What To Look For in a People Analytics Platform in 2024

One of the most valuable assets in any organization is its people. Using people analytics, you can gain insights into your employees to understand what drives their engagement, performance, retention, and many other critical moments across the employee lifecycle. However, manually collecting and analyzing employee data can be an impossible task. That's where a people analytics platform comes in. It can help you gather and analyze data efficiently and use the insights to make informed business decisions.

What is a people analytics platform? 

A people analytics platform is a software tool designed to collect and analyze workforce data and offer insights on specific issues like employee engagement, satisfaction, productivity, and retention. It can gather qualitative and quantitative data from one or multiple sources, including HR systems, performance reviews, and employee surveys. 

HR analytics vs. people analytics 

People analytics and HR analytics are terms people often use interchangeably. They are similar, but not exactly the same. You shouldn’t confuse them, especially when selecting a people analytics software.

• HR analytics works with all the data related to human resources. This includes information on payroll, bonuses, attendance, performance, productivity, or retention. That’s why HR analytics software will often include tools like payroll solutions or time trackers.

• People analytics has a broader scope, looking beyond the HR function of an organization. It can work with the same data as HR analytics, but also with metrics related to employee well-being, diversity and inclusion, engagement, and more.

A people analytics software will collect data from various sources, including employee surveys and performance reviews. It may also work with external data, such as market trends and competitor analysis.

What to look for in a people analytics software 

People analytics can be a very effective tool for any company. It can help boost retention, engagement, and productivity, and more. Organizations that use people analytics financially outperform those that don’t. Visier customers have a higher return on assets, profit margins, and return on equity than industry benchmarks.

Before you can start seeing the impact of people analytics in action, there’s one crucial step: choosing the right people analytics software. Here are a few key features you should look for.

1. Data integration and aggregation

Data is the core of people analytics. If you can’t integrate your new software with your existing systems to ingest data, you won't be able to glean critical insights. Make sure the tool you select can easily be integrated with your databases, data warehouses, HR systems—and any other data sources you want to use. Look for a platform that can ingest data from multiple sources with data load options like pre-built connectors, direct data intake APIs, and flat file uploads.

Ideally, your people analytics platform should also aggregate data, creating a single source of information for you to work with. If you collect data from multiple sources and, in the end, have it saved in multiple spreadsheets, your work will not be much easier. 

2. Easy to use

It's important to choose a product that is easy to use and doesn't require a lot of effort to learn. There are several platforms available that come with user-friendly interfaces, which your employees can quickly get accustomed to.  To take it one step further, look for platforms that offer guidance every step of the way.

3. Pre-built analytics

Look for a product that offers pre-built analytics options, such as questions and answers, to guide you when you look at your data. These will offer a solid starting point on your data analysis journey and assist you in making data-informed decisions.

Depending on your goals, you can also look for products that offer advanced analytics and predictive modeling. This will give you the ability to forecast workforce trends and make proactive decisions.

4. Data security and compliance

People data is some of the most sensitive data a business houses. A people analytics platform must prioritize data security. The methods can vary, but must often include encryption and access control. Compliance with data privacy regulations may require getting user consent for certain processing activities. 

To avoid any issues, make sure the software you choose offers robust data security measures. You may also need to implement a few measures within your organization, such as two-factor authentication (2FA) and role-based permission controls—restricting who has access to the employees’ data.

5. Scalability

As your company grows, so does the amount of data you need to work with. Select a tool that you can easily scale so that it accommodates more data and users without a drop in performance.

Key benefits of Visier’s people analytics platform 

Visier’s people analytics platform is a complete solution for all your people-related questions. Right out of the box, you get hundreds of pre-built questions, content, and metrics for high-impact areas including:

• Compensation management. Second-guessing compensation is a one-way ticket to disaster. Visier’s people analytics platform helps you make data-informed decisions regarding compensation so that everyone wins.

• Retention. To create targeted retention strategies, you must first understand why people are leaving. With Visier’s people analytics, you can find the root cause of turnover and use predictive analytics to anticipate future attrition trends.

• Talent acquisition. Hiring metrics are a good place to start. But to attract the best talent and improve the speed and success of your hiring process, you’ll need to look further. Visier's people analytics can help you improve your talent acquisition program for better results.

• Diversity and inclusion. Use analytics to uncover unconscious biases, blind spots, and other issues that might stand in the way of your DE&I efforts.

• Engagement. Knowing what motivates your employees can help you create programs that increase employee engagement, productivity, and retention.

Visier’s people analytics platform helps lay the foundation of your analytics journey. It is cost-effective, customizable, and secure so that you can start focusing on your workforce right away. 

Want to see how easy it is to set up self-serve people analytics at your organization? Start a 30-day free trial of Visier People®, which comes with sample data and complimentary access to email and community support to help you get up and running—fast.

On the Outsmart blog, we write about workforce-related topics like what makes a good manager, how to reduce employee turnover, and reskilling employees. We also report on trending topics like ESG and EU CSRD requirements and preparing for a recession, and advise on HR best practices like how to create a strategic compensation strategy, metrics every CHRO should track, and connecting people data to business data. But if you really want to know the bread and butter of Visier, read our post about the benefits of people analytics.