What Does An HR Data Analyst Do?

WHAT DOES AN HR DATA ANALYST DO?

Published: Jul 25, 2025 - The Human Resources (HR) Data Analyst maintains employee records and organizational structures in SAP, ensuring compliance with data protection and financial control standards. This role manages schedule and holiday rule updates, responds to data requests, processes human resources memos, and supports the migration to Workday through data cleansing. The analyst also contributes to process improvements, tests system updates, and provides training and support to users.

A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for HR Data Analyst

1. HR Data Analyst Duties

Data Analytics: Works with EMEA and APAC HR leaders and their teams to identify data analytics requirements.
Reporting Tools: Understands available reporting tools and provides expertise on data structures available for reporting.
Scorecard Design: Proposes divisional scorecard design leads for reporting efficiencies among regions/functions.
Team Synergies: Looks for synergies with the NA team, constructs, and delivers an agreed set of HR dashboards for EMEA and APAC.
Prototyping Solutions: Prototypes data analytics solutions and provides training to our shared service center, HR Business Partner, and COE teams to enable data self-service.
Procedure Development: Develops procedures, job aids, and support materials.
Data Governance: Leads data governance and improvement across EMEA and APAC, ensuring high quality, availability, and reliability of data across all HR applications.
Root Cause Analysis: Documents findings, identifies the root cause of issues, and works closely with HR and GBS stakeholders to provide sustainable solutions for data maintenance.
HR Project Support: Supports HR projects and process improvements with data expertise.
SharePoint Administration: Manages and coordinates the administration of HR SharePoint sites and the central job description depository.
Catalog Management: Manages position titles and job catalog structure.

2. HR Data Analyst Details

SAP Data Management: Maintain personnel data and organization structures in SAP.
Work Schedule Management: Manage work schedule rule changes and holiday quota adjustments.
HR Data Support: Respond to HR data queries and information requests.
Memo Processing: Process HR memos and buddy check changes.
Process Improvement: Participate in data and process improvements.
System Testing: Participate in SAP system update testing.
End-User Support: Provide end-user support and training.
Compliance Management: Ensure processes and data management actions are GDPR and SOX compliant.
Data Migration: Data cleansing for migration from SAP to Workday.

3. HR Data Analyst Responsibilities

Metrics Analysis: Regular delivery of metrics analysis to ensure that targets are either met or exceeded in partnership with operational leads.
KPI Analysis: Performs cross-checks and root cause analysis on the KPI evolution to provide visibility on the evolution of the KPIs in scope.
Service Improvement: Formulates recommendations to improve service delivery results based on trend and root cause analysis.
HR Data Support: Acts as a backup for the HR Data and Systems Specialist.
Process Development: Works in partnership with team members to support the development of processes, systems, and standards in order to continuously improve service delivery.
Project Management: Follows the agreed project methodology for all the projects initiated and managed in their own area of expertise.
Affirmative Action Support: Supports and assists the EEO AA Outreach Consultant with the development of affirmative action and equity plans, goal progress, utilization, and statistical reporting.
Data Compilation: Collects and compiles HR metrics and data from a variety of sources, including human resource information systems (HRIS), applicant tracking systems, employment surveys, employment records, and labor statistics.
Report Design: Designs, builds, and delivers reports that enable the function to monitor and analyze trends in workforce data.
Data Reporting: Responds to data requests by gathering, analyzing, and reporting relevant data from various sources.
Audit Support: Assists with OFCCP audits, including review of employment practices, as well as the self-auditing process.

4. HR Data Analyst Job Summary

Human Capital Reporting: Manages reporting on human capital, such as headcount, analyzing turnover, and forecasting hiring.
HR Data Reporting: Delivers regular HR data reports across the business as well as to senior stakeholders.
Reporting Collaboration: Works with various teams to build reports and partners with the SLT to help drive data input and create meaningful reports and dashboards to drive change and future forecasts.
Analytic Capability Enhancement: Seeks opportunities to increase the analytic capability of teams and the wider HR function to create meaningful, value-added reporting while also seeking continuous improvement opportunities.
Data Optimization: Optimizes and implements data processes and systems.
Stakeholder Communication: Collects, presents, and communicates data to key stakeholders.
Data Transformation: Transforms unstructured data into an organized spreadsheet for calculations and Workday uploads, translating technical outputs into clear narratives with recommendations to help achieve business objectives.
Process Improvement: Makes recommendations to improve the existing process design for data-collection methodologies.

