Seven Lessons I Learned about People Analytics (Oops Did I Think That Out Loud #4)

When I started my career in People Analytics, never did I imagine that one day I would become an expert resource on the topic, let alone be able to advise those who are starting their journey in this field.

Having had numerous conversations with folks who are starting out in this field and reflecting on my own journey to date, here are the 7 lessons I have learned that I would share with my younger self in no particular order:

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1. Case studies in People Analytics are like Instagram Reels: They are highlights of the best of the best. I used to think that companies that have their work featured in market case studies must have all their ducks in a row. Having had some of my own work featured in case studies over the past few years, here is what I can confirm: 1) There certainly are companies that have it all together in terms of People Analytics, but they are few and far between; 2) Most companies are still on the journey of building and providing value through People Analytics; and 3) For every case study that made it to a keynote session or a feature article, there are at least 5 other projects that didn’t make it; and 4) Countless hours have been spent in the background creating the dataset and infrastructure needed to execute on these case studies that were ultimately featured. Bottomline: The success stories and case studies are the tip of the iceberg for People Analytics practitioners. Most of us spend our time struggling with imperfect datasets and weird tech stacks trying to make magic happen for our organizations.
2. Stakeholders are more Important than numbers: My not-so-secret-any-more hack to differentiate between a People Analytics resource who is starting on their journey and someone who has done this for a while, is the emphasis they place on stakeholders. Most of the time, early-career-practitioners will think along the lines of: in order to develop and execute an effective People Analytics strategy, we must showcase the current state data and the benchmark/market data, then help the organization identify the gaps, and then highlight the areas for improvement. I used to think that too! Now I know that even if your numbers are 100% accurate and your business case shows positive ROI and your analysis is flawless, if you don’t have the support of your key stakeholders on a proposed change, your analytical outcome is just going to be a number at the end of the day and have very limited organizational value.
3. Ditch the deck: Quick-hit numbers will stick with the audience a lot longer than a 10-page deck ever will. When I first started in People Analytics, courtesy of my consulting background, I used to create LENGTHY decks that showcase the problem, the methodology, the outcomes, and the finally the actions needed. 9 out of 10 times I would be lucky to make it through all the slides during presentations. What I noticed was that out of these lengthy presentations, most people only remembered 1 or 2 key figures and facts, and those became the figures that were cited for future decisions and business cases. So, instead of creating these lengthy slide decks, I now look for the 30-second summary of the work for elevator pitches, the 3-minute summary for townhall features, the 10-minute summary for internal team meetings and communications, and the 15-minute summary for meetings focused specifically on the project. Anything longer than that and I either risk losing the audience or not leaving enough time for questions and discussion, which are far more important.
4. Don’t show your work: Always do the work that is required to arrive at sound analysis and insights, but also always know that 95% of the work you put into the analysis might not see the light of day. As an analytics practitioner, I do the work so I can stand by the outcome; so that if questioned, I can build trust around the methodology; so that everything is substantiated and based on facts and data. I do the work for my own sanity. I also know very well that when I have 30 seconds to share the outcome of my latest project, the focus is never going to be on the work that went into it, but rather the outcome and its impact on the business.
5. People Analytics is about being helpful: Every HR function serves its purpose for the broader organization. My view is that People Analytics exists as a function because we live in a world where data is so abundant that HR practitioners no longer have the time or capacity to analyze the data and derive insights from it, in addition to focusing on their day jobs. This is where People Analytics comes in—we help other HR functions (and sometimes other parts of the organization) synthesize data so that they can focus on the strategizing and outcome delivery. My belief is that an organization with a successful People Analytics function will be highly data driven while also being highly successful in strategy development and goal achievement. This is because the People Analytics function has brought the rest of the organization along the analytics journey and helped the HR and other functions understand and adopt data and insights driven practices.
6. You don’t need a People Analytics title to do the work: I frequently get asked by folks interested in People Analytics how they might go about finding a job in the field. While it is true that there are significantly more people interested in People Analytics than there are available positions, the good news is that you don’t have to be part of a People Analytics team or function to do the work. Almost all HR functions today work with several forms of data. Depending on your current role, it is entirely possible for you to take on a small data management or dashboarding project to practice your skills and showcase your talents.
7. IT is your friend: I don’t know when “we can’t do X because the ‘system’ doesn’t allow us to” became a thing in HR, but I honestly believe that it needs to stop right now! As an Analytics practitioner, it is your job to understand the technology that collects and summarizes the data you use. In most organizations, your IT team is usually a good starting point to understand the tech stack, data flow, and information security practices. So, if you take nothing else from this article, just remember this: FIND A FRIEND WITHIN YOUR COMPANY’S IT TEAM!