6 Key Players in the People Analytics Ecosystem

In any business, understanding your stakeholders and key customers is critical for success.  As you’re building your people analytics function, understanding the needs of your different user groups is similarly important.  

This concept is the very foundation of product design. Below, we explore the different personas we use to guide One Model’s product innovation. Each persona is written from the perspective of the individual in that role and, most importantly, how their own success is measured.

As a People Analytics Analyst/Power User

Navigating the vast seas of data in our company, I’m at the forefront of deriving actionable insights and deploying a self-service analytics capability. I’m committed to delivering insights that are not only accurate and clear, but also perfectly aligned with our business strategy. Ensuring top-notch standards is my priority. 

Main Responsibilities:

• I’m a core part of our People Analytics Center of Excellence, aiming to deliver people analytics capability to all decision-makers in the company so that they have the information they need to drive better decisions and better outcomes for people and the company. Supporting this, I’m building scalable content, delivering training, education and change management initiatives to create a culture of data-driven decision making.
• I perform analytical investigations to answer ad-hoc questions, both tactical and strategic in nature.
• I build Storyboards, presentations, and reports for specific topics and audiences, including:
  • Executive committees tracking KPIs/OKRs
  • Line managers managing compliance and performance against KPIs
  • HR Business Partners providing people management advice to line managers
  • The HR team to dig deep into HR topics for the company
• The quality of my Storyboards, presentations, insights and reports is judged on:
  • Their accuracy and the quality of the insights offered
  • How visually engaging and attractive they are
  • How easy it is to understand key messages and determine appropriate actions
  • Their performance and effectiveness
  • How efficiently they can be created, modified, shared, and accessed by others in the company
• As well as building analytical content, I’m continually bringing in new data, creating new metrics and content to ensure our people analytics data is aligned with our company strategy and relevant to end-users.
• I’m continually experimenting with new technology and leveraging Generative AI as a growing part of how we surface analytical insights and share these across the company.

As an HR Business Partner

As the bridge between strategic insights and actionable people management strategies, my role is integral to delivery of data-driven decision making for HR and business leaders. I curate content that’s not just relevant and accurate but also aligned with our latest business demands. By harnessing the power of our people, we address real-world business challenges. I have started using Generative AI capability alongside Storyboards to get answers to my ad hoc questions before going back to the People Analytics team.

Main Responsibilities:

• I provide people management advice to line managers to help them deliver better business outcomes through their people.
• I use pre-built Storyboards and reports to track the key people management issues facing the line area and their relevant KPIs.
• I apply basic filters on Storyboards and reports to focus the content appropriately (e.g., org structure, manager/team, location, job family).
• I provide presentations and insights to the management team at regular management meetings, talent review meetings, compensation planning and other strategic workforce planning sessions, etc.
• I depend on the content of Storyboards and reports to be:
  • Accurate
  • Up to date
  • Flexible
  • Easy to use, understand, and navigate with built-in guidance on interpretation, definitions, etc.

As a People Leader

Shouldering the responsibility of business outcomes, I’m adept at leveraging the analytics center of excellence and my local HRBP to make informed decisions. Utilizing pre-configured interactive Storyboards, I keep a close eye on critical KPIs and adapt strategies in real time, drilling into the details to solve real world problems. I have started using Generative AI capability alongside Storyboards to get answers to my ad hoc questions before going back to the People Analytics team.

Main Responsibilities:

• I’m accountable for delivering business outcomes, and the innovation and capability of our people are critical for our success.
• I use pre-built Storyboards and reports to track the key people management issues facing the line area and relevant KPIs.
• I apply basic filters on Storyboards and reports to focus the content appropriately (e.g., org structure, manager/team, location, job family).
• I use this information in regular management meetings, talent review meetings, planning sessions, etc.
• I depend on the content of Storyboards and reports to be:
  • Accurate
  • Up to date
  • Flexible
  • Easy to use, understand, and navigate with built-in guidance on interpretation, definitions, etc.

As an Executive Manager

With a broad view of the business landscape, I value succinct, high-level insights. I rely on my team to dive deep, but in boardroom discussions, it's the synthesized data that stands out. My interaction with the center of excellence mainly revolves around strategic insights from interactive Storyboards and presentations on specific topics, ensuring the business stays on the right trajectory. I have started using Generative AI capability alongside Storyboards to get answers to my ad hoc questions before going back to the People Analytics team.

Main Responsibilities:

• I’m accountable for delivering business outcomes and rely on my people to do this, usually through my management team.
• I look to managers in my group to be able to make strategic people management decisions that drive business performance.
• In regular business meetings, we use insights from Storyboards and reports, but mostly receive this in a synthesized form as part of project/strategy updates and presentations.
• I use pre-built Storyboards and reports daily to track the key people management issues facing the business and relevant KPIs.
• I depend on the content of Storyboards and reports to be:
  • Accurate
  • Up to date
  • Flexible
  • Easy to use, understand, and navigate with built-in guidance on interpretation, definitions, etc.

As a Data Engineer

In my role, I help assemble the varied data sources for a company into a sophisticated people analytics-ready data model.  I collaborate closely with People Analytics, HR and IT teams, translating complex data needs into data transformation logic and drive accuracy, quality and consistency.

Main Responsibilities:

• I’m accountable for delivering the metrics, dimensions, and columns from all of the required data sources using an approach that is reliable and repeatable.
• I look to the HR and IT teams to help me define the metrics, dimensions, the appropriate data within each data source, and the business logic required to  return the result they expect.
• I predominantly configure data sources, processing scripts, and customer metrics within the One Model application and related tools.
• I depend on the ability to validate that metric results: 
  • Are accurate given the data and business logic
  • Will remain correct in the future, without being impacted by code changes
  • Will be reliably updated in the future.

As a Data Scientist 

I’m all about applying advanced analytical techniques, statistics, AI, and machine learning to business problems to derive meaningful insights and identify levers for action. 

Main Responsibilities:

• I’m accountable for providing and explaining valuable machine learning models.
• I look to the data engineer to deliver curated data, metrics, and dimensions to power One AI.
• I look to the HR team within my company to bring business challenges that would benefit from the use of advanced machine learning and/or AI.
• I predominantly configure models within One AI, embedding the results into Storyboards to guide end-user decision making.
• I’m responsible for ensuring a high level of ethics and transparency across all of our machine learning and AI models.

How One Model Perfectly Aligns with Every Analytics Role

In people analytics, it's crucial to understand the diverse personas throughout the entire people analytics lifecycle, as the field is constantly expanding and advancing. This helps us build relevant products and deliver capability tailored for each person’s needs. 

This isn't just about simple access; it's about establishing an end-to-end analytics capability that understands and serves the nuanced needs of every user. Whether you're a seasoned analyst, an executive manager, or someone just diving into the world of people analytics, One Model is committed to ensuring that the solutions provided are not just comprehensive, but also meticulously tailored to meet your distinct requirements.