People analytics analyst: attrition metrics done carefully

Why HR numbers get argued over

Ask three people in a company for last year's attrition and you may get three answers. One counts only voluntary exits, one includes people let go during probation, one divides by opening headcount instead of average headcount. None is wrong; they are different measures. The first job of a people analytics analyst is to make the definitions explicit and get them agreed.

The artefact: a metric definition sheet

This is the document that stops the arguments. Keep it short and put it where everyone can see it.

A worked example with hypothetical figures: a quarter with 45 exits, opening headcount 1,200 and closing headcount 1,160. Average headcount is 1,180. Quarterly attrition is 45 ÷ 1,180 = 3.81%, and annualised is 3.81% × 4, about 15.3%. If 28 of the exits were voluntary, voluntary attrition annualises to about 9.5%. State "annualised" on every chart, or someone will compare it with a monthly figure.

Using the median for time to fill is deliberate: one role that stays open for a year should not distort the typical picture.

A realistic queue of requests

People analytics requests often arrive from HR business partners and leaders:

• "Why is attrition high in the Pune support team?" Start by checking whether it is high: compare with similar teams, split by tenure band, and look at manager changes.
• "Can you send the list of people likely to resign?" Push back. Individual-level predictions shared widely create serious fairness and trust problems. Offer team-level risk factors instead, and involve HR leadership on any individual use.
• "Did the new onboarding programme reduce early attrition?" Compare cohorts before and after, and look for a comparison group that did not get the programme, since hiring markets change.
• "Headcount for the board pack by Thursday." Reconcile with payroll before sending.

Privacy is part of the job description

Employee data is personal data, and in India the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 sets obligations on how organisations process it; your employer's policies and legal team will interpret how they apply. Practical habits for the analyst:

• apply a minimum group size, such as not showing any cut with fewer than 5 or 10 people, so that individuals cannot be identified;
• keep salary, health and disciplinary data restricted to those with a clear need;
• remove names and employee IDs from anything that does not need them;
• never paste raw employee data into public AI tools.

Trusted numbers and questions HR can act on

Timeliness and accuracy of the recurring HR pack, whether headcount reconciles to payroll, adoption of agreed definitions, and whether analysis changed an HR decision, such as where to focus retention effort.

HRBPs, payroll, talent acquisition and legal

Usually reporting to an HR analytics lead, head of HR operations or the CHRO's office. You work with HR business partners, talent acquisition, compensation and benefits, payroll, and the HRIS team who maintain systems such as SAP SuccessFactors, Workday, Darwinbox or an in-house tool.

Confused with HR MIS executive and HRBP

An HR MIS executive produces scheduled reports, much like the MIS executive role in other functions; an HR business partner advises a business unit on people matters. The people analytics analyst sits between: more analytical than MIS, more data-focused than an HRBP.

HRIS, workforce planning and survey analytics

• "HR dashboards, headcount and attrition reports" — mostly reporting.
• "Workforce planning, headcount forecasting" — finance-style modelling.
• "Engagement survey analysis" — text and survey methods.
• "Predictive attrition modelling" — data science expectations; ask how outputs are used.

One definition sheet, one reconciliation, one answer

Get the definition sheet agreed in month one, reconcile to payroll in month two, and answer one real business question with a comparison group in month three. Next roles include people analytics lead, workforce planning manager or a move into general business analytics. If you are coming from HR operations, the Data Analyst programme adds the SQL and Power BI needed to compute these definitions yourself instead of waiting for an export.