5. HR Data Analyst Accountabilities

HR Data Integrity: Ensures the integrity of the HR data (HR, payroll, recruitment, and L&D) and synchronization across the various data points and sources, ensuring that all data sets are one version of the truth.
Analytics Development: Builds and maintains a schedule of HR reporting and helps develop analytics capability by ultimately building dashboards, which assist the business in understanding and enabling data-driven and insight-led decisions.
HR Reporting: Ensures delivery of reporting and analytics on HR administration, resourcing, talent, reward and benefit activities, and employee engagement, including development and reporting of KPIs.
Data Interpretation: Ensures that data is in a format that is easily interpreted by stakeholders and that the HR team has a good understanding of the relevant data and format.
Data Insight and Visualization: Ensures that, where appropriate, any data and reporting provide insight and identify any assumptions and/or possible impacts by providing commentary and effective visualization of data, always with the end user in mind.
HR Reporting Delivery: Produces and distributes all HR reporting on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis.
People Data Analysis: Analyzes people-driven data, using this to help the HR team resolve various HR-related issues.
Payroll Support: Provides support for the payroll team to produce trend analysis and dashboard data on a weekly and monthly basis.
Training and Presentations: Creates and delivers specialized presentations and training on HR-related topics across the site.

6. HR Data Analyst Overview

People Research: Applies expertise in people research, quantitative and qualitative analysis, data science, and data visualization to help optimize the complete cycle of talent from workforce planning through retention.
Data Strategy: Collaborates with other data owners, such as HRIT, IT, and data science, to ensure execution of the overall HR data strategy that meets HR business needs and to establish the system infrastructure required to collect, analyze, and present data.
HR Initiative Review: Evaluates the effectiveness of HR initiatives such as training, performance management, and retention programs.
Research Partnership: Partners with HR and leaders on prioritized people-research projects, leading the process to crystallize the business need, gather and analyze data, interpret the information, and action plan.
Predictive Models: Develops models and predictive tools that enable better people decision-making processes.
Compliance Support: Supports legal and compliance teams on required or requested analyses.
Data Training: Provides training, consultation, and development on the interpretation of data to help increase the capability of the HR team.
GDPR Reporting: Provides data, reporting, and analysis internally and externally, in line with GDPR.
Metrics Support: Supports the preparation of monthly metrics packs.
Data Collaboration: Partners with HR specialist teams and project teams across OUP on data-led activities.
Data Quality: Maintains and improves the quality of OUP’s data through creating reports and dashboards to highlight gaps/errors and rectify them.
Survey Management: Manages the delivery of employee surveys using survey platforms, combining the survey outputs with other people's data to deliver further insights.

7. HR Data Analyst Tasks

HR Reporting: Provides all monthly HR reporting, personnel and forecast planning, as well as budgetary controls.
Data Analysis: Delivers cyclical and ad hoc analysis and insight to help business and HR make appropriate decisions.
Metrics Collection: Collects and compiles HR metrics and data from a variety of sources, including the human resource information system (HRIS) and payroll outputs, finance, employee surveys, exit interviews, employment records, external benchmarking data, and other sources.
Compensation Benchmarking: Establishes regular compensation benchmarks for all PTM locations and supports the development of compensation and rewards strategies.
Data Scoping: Helps HR scope and frame people data questions, including validating the hypothesis.
Trend Analysis: Analyzes data and statistics for trends and patterns with attention to recruitment, hiring practices, motivation, diversity, turnover, and compliance with employment laws and regulations, and to understand root causes and trends (e.g., causes of attrition).
Report Building: Builds reports and dashboards that surface critical people data for use by the business and HR across the organization.
Data Quality: Promotes overall data quality and assists in managing the company’s workforce data, collaborating with the HR Operations team to report issues and see them through to resolution.
Business Understanding: Develops a deep understanding of the business and platform org structure so that data requests are aligned to Videojet/PID's current business objectives.
Training and Coaching: Trains and coaches others on the use and interpretation of metrics and analytics and develops this capability throughout the organization.
Analytical Support: Provides analytical or other support to solve complex problems and assists with projects/initiatives across various disciplines, including talent acquisition, talent management, and employee engagement.

