People Analytics For Dummies

What it’s about

People Analytics For Dummies makes the emerging discipline of evidence-based HR accessible to executives, HR professionals, and analysts alike. Pioneer Mike West, who helped build people analytics functions at Merck, PetSmart, Google, and others, argues that what makes companies great is people—and that data analysis of people at work is the new management frontier. The book lays out a complete, lean framework: define the business problem first, segment your workforce for perspective, quantify the employee journey through the triple-A lens of Attraction, Activation, and Attrition, and use surveys, correlation, multiple regression, prediction, and experiments to turn fuzzy ideas about people into measurable, actionable insight. Rather than chasing systems, perfect data, or the latest analytical fad, West teaches readers to start with strategy, measure what matters, and continuously improve—getting higher individual, team, and company performance while making employees happier.

The through-line

Who it’s for

An executive, HR professional, or analyst who wants to make better people-related decisions and turn human resources into a source of measurable competitive advantage.

The problem

Important decisions about who to hire, how to pay, develop, and retain people are made on gut instinct, tradition, or imitation rather than data, leaving value on the table. They feel overwhelmed by too much data and too many possible metrics, uncertain whether their efforts are working, and afraid of being left behind competitors who already use data.

The plan

1. Define the most important business problem and make the business case using data.
2. Elevate your perspective by segmenting people and connecting them to business value through lifetime value and activation.
3. Quantify the employee journey using the triple-A framework of attraction, activation, and attrition.
4. Measure fuzzy ideas with well-designed surveys and prioritize using key driver analysis.
5. Apply statistics—correlation, multiple regression, prediction, and experiments—to understand, predict, and influence outcomes.

The payoff

Higher individual, team, and company performance achieved while employees are happier. · HR transformed from a service provider into a trusted, data-informed business partner. · Resources concentrated where they produce the most value, with proof that solutions actually work.

See our guide

• Study People And Organizations With Scientific Rigor →
• The Behavioral Science Underneath It All →
• Build A People Analytics Function →
• Alignment — Does This Team Know What Matters And Where Effort Should Go? →
• Capability — Can This Team Do The Specific Basket Of Work? →
• Motivation — Does This Team Have The Energy, Commitment, And Reason To Act? →
• Support — Does This Team'S Environment Enable The Work? →
• The Four-S Discipline — One System, Four Capabilities →
• Design The Organization And Change It →
• Do Research That Holds Up →
• Design Surveys People Answer Honestly →
• Understand What Drives Individual Performance →
• Do Selection, Assessment And Performance Evaluation Well →

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