People Analytics Drives Workforce Evolution

The 2025 SIOP Leading Edge Consortium (LEC): Advancing People Analytics, held in Atlanta Oct. 23-24, offered business professionals the opportunity to explore some of the innovations transforming workforce analytics and leadership strategies, including artificial intelligence (AI).

Chaired by SIOP Members Cole Napper and Stephanie Murphy, the planning committee brought together more than 20 leading experts in scientific research, advanced private-sector people analytics functions, and groundbreaking initiatives in the federal government to present a deep dive into workforce analytics.

“I appreciated the conversations around making planning more dynamic—moving away from static annual plans toward more rolling, assumption-based models that leaders can actually use to make midcourse corrections,” said SIOP Member Chris Mannion, who attended the LEC.

The event offered three workshops in advance of the main program, in which attendees learned about data storytelling, explanatory statistics and modeling R, and people analytics ROI. Working in small groups, they addressed a variety of real-world applications.

“The workshop leaders especially stood out because they created room for dialogue, reflection, and problem solving that you don’t always get at conferences. It really helped make the learning stick,” Murphy said.

SIOP Fellow Alexis Fink, PhD, from Propeller Insight, gave the keynote address, speaking about reinventing work in the age of AI. “Winning with AI is not a technology problem. It is a workforce transformation problem,” she said. “People analytics should drive this transformation. This is our moment to drive the business forward. Let’s make sure we are using things that provide value.”

The experience and workplace diversity among the speakers gave attendees the opportunity to hear from experts in a variety of industries on timely topics such as “What Can We Learn from the Integration of Analytics in Nonprofit, Government, and Private Sectors,” “Leveraging Workforce Analytics to Drive Global Competitive Advantage in MNCs,” and “Interdisciplinarity in People Analytics: Finding Common Languages.

“The sessions on building sustainable analytics functions, ensuring data ethics, and showing business impact through storytelling really landed with folks,” Murphy said. “My biggest takeaway is that people analytics is no longer about convincing people of its value — it’s about helping organizations do it well and with purpose.”

A white paper authored by several of the presenters is now available. Maximizing Impact Through the Synergy of Psychology and Analytics: I-O Psychology and People Analytics: A Community of Impact is the creation of Kristin Saboe, Amit Mohindra, Paul Tsagaroulis, and Alexis Fink, and serves as a companion piece to the event.

Attendees also enjoyed the opportunity to connect with SIOP partners and attend networking dinners at local restaurants in midtown Atlanta on Thursday evening. Plans are under way for the 2026 SIOP Leading Edge Consortium, and details will be shared soon.