8. HR Data Analyst Essential Functions

Data Storytelling: Translates data and trends into stories to drive business decisions.
Data Visualization: Creates visualizations from which leaders can easily draw insights and recommendations.
Report Automation: Builds and automates easy-to-use, self-service reports and dashboards.
User Coaching: Provides direction and coaching to end users on how to use and interpret metrics.
Report Delivery: Delivers standard reports and dashboards on a regular cadence.
Data Auditing: Audits data integrity, investigates concerns, and establishes processes to streamline and improve data quality.
Cross-Functional Partnership: Partners cross-functionally with IT to help design and build out the HR analytics data warehouse.
Operational Reporting: Implements standardized recruiting HR operational reports, ad hoc queries, and data-related projects.
Stakeholder Engagement: Cultivates strong relationships with HRBP and other stakeholders that enable the successful delivery of reports, dashboards, and analytics.
Product Design: Designs human resources data products with PMs and continuously optimizes the data reporting system and data visualization platform.

9. HR Data Analyst Role Purpose

Best Practices: Gathers information on best practices, creates design recommendations, and partners with information technology application teams to translate requirements into solutions within DN's HR system (SAP SuccessFactors, payroll, and Kronos).
Documentation Management: Creates and maintains HR data solution documentation, including the HR data dictionary.
Data Governance: Recommends data standards, policies, and governance structures for the ongoing management of data.
Data Quality Processes: Creates processes to maintain the quality of data, in line with the master data management strategy.
Audit Leadership: Leads audits and data remediation efforts to increase and maintain data quality and compliance.
Transactional Integrity: Supports transactional integrity and acts as a consultant for complex HR data transactions (e.g., legal entity mergers, expatriate assignments, divestitures, acquisitions, etc.).
Data Analysis: Drives analyses and modeling of HR data to identify trends and make future predictions, interprets data, and communicates key findings to HR and business leaders.
Scorecard Development: Develops, implements, and supports employee data-related scorecards and dashboards.
Information Evaluation: Critically evaluates and reports on information gathered from multiple sources.
Business Insights: Translates findings into succinct, actionable business insights.
Analytical Techniques: Applies a breadth of tools and analytical techniques to answer a wide range of high-impact people-related business questions.
Client Education: Educates clients on self-service solutions.
Collaboration: Effectively collaborates and communicates with customers and co-workers to define deliverables, timelines, and responsibilities.
Report Management: Manages on-demand and ad hoc human resources-related reports and requests.

10. HR Data Analyst Responsibilities and Key Tasks

Problem-Solving: Ensures a continuous problem-solving mentality that works to improve processes at every opportunity.
Data Modeling: Works to support the senior manager, HR operations and data, with data modeling in all areas of core data and is capable of offering recommendations and options based on this analysis.
Ad Hoc Reporting: Supports the wider HR team in delivering more complex ad hoc reporting.
Process Documentation: Maintains high-quality process documentation relating to data analysis.
Dashboard Reporting: Uses Power BI or Tableau reporting and HR metric dashboards to assist in providing data to the business for decision-making purposes.
Data Manipulation: Manipulates data from multiple sources for comparative analysis and audits.
Service Improvement: Actively contributes to delivering, maintaining, and improving HR services, procedures, and processes to increase employee satisfaction, drive performance, and achieve results.
Data Model Design: Designs and creates data models and supports Power BI data modeling.
Business Support: Supports business initiatives by identifying necessary data sources, metrics, and analytical methods.

Relevant Information

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