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Wiiam Gaker Building partnership to tell great stories William Gaker Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

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Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories was a keynote I gave at the Talent Management Alliance Conference in 2013. The topic covered my training approach for helping HR Business Partners learn to leverage the products and services of new analytics teams in HR. A slide deck from a keynote at: The Talent Management Alliance Conference Las Vegas, NV May 2013

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Page 1: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

William Gaker

Building partnership to tell great stories

William Gaker

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 2: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Agenda

The purpose of analytics and the importance of partnership

helping decision-makers understand analytics

analytical training approach

questions

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 3: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

William Gaker

The purpose of analytics and the importance of partnership

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 4: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

The pool of shared meaning is the birthplace of synergy

-Kerry Patterson

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 5: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Opinion Data Metrics Analytics Meaning

Value

to Story

telling

The purpose of analysis is to create a shared meaning that encourages informed action

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 6: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Opinion Data Metrics Analytics Meaning

Value

to Story

telling

action is possible when workforce analysts and HR leaders partner to understand the story

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 7: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

The skill sets of decision makers and analysts are complimentary

!Collaboration is key to

leveraging analytical insight !

Decision makers and analysts must understand each other to collaborate effectively

Business Knowledge Research Knowledge

navigates Political systems navigates information systems

Experience Analytical Skills

Applies insight to business context

finds insight to Answer business questions

Decision-Makers

Workforce Analysts

Improve Storytelling through Collaboration

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 8: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

In order for workforce analysts and decision-makers to collaborate

effectively, they need to understand each other’s perspective

Because workforce analytics is a relatively new field, it is often necessary to help decision stakeholders understand the

purpose and value of analytics

Improve Collaboration by leveraging expertise

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 9: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

William Gaker

Helping decision-makers understand analytics

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 10: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Ask Questions to Tell StoriesAnalytical training approach

Encourage curiosity

Help leaders ask great questions

Communicate the value of analytics and the benefits for the business

Teach the big picture and how leaders fit into the overall process

Reduce anxiety by relating the unfamiliar to the familiar

Make the learning process easy to remember and apply

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 11: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Ask Questions to Tell StoriesAsk Questions to Tell Stories

Questions

Insight

Workforce Analytics

Decision Makers

The purpose of analytics is to answer questions

Analytics is most useful when it answers questions important to leaders

Workforce analysts should help decision makers ask the right types of questions

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 12: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Data-Oriented

Objective

TestableSpecific

Connect the DOTS

Data-Oriented !

Research questions need evidence in order to be answered

!Asking questions this way helps you understand what insights to look for

!Questions that are not data-oriented

usually need to be more specificCopyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 13: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Data-Oriented

Objective

TestableSpecific

Connect the DOTS

Objective !

Great questions do not have the desired answer built-in

!It only takes a little re-working to make a question more objective

!Make sure the answer to your question has

the possibility of being positive and negativeCopyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 14: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Data-Oriented

Objective

TestableSpecific

Connect the DOTS

Testable !

Great questions allow you to test your instinct

!Confirming or disconfirming an educated guess keeps you focused on the question

and allows you to form a theory !

Sometimes the greatest learnings happen when the answer is not what you expect

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 15: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Data-Oriented

Objective

TestableSpecific

Connect the DOTS

Specific !

Specific questions focus the insights you are looking for and make them easier to find

!Broad questions can usually be

broken down into several specific questions !

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 16: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Data-Oriented

Objective

TestableSpecific

Connect the DOTS

Connect the DOTS !

Asking great questions will lead you to insights that create meaning and drive action

!Connect insights together to answer bigger

questions and build a business case !

Use these insights to create a narrative that sparks a sense of urgency

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 17: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Ask Questions to Tell StoriesThe REsearch process

Ask Questions

Test a Theory

Collect EvidenceTell a Story

Check Results

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 18: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Ask Questions to Tell StoriesThe REsearch process

Step 1: Ask Questions

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Curiosity is the foundation of the entire research process

Leaders can add value to the process by asking questions

Workforce analysts can add value by asking questions of their own and

working to answer the questions most important to leaders

Page 19: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Ask Questions to Tell StoriesThe REsearch process

Step 2: Test a theory

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Asking questions in the context of a theory structures your thinking about

how to answer your question

Leaders can leverage experience, intuition, and knowledge of the

business to develop theories

Workforce analysts can add value by developing theories, testing theories, and ensuring methodology is robust

Page 20: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Ask Questions to Tell StoriesThe REsearch process

