In Avado’s recent survey, we asked HR professionals: “Where do you see the biggest impact of People Analytics in your organisation?” An overwhelming majority highlighted Hiring & Workforce Planning as the critical focus. This real-world insight mirrors broader industry trends:

• Deloitte reports that only 3% of organisations are highly effective at capturing workforce value.
• McKinsey found that adopting digital hiring tools can reduce time-to-hire by 90%.
• Gartner notes that integrating talent analytics can boost talent outcomes by up to 23%.

It’s clear that People Analytics is quickly becoming a key part of how HR teams work today.

What Is HR Data and People Analytics?

HR Data

HR Data refers to the raw information HR teams collect about their workforce, including turnover rates, engagement survey scores, recruitment statistics, and learning outcomes.

People Analytics

People Analytics takes this a step further: it’s the process of analysing HR data to uncover insights that drive better decision-making, predict trends, and create measurable impact across the business.

Put simply: HR Data tells you what is happening; People Analytics tells you why — and what to do next.

The Four Stages of People Analytics Maturity

1. Descriptive Analytics: What happened? (e.g., last quarter’s turnover rate)
2. Diagnostic Analytics: Why did it happen? (e.g., exit interview themes)
3. Predictive Analytics: What might happen next? (e.g., forecasting turnover risk)
4. Prescriptive Analytics: What should we do? (e.g., targeted retention strategies)

Understanding these stages helps HR leaders prioritise their People Analytics investments and capabilities.

(Explore: What Is People Management? How to Manage Difficult People Effectively)

Why People Analytics Matters in HR

With increasing pressure on HR to demonstrate value, People Analytics empowers teams to:

• Make smarter hiring decisions.
• Improve employee retention.
• Optimise learning and development programmes.
• Support strategic workforce planning.
• Strengthen HR’s credibility with leadership.

Data-driven HR isn’t optional anymore — it’s essential for business resilience and growth.

What Data Should HR Teams Be Collecting?

If you’re just starting out, focus on gathering data in these key areas:

• Recruitment metrics: Time-to-hire, cost-per-hire, source of hire.
• Engagement data: Survey participation, pulse check results.
• Diversity and inclusion statistics: Gender, ethnicity, age demographics.
• Learning and development: Course completions, skills assessments.
• Exit insights: Turnover rates, exit interview themes.

Prioritise quality over quantity. A few accurate, meaningful metrics beat hundreds of unverified numbers.

How Small HR Teams Can Start with People Analytics

A Practical 30/60/90-Day Starter Plan

First 30 days: Identify 1–2 critical business questions. Start collecting basic data (e.g., turnover, time-to-hire).

Next 30 days: Build simple dashboards (Google Data Studio or Excel). Share first insights internally.

Final 30 days: Pilot a predictive initiative, such as flagging teams with high risk of attrition.

Consistency matters more than complexity in the early stages.

Popular Tools and Technologies for People Analytics

Depending on your size and maturity, different tools can support your journey:

• Entry-level: Microsoft Excel, Google Data Studio.
• Intermediate: Power BI, Tableau.
• Advanced: Visier, SAP SuccessFactors, Workday.

Tip: Always prioritise ease of integration with your existing HR systems.

Building Skills for a Data-Driven HR Career

To succeed in People Analytics, HR professionals should develop:

• Data literacy: Understanding metrics and interpreting insights.
• Storytelling skills: Communicating data-driven narratives persuasively.
• Statistical basics: Knowing how to spot real trends versus noise.
• GDPR and ethics knowledge: Ensuring responsible, legal use of data.

Professional development, such as CIPD’s People Analytics qualifications, can accelerate your capability.

How Companies Are Using People Analytics

Netflix: Embedding a Data-Informed Culture

Netflix blends creative freedom with data insights to maintain a high-performing workforce. Through People Analytics, they inform decisions on engagement, performance management, and talent strategy — balancing hard data with human judgement. For example, Netflix analyses internal survey sentiment alongside performance metrics to proactively address emerging retention risks. (Netflix Research)

S&P Global: Enhancing Employee Experience Through Data

S&P Global leverages People Analytics to enhance performance management, understand employee experiences at scale, and strengthen strategic workforce planning. By applying predictive models to employee feedback and attrition trends, S&P Global identifies and mitigates retention risks early — ensuring continuity in high-performing teams. (S&P Global Podcast)

Challenges in Implementing People Analytics

While People Analytics offers transformative potential, organisations often face key challenges:

• Data quality issues: Incomplete, inconsistent, or biased data.
• Skill gaps: HR teams may lack data analysis or tech expertise.
• Change resistance: Employees and managers wary of data-driven oversight.
• Ethical concerns: Privacy risks and potential misuse of sensitive data.

Overcoming these challenges requires a thoughtful, transparent, and phased approach.

Ethical Considerations in People Analytics

Ethical responsibility is crucial when working with employee data:

• Protect privacy: Collect only what you need, anonymise where possible.
• Ensure GDPR compliance: Understand and apply UK and EU regulations.
• Communicate transparently: Let employees know how their data is used.

Trust is the foundation of successful People Analytics initiatives.

What’s Next for People Analytics?

Looking ahead, People Analytics will evolve rapidly, with key trends including:

• AI and machine learning integration: For smarter predictive modelling.
• Ethical AI governance: Growing focus on fair, transparent algorithms.
• Employee Experience (EX) analytics: Beyond engagement, towards holistic wellbeing.

(Explore: Understanding HR Ethics: A Guide for Professionals)

HR teams that embrace these innovations early will shape the future of work.

Wrapping Up: People Analytics is Here to Stay

HR is moving from intuition-based decisions to insight-driven action. People Analytics isn’t just for tech giants — it’s accessible to HR teams of any size, starting today.

If you’re ready to build your skills and take the next step, Avado’s CIPD courses designed to develop practical, real-world data skills for HR professionals. You’ll learn how to collect and interpret HR data, apply analytics to workforce planning, measure employee engagement, and link insights to business strategy — all while staying compliant with GDPR regulations.