By | David Green | People Analytics leader | Director, Insight222 & myHRfuture.com | Conference speaker | Host, Digital HR Leaders Podcast
2020 taught us a number of important lessons not least that the field of Human Resources is even more important than we thought it was. We also found out that people analytics can save lives, that employee wellbeing comes first in a crisis and that humans (and the organisations they work for) can adapt in even the most trying of circumstances.
For the last seven years I have collated and published a collection of the ‘best’ articles of the preceding 12 months – see 2014, 2015, 2016 2017, 2018 and 2019 and following herein are my choices for the 60 best articles of 2020.
Those of you who have read the collections in previous years may note that the number of articles that make the cut has steadily risen. As I wrote last year, this is partly down to my inability to prune down to 30 or 20 – although it was hard enough to get it down to 60! Mainly though this recognises the increased number, variety and quality of people analytics and data-driven HR material now being published.
I have assembled the 60 articles here into ten sections: i) creating value with People Analytics, ii) examples of work from HR and People Analytics leaders, iii) ethics, trust and technology, iv) the Future of Work, v) collaboration and remote/hybrid work, vi) the evolution of the HR function, vii) leadership, culture, inclusion and equity, viii) employee experience, ix) learning and creating a data-driven culture, and; x) workforce planning, skills and internal mobility.
I hope you enjoy the articles selected, and if you do, please subscribe to my weekly Digital HR Leaders newsletter, which is published every Tuesday via myHRfuture.
I) CREATING VALUE WITH PEOPLE ANALYTICS
A thriving people analytics function is an absolute must-have for any CHRO intent on delivering value for their business and workforce. In the work we do at Insight222, we see at first-hand the growth of people analytics in over 70 global companies – and the pivotal role these functions played during the crises of 2020. The six resources that follow highlight the increasing importance of people analytics and provide guidance on how to create more value.
JONATHAN FERRAR, CAROLINE STYR & ANASTASIA KTENA – How a New Operating Model for People Analytics will help Deliver Value at Scale (Executive Article) | Delivering Value at Scale: A New Operating Model for People Analytics (Report)
In the work we do at Insight222, we are often asked by HR leaders: How can I create more value from people analytics? How big should my people analytics team be? What is the right structure and operating model for people analytics to thrive? In our research published in November 2020, which was conducted with 60 global organisations during the pandemic, we find that people analytics continues to grow, investment in analytics technology is increasing and leading people analytics teams are evolving to focus on business challenges. The report then outlines a new way to run people analytics, focused on business demand, value and outcomes, based on an operating model (see FIG 1) designed to deliver value at scale. If you are a member of the Insight222 People Analytics Program, you can also access additional findings here.
