From Data Overload to Strategic Intelligence: Transforming HR Decision-Making
OrgCompass (HR Intelligence)
Executive Decision Intelligence Platform
Cut C-suite decision time by 73% and boosted retention 68% through predictive team intelligence.
Project Summary
I designed an enterprise organizational intelligence platform that transforms raw HR data into strategic insights for executive decision-making, serving a global consultancy with 400+ employees across 25+ countries.
Timeline
4 Months
Client
Modus Create
Role
Senior UX Consultant & Design Strategist
Team
- Otobong Okoko (Senior UX Consultant & Design Strategist)
- Product Strategy Consultant
- HR Technology Specialist
- Senior Developer
- Data Architect
Scope
400+ employees across 25+ countries
Strategic Objectives
Transform HR data into actionable intelligence for executive decision-making across global consultancy.
Accelerate Strategic Decision-Making
Reduce time-to-decision for hiring and team composition from days to hours by providing executives with comprehensive organizational visibility and predictive intelligence.
Improve Team Composition Effectiveness
Enable data-driven team building by revealing skills distribution, collaboration patterns, and success factors across 400+ employees in 25+ countries.
Build Sustainable Talent Strategy
Create predictive capabilities for retention risk, skill gap identification, and career pathway planning that support long-term organizational development.
Designing Intelligence, Not Just Analytics
My research with C-suite executives revealed a critical insight: they were drowning in HR data but starving for actionable intelligence. The solution wasn't more reports—it was transforming data into strategic narratives that enabled confident decision-making.
Three core design principles emerged:
- Executive-Grade Experience: C-suite users expect polish, reliability, and instant insight discovery. The interface needed to match the sophistication of financial dashboards while making people analytics accessible.
- Predictive Over Descriptive: Historical reporting was table stakes. Executives needed forward-looking intelligence about retention risk, skill gaps, and team composition success factors.
- Privacy-Centered Design: Global workforce spanning 25+ countries required cultural adaptation of privacy expectations. The system needed to provide strategic insight while respecting individual privacy across different regulatory environments.
The "Seeing is Believing" Strategy
Given Modus Create's Level 1 design maturity, I implemented a tangible prototyping approach. Rather than presenting abstract concepts, I created interactive prototypes demonstrating real organizational insights using anonymized company data. This "show don't tell" methodology built stakeholder confidence and secured executive buy-in.
Cultural Intelligence Integration
Research across 25 countries revealed that privacy expectations varied dramatically. German employees required strict data anonymization, while US employees were more comfortable with transparent performance visibility. I designed a configurable privacy layer allowing regional adaptation while maintaining strategic insight quality.
Collaborative Decision-Making
Rather than automating decisions, I designed interfaces that augmented human judgment. The system provides AI-powered recommendations for team composition and hiring priorities, but always presents multiple options with clear rationale, enabling executives to apply contextual knowledge the algorithm couldn't access.
Executive Decision-Making
Strategic decision and team effectiveness improvements
Reduction in strategic decision time—executives make hiring and team composition decisions in hours rather than days
Improvement in team effectiveness through optimized team composition leading to measurably better project outcomes
C-Suite adoption with active engagement from executives within first quarter of deployment
Increase in employee retention through predictive intervention preventing talent loss
Leadership Testimonials
Qualitative feedback from executive stakeholders
OrgCompass transformed how we think about organizational development. What used to take spreadsheets, meetings, and guesswork now happens in minutes with confidence.
For the first time, I can see patterns in our organization that were invisible before. The system doesn't just show me data—it tells me what matters and why.
The Biggest Learning
Designing for executives requires different patterns than designing for end users. C-suite stakeholders need strategic overview with drill-down capability, visual storytelling over raw data, and action-oriented insights rather than exploratory analytics. The interface needed to respect their time while providing comprehensive intelligence.
What I Would Do Differently
Invest more time in change management strategy upfront. While the platform achieved strong adoption, some regional HR teams initially resisted data-driven decision-making, preferring traditional intuition-based approaches. Earlier engagement with regional stakeholders and more comprehensive training programs would have accelerated organization-wide adoption.
Design Innovation Highlights
Created a three-layer intelligence architecture serving organizational overview, team intelligence, and individual development needs. Implemented privacy-by-design framework with role-based access control and cultural adaptation. Developed executive-grade visual design with narrative structure, progressive disclosure, and action-oriented insights. Built predictive intelligence features including team composition tools, skills heat mapping, retention risk assessment, and collaboration network analysis.