conversation, Paul and I explore:

• Four elements the CHRO can learn from the CFO when it comes to data: cadence, curation, context, and conversation.
• How combining people data with finance data, operational data, and network data can help unlock organisational productivity
• The symbiotic relationship between data-driven HR practices and fostering diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) within organisations.
• The outlook for the future of people analytics and how organisations can proactively prepare for what lies ahead.
• Concrete strategies and actionable insights for cultivating an organisation's data-driven and digitally literate HR culture.

Listen to my conversation with Paul on Apple, Spotify or your podcast app of choice, by visiting the Digital HR Leaders podcast homepage and clicking the corresponding image.

Connect with Paul on LinkedIn, on X @paulrubenstein1, and find out more about Visier.

?

EP4: ASHISH PANT - How Novartis Use People Data to Navigate Business Transformation

One of the key elements for us to do things at scale in people analytics is the availability of high-quality, clean, well-categorised data.

My guest for the penultimate episode of the series was Ashish Pant , Global Head of People Analytics and Data at 诺华 , who established the people analytics function at the company in 2019, and has led the team ever since.

In our conversation Ashish and I discuss:

• How Novartis has built a successful people analytics function in three distinct phases: Start-up, Scale, and Maturity;
• Examples of people analytics projects including how the team played a pivotal role in the recent business transformation at Novartis
• The metrics and KPIs used to gauge the success of the business transformation;
• How the structure of the people analytics team has evolved, with a deep-dive on two key roles: People Insights Partners and Behavioural Scientists
• How to build a data-driven and data-literate HR function

Listen to my conversation with Ashish on Apple, Spotify or your podcast app of choice, by visiting the Digital HR Leaders podcast homepage and clicking the corresponding image.

Connect with Ashish on LinkedIn.

?

EP5: WENDY CUNNINGHAM AND PETER MEYLER - How to Achieve Data-Driven HR Excellence in a Highly Regulated Environment

People Analytics is about realising the competitive advantage of your people.? How do you maximise their contribution, their engagement, and their performance? And how do you deliver better business outcomes as a result?

In the final episode of the series, my guests were Wendy Cunningham , HR Chief Operating Officer, and Peter Meyler , Head of People Data, Analytics and Insights, who together have built a data driven HR function at Phoenix Group .

In the episode, expect to learn about:

• How the Phoenix Group navigates the challenges of a highly regulated environment
• How technology has played a pivotal role in consolidating data from multiple sources, revolutionising the HR function at the Phoenix Group
• Insights into the company's unique approach to measuring the effectiveness of their people strategy and how they adapt it as the company continues to evolve
• The evolution of the Phoenix Group's people analytics team and how it has grown alongside the organisation's commitment to data-driven decision making
• A glimpse into the future, as Wendy and Peter share their vision and discuss the steps they're considering to elevate their analytics capabilities to the next level.

Listen to my conversation with Wendy and Peter on Apple, Spotify or your podcast app of choice, by visiting the Digital HR Leaders podcast homepage and clicking the corresponding image.

Connect with Wendy and Peter on LinkedIn.

?

WATCH THE VIDEO EPISODES FROM SERIES 33

As well as the full podcast recording of each episode, there are two videos of each episode available on the?myHRfuture YouTube channel. ?A playlist collating these videos together can be viewed below:

??

THANK YOU

Thanks to all our guests in Series 33 as well as as well as Adedamola Adeleke , Jake Sorofman , Ian Cook , Andrea Derler, Ph.D. , Carla Williams , Ryan Wong and the rest of the Visier Inc. team for sponsoring this series of the Digital HR Leaders podcast. Thanks too to Manpreet Randhawa , Stefan Kesi? , Jasmine Panayides , and the team at Insight222 and myHRfuture for bringing the podcast to life.

We’ll be back with Series 34, which kicks off on Tuesday with a special episode on the past, present and future of HR with Nick Dalton .

?

SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST AND NEWSLETTER

If you enjoy a weekly dose of curated learning (and the Digital HR Leaders Podcast), the?Digital HR Leaders newsletter?comes out every Tuesday –?subscribe here.

?

WOULD YOU LIKE TO SPONSOR A SERIES OF THE DIGITAL HR LEADERS PODCAST?

If you’re interested in sponsoring a series of the podcast, we have a range of sponsorship options available. Please get in touch with Stefan Kesic at [email protected].

?

