Home / HR Courses / HR Metrics That Matter / Setting The Foundation / Myth: Metrics & Analytics are the Same

Myth: Metrics & Analytics are the Same

This video is premium content

Lesson:

Myth: Metrics & Analytics are the Same

Previous Lesson Next Lesson

Course: HR Metrics That Matter
Module: Setting The Foundation
Lesson Type: Video
Lesson Duration: 2:36

Lesson Content

Before going any further into this topic, let’s clarify a few myths vs. realities.

Myth number 1. Metrics and analytics are the same thing. I’ve seen and heard these two terms used interchangeably. And it’s wrong. Do not confuse the word “metrics” with the word “analytics”. To be clear, it’s close. The two are very much related but NOT the same thing. Here’s the reality.

Essentially, metrics are the foundation for calculating and developing analytics. Metrics are a part of analytics.

Metrics are measurements. HR and other business functions may use a dashboard or a scorecard. A scorecard illustrates the most important measurements for the department’s goals and activities. HR metrics can include turnover rate, time to fill, number of trained employees, number of job openings filled, etc.

Metrics are descriptive of what happened in the past and what’s happening here and now. We monitor metrics and through HR analytic techniques we take the data a step further. We want to pull insights from that data for making better decisions. Now, to make matters more confusing…

There is also “descriptive analytics”. (I talk about this in my course, titled “HR Analytics”.)

Descriptive analytics answers the question “What happened?”. So…descriptive analytics are essentially metrics. They examine past and present data and can be represented visually with bar graphs, tables and pie charts.

Most functions such as sales, marketing, operations, finance and, of course, HR use this type of information to illustrate their level of efficiency and effectiveness. In fact, the majority of the metrics we use fall into this category. The data is usually a count, sum, percentage or average. Have you ever accessed your company’s quarterly or annual reports? It is full of descriptive analytics. We’re going to come back to this in a bit.

Instructor:

Christina Danforth

Christina A. Danforth, SHRM-SCP & SPHR, launched HR Jetpack in 2016 to support the development and professional growth of her fellow HR colleagues. She started her HR career in 2002....

Christina's Full Bio

Module 1 0/11

Setting The Foundation

Welcome & Course Objectives

Myth: Metrics & Analytics are the Same

Myth: Metrics will Remain the Same

Myth: There's a Universal Set of HR Metrics

Myth: The More Metrics, the Better

Module 2 0/7

The Process

Introduction

Know the Business

Understand Goals & KPIs

Set HR Goals & Select a Metric

Pass the Relevancy Test

Communicate

Summary - Dos & Don’ts

Module 3 0/5

Business Example

Business Case Example - Step #1

Business Case Example - Step #2 (Goals)

Business Case Example - Step #2 (KPIs)

Business Case Example - Step #3

Business Case Example - Steps #4 & #5

Module 4 0/5

Conclusion

HR's Opportunity

Populating an HR Scorecard Template

A Note on Collaboration

Course Wrap-up

Quiz

HR Courses

Human Resources Training Programs

SHRM Essentials of Human Resources

SHRM-CP & SHRM-SCP Certification Exam Preparation

Self-paced HR Courses

The following HR courses are self-paced (asynchronous), and qualify for both SHRM and HRCI recertification credits. These courses are included in the HR Recertification Subscription.

Effective Disciplinary Action Policies and Procedures