As the world of human capital management continues to evolve and change so do the tools and
The Four Types of Data Analytics
With so much data available and so many people trying to figure out what to do with it, it’s important to stay focused on the four primary uses of data analytics:
Prescriptive
This type of analytics shows what actions should be taken.
Predictive
This type of analytics provides the ability to forecast what will happen.
Diagnostic
This type of analytics looks at past performance to determine why things happened.
Descriptive
This type of analytics provides insights into what is happening now.
These four types of approaches can be used to analyze data coming from business simulations.
Analytics from Business Simulations
Over the past year, I have had the privilege of supporting several large companies by designing, developing, and delivering a Fundamentals of Leadership simulation. The purpose of the simulation is to provide the skills and tools needed to develop a strong and realistic leadership culture of accountability and success.
In the simulation, small teams (3-4 participants) collectively take on the role of a new leader weaving through more than 30 different leadership scenarios working with simulated peers, direct reports, customers, and other key stakeholders. Every scenario presents participants with different options and the chance to learn about the best practices of leadership. And just like the real world, nothing is every as it seems and nothing is ever black and white; there are always layers of ambiguity.
As we rolled out the simulation in cohorts, we keep track of the data from every scenario and regularly perform analytics which is shared with the client. The data for 30 scenarios is fascinating and truly provides the opportunity to be prescriptive, predictive, diagnostic, and descriptive.
For sharing purposes, let’s examine the data analytics for just one scenario about coaching your team to have difficult conversations, diffusing conflict, and giving feedback.
The character of “Ellen” is a strong performer, but she also has an overly aggressive, confrontational
The choice that our client selected as the best practice answer is B. The primary reason is that senior leadership thinks that organization is conflict averse and does not have the skills or tools to have difficult conversations. So take a look at the data coming from the first 6 cohorts:
The aggregate average for A is 17%, B is 16%, C is 13%, and D is 53%. The diagnostic analysis of this scenario illustrates that the organization feels more comfortable avoiding conflict.
Based on the data and based on the results, our facilitation team shared with the cohorts that they need to focus on the skills and tools needed to have hard conversations. In addition, we are providing every participant with reinforcement scenarios to practice having these hard conversations and providing real-time coaching over their smartphones.
And that’s just for one scenario! By using data analytic techniques on all of the scenarios we are able to find patterns and relate them back to both their competency model and their core values for further improvement.