Step 3: Collect evidence

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Evidence is required to discover insight, answer questions, and

understand your theory

Leaders can unlock access to information and provide resources to

facilitate data collection

Workforce analysts consult on data collection strategy, methods, and

structure it to provide insight

Page 21: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Ask Questions to Tell StoriesThe REsearch process

Step 4: Check results

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Analyze the information to get insight

It is crucial to check the results to ensure that the insight is authentic

Leaders place insight in context to ensure they align with what is already known

Workforce analysts find insight and can view results from a different perspective

If results do not make sense, ask more questions until you fully understand the story

Page 22: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Ask Questions to Tell StoriesInsight

Inlsight [in-sahyt]

An instance of apprehending the true nature of a thing. !Especially through intuitive understanding !Power of acute observation and deduction

An enlightening piece of information that helps you understand the answer to your question

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 23: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Ask Questions to Tell StoriesInsight

Inlsight [in

-sahyt]

An enlightening piece of information that helps you understand the answer to your question

Insight Method One !

Trends !

Show how metrics change over time !

Understand the impact of critical events !

Inform what you expect to happen next (forecasting)

!Demonstrate progress towards strategic goals 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

Employee EngagementBusiness Performance

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 24: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Ask Questions to Tell StoriesInsight

Inlsight [in

-sahyt]

An enlightening piece of information that helps you understand the answer to your question

Insight Method Two !

Compare Groups !

Show how groups differ from one another !

Test the impact of specific variables !

Customize recommendations !

Understand sub-group contribution to overall performance

!Benchmark business segments

Did Not Receive TrainingReceived Training

Performan

ce

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 25: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Ask Questions to Tell StoriesInsight

Inlsight [in

-sahyt]

An enlightening piece of information that helps you understand the answer to your question

Insight Method Three !

Advanced Analytics !

Determine relationships across multiple variables

!Understand key drivers of critical outcomes

!Predicting critical outcomes

!Linking HR activities to

tangible business outcomes

Voluntary Turnover

Employee Engagement

Performance Feedback

Role Clarity

Advancement Opportunities

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 26: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Ask Questions to Tell StoriesInsight

Inlsight [in

-sahyt]

An enlightening piece of information that helps you understand the answer to your question

Insight Method Four !

Qualitative Analysis !

Discover themes related to your question that are difficult to quantify

!Research a topic in-depth

!Generate a new theory or hypothesis

!Explore new ways to think about a question

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 27: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Ask Questions to Tell StoriesAnalytical Storytelling

Broad Question

specific sub-Question

specific sub-Question

specific sub-Question

Insight Insight Insight

conclusion (Story)Break down broad topics into manageable sub-questions

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 28: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Ask Questions to Tell StoriesAnalytical Storytelling

Broad Question

specific sub-Question

specific sub-Question

specific sub-Question

Insight Insight Insight

Conclusion (Story)Integrate insights into a narrative

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 29: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Ask Questions to Tell StoriesComparing stories

Traditional stories Analytical stories

Setting

Characters

Plot

Acts/Parts

Scenes/chapters

Beginning, Middle, End

Org Environment

Stakeholders

Actions

Questions

Insights

Beginning, Middle, End

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 30: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Provide an opportunity to apply the content through group activities

Scenario about a fictional problem that could be understood with analytics

Have groups come together to understand:

- What questions to ask

- What information is required to know the answer

- How to integrate multiple insights together to form a story

experiential learning

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 31: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

A HR leader at your organization is concerned because the CEO doesn’t seem to believe that HR adds strategic value to the business.

This leader feels that the business would greatly benefit from HR being a strategic partner and thinks you might be able to provide some data that helps make a business case for strategic HR.

You notice the next day that your leader has requested a copy of every single report your team has ever produced and needs it for the big meeting.

Work together in groups of 5 to discuss:

1. How would you respond to this request?

2. How would you help the leader make the business case for HR?

3. What would you do to help the leader think differently about this?

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 32: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Know your audience

Understand the business concerns of your client

Know how the evidence relates to your questions

Integrate the evidence with what you already know

Have a point of view

Before telling your story...

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 33: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

Let numbers speak for themselves only when they need to

Create a narrative that strikes an emotional chord

Communicate change effectively

Provide context

Remove the fluff: Align the story with your questions

Communicate numbers for the sake of meaning... Do not communicate numbers for the sake of numbers

Telling your story

Copyright 2013 William Gaker

Page 34: Building Partnership to Tell Great Stories

William Gaker?thank you!

Copyright 2013 William Gaker