DOWNLOAD THE INSIGHT222 RESEARCH STUDY ON BUILDING DATA LITERACY IN HR

We’ve recently released our new research report: Upskilling HR the Profession: Building Data Literacy at scale, which is now available to download here – or by clicking on the image below.

CATCH UP ON THE 2023 EPISODES OF THE DIGITAL HR LEADERS PODCAST

You can access all previous episodes of the Digital HR Leaders podcast going all the way back to our first episode with Sharon Doherty (she/her) in May 2019, by going to the Digital HR Leaders homepage. The 2023 episodes not included in this round-up are:

Series 28 (Sponsored by Gloat)

• The Top HR Trends That Are Set to Disrupt The Workplace in 2023 (with Dave Ulrich, Diane Gherson, and Ian Bailie)
• Unlocking Organisational Resilience Through a Skills-Based Approach (with Susan Cantrell and Michael Griffiths)
• How Standard Chartered is Unlocking the Power of Skills in the Workplace (with Tanuj Kapilashrami)
• How to Build Successful and Collaborative Relationships at Work (with Amy Gallo)
• Navigating the Talent Marketplace of the Future (with Jeff Schwartz and Jeroen Wels)

Series 29 (sponsored by Workday)

• How AI Can Unlock Human Potential and Make Work More Meaningful (with Dr Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic)
• How Yelp Built a Successful Remote Working Culture (with Carmen Whitney Orr)
• How Workday Created An Impactful People Analytics Function (with Phil Willburn)
• How To Ensure Purpose Is at The Forefront of Your People Strategies (with Daniela Seabrook)
• How To Turn People Data into Actionable Insights (with Caroline O'Reilly)

Series 30 (sponsored by Orgvue)

• How Global Brands Manage Successful DEI Programs (with Lauren Guthrie)
• How Johnson & Johnson are Scaling Their Skills-Based Approach to Talent (with Christina Norris-Watts and Doug Shagam)
• Planning for Economic Uncertainty: Workforce Planning in Action (with Oliver Shaw)
• How Meta Developed a High-Performing People Analytics Team (with Alexis Fink)
• Creating a Future-Proof Company Through Organisational Design and Workforce Planning (with Don Miller and Jesse Jacks)

Series 31 (sponsored by ChartHop)

• How Raytheon Technologies Productises People Analytics at Scale (with Aashish Sharma)
• How to Navigate Your Organisation's DEI Journey (with Dr. Ella F. Washington)
• From HR to People Operations: Unlocking the Secrets of Modern HR Success (with Ian White)
• How to Position Employee Experience at the Centre of Corporate Culture (with Aaron Falcione)
• People Analytics, Now and the Future: Insights from Wharton PAC (with Prasad Setty and Dawn Klinghoffer)

Series 32 (sponsored by Worklytics )

• Rethinking Leadership for the Future of Work (with Heather E. McGowan )
• Empowering HR and People Analytics Leaders in Managing Microstress (with Karen Dillon and Rob Cross )
• How can people analytics and network data support a successful return to the office? (with Philip Arkcoll )
• How To Scale People Analytics Through Experimentation and Productisation (with Ian OKeefe )
• How to Build a Thriving Workforce Ecosystem (with Elizabeth J. Altman and Robin Jones )

______________________________________________________________

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

David Green ?????is a globally respected author, speaker, conference chair, and executive consultant on people analytics, data-driven HR and the future of work.?As Managing Partner and Executive Director at?Insight222, he has overall responsibility for the delivery of the Insight222 People Analytics Program, which supports the advancement of people analytics in over 90 global organisations.?Prior to co-founding Insight222, David accumulated over 20 years experience in the human resources and people analytics fields, including as Global Director of People Analytics Solutions at IBM. As such, David has extensive experience in helping organisations increase value, impact and focus from the wise and ethical use of people analytics.?David also hosts the?Digital HR Leaders Podcast?and is an instructor for Insight222's?myHRfuture Academy. His book, co-authored with Jonathan Ferrar,?Excellence in People Analytics: How to use Workforce Data to Create Business Value?was published in the summer of 2021.

SEE ME AT THESE EVENTS

I'll be speaking about people analytics, the future of work, and data driven HR at a number of upcoming events in 2023:

• 17-18 October -?UNLEASH World?(Paris)
• 24 October - 29th Human Capital Congress 2023 (Lima - Virtual)
• 30 October - 1st People Analytics Conference Korea (Seoul - Virtual)
• 14-16 November - Workday Rising EMEA (Barcelona)
• 30 November - Indeed FutureWorks (Bengaluru)

More events will be added as they are confirmed.