Leading with People Analytics is designed to help students, in their role as general managers, learn how to use data to improve employee-related decisions and practices. The premise of the course is that effective leaders must understand how data can be used (and misused) to leverage people’s skills, talents, and insights. This premise is at the heart of the rapidly evolving field of people analytics, which organizations are embracing as they use data to inform every aspect of employee life.

In the course, students build hands-on skills by analyzing and interpreting data in ways that complement the frameworks and intuitions that normally guide managerial actions. By learning how to apply data-driven approaches, students will 1) come to appreciate the opportunities, limits, and tensions involved in using employee data, 2) gain deeper insight into the business issues in question, and 3) sharpen their ability to think critically through the lens of rigorous analytics.

Most Recent Assignment

LPA 2022 Blog Assignment

April 18, 2022

Read The Full Prompt

Organizations, from startups to multinationals to non-profits to sports teams, are using employee data in new and exciting ways. They are typically trying to improve efficiency, performance, or both, leading to a variety of intended and unintended consequences. Using employee data in new ways often has important implications for employee privacy, company transparency, ethics, and organizational culture.

Your assignment is to write an approximately 500-word blog post about People Analytics, and to post it on d3.harvard.edu by 11:00pm EST on Monday, April 18. Your post should be about an article from a media source or any other content of your choosing. Please include a link to the material you write about. Feel free to use graphics, data, videos, and links to other sites to complement your points.

Write your own reaction to your chosen article in the form of a short blog post. What is your point of view about the issues in question? Are you a proponent? A skeptic? Does your article describe a particularly effective use of data that should be emulated by other organizations? Or do you think it describes an ineffective or troublesome practice? You should go beyond simply describing what is in the article and articulate your own point of view on the topic.

After posting your own blog, please comment on three posts by other students by 1:00pm EST on Wednesday, April 20. Selected posts will be discussed in class.

If you have any problems with the digital.hbs.org platform, please email diplatform@hbs.edu for help, and visit the digital platform resources page for helpful advice.

Submitted (38)

Drowning in Data: The Incoming Tech-sunami in People Analytics
Sam Johnston
Posted on April 11, 2022 at 8:53 pm
Big data is here and it is set to revolutionise the way we work with each other. How do we best prepare for the incoming wave?
Data can build better businesses.
Dimitrios Georgiou
Posted on April 16, 2022 at 1:48 am
'Data has a better idea !' When data is used properly it can be converted into insights which, in turn, can be converted into power
Focus on the most impactful applications of predictive analytics
Mary Helen deGolian
Posted on April 16, 2022 at 12:23 pm
Focus on the most impactful applications of predictive analytics - otherwise the juice may not be worth the squeeze
“Big Data” or “Big Brother”?
Peizhen Gu
Posted on April 16, 2022 at 5:06 pm
How should companies draw the line on ethics when embracing the era of people analytics?
Behavioral Nudges for Organizational Change: Humu
Kelly Yun
Last modified on April 17, 2022 at 1:55 am
Humu uses data science and behavioral insights to provide personalized, easy-to-act nudges for improved management and performance.
Trust Issues: Obstacles to Using People Analytics for DEI Efforts
Kendall Maxwell
Posted on April 17, 2022 at 5:21 pm
How can people analytics play a vital role in DEI efforts? It all starts with "trust."
Improving Uber User Experience Through Causal Inference Analysis
Joseph Zuccarelli
Posted on April 17, 2022 at 10:57 pm
How one of the world’s largest ridesharing and food delivery companies is leveraging causal inference methods to acquire richer insights into operations analysis, product development, etc.
Take Step 1 back to square 1
Ellen Kim
Last modified on April 19, 2022 at 6:18 pm
US physician trainees have to take multiple extremely high-stakes exams that cause significant stress. As of 2022, the most critical exam, USMLE Step 1, has become fully pass/fail, meaning program directors lose one of their most important data points about [...]
The Gamification of Wellness at Work
Liz Johnson
Posted on April 18, 2022 at 11:00 am
Can insights from video game data support wellness at work?
Tech Is Transforming People Analytics. Is That a Good Thing?
Hanne Collins
Posted on April 18, 2022 at 12:22 pm
What does responsible people analytics entail?
The Merger of Burning Glass and Emsi: A Monopoly on People Data?
E.B. Armstrong
Last modified on April 18, 2022 at 12:50 pm
In June of 2021, the two leading data providers for labor market analytics announced that they were merging to deliver on a joint mission to “to unlock opportunity, mobility, and equity for everyone.” How likely is this?
Can People Analytics Curtail The Great Resignation?
Mannix Pullens
Posted on April 18, 2022 at 4:35 pm
As one in four people are likely to switch jobs within the next 6 months, some employers turn to people analytics for guidance.
Factors Impacting Employee Turnover in the Childcare Industry
Charles Kim
Last modified on April 18, 2022 at 5:57 pm
Factors driving employee turnover in the childcare industry. Wages and payor type impacts turnover while benefits do not.
People Analytics and Hybrid Work
Amanda Edelman
Posted on April 18, 2022 at 7:44 pm
People analytics grows particularly critical as work norms change post-COVID-19.
Build a stronger workforce in their first 90 days at work
David Vasquez
Last modified on April 18, 2022 at 7:52 pm
Onboarding faces persistent challenges. But its current importance is unquestioned, and organizations should recognize it if they are to build a balanced, healthy, and equitable workforce.
People Analytics for a trip to Mars?
Samar
Last modified on April 19, 2022 at 3:27 pm
To prep for its trip to Mars, NASA has turned to its People Analytics team.
Use of mobility data to transform public health – Should you support it?
Meghna
Posted on April 18, 2022 at 8:46 pm
It's said if you aren't paying for the product, you are the product! - would you still sign-up to do good?
Managers leading teams are looking for some help in the new hybrid era
alexb
Posted on April 18, 2022 at 8:20 pm
Managers struggle to understand and lead their hybrid or remote team. They need to equip themselves with new tools to assist them in leading their team.
Is Amazon Planning on Using NLP to Control Employee Interaction?
Nico Manzonelli
Posted on April 18, 2022 at 9:35 pm
Amazon's new project raises some interesting questions.
People Analytics in Medicine
Gauthier
Last modified on April 18, 2022 at 9:53 pm
Find the right care with People Analytics
The Dark Side of People Analytics
Elena Petrova
Last modified on April 18, 2022 at 9:55 pm
People Analytics is transforming the modern-day HR department by spearheading a new era of data-driven decision-making. Yet, if technology is to replace human judgement, talking about the dark side of people analytics is necessary if not critical.
A rising market: People Analytics Software is leading a change in Human Management 
Weixi He
Posted on April 18, 2022 at 9:43 pm
The emerging technology in people analytics solves fundamental human management issues; brings efficiency, equity, and effectiveness to firms; and thrives as a rising market of innovative startups.
Using operating models to bake Ethics into the People Analytics recipe
Vivien Cheng
Posted on April 18, 2022 at 10:00 pm
Introducing operating models into the debate around people analytics allows us to discuss infrastructure necessary to set up ethical and effective practices.
Hiring Data Scientists in Football – Where are the Best People for People Analytics?
Georgiy Volevach
Posted on April 18, 2022 at 10:03 pm
People analytics in sports and especially football is not new and supported teams finding the best players - but how do teams find the best data scientists for the job?
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