Data does not drive change on its own – stories do. In this episode, Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic, founder of Storytelling with Data, shares a concrete playbook for turning people analytics into decisions. Drawing on her new book Before & After – a collection of twenty real-world makeovers – she shows how tiny edits to titles, colour, layout and annotation can transform a forgettable HR slide into an executive-ready narrative. We debate when to stay in real-time dashboards and when to step out into a curated story; how to frame the same insight for a CHRO, COO and CFO; and where GenAI helps – and hurts – the workflow. Expect tactics for ruthless editing, building trust in an AI era, and proving whether your story actually moved a decision. If your next update on attrition, skills or productivity must land with the board, this is your blueprint.

Executives are inundated with dashboards but short on time and patience for clutter. HR leaders need narratives that surface risk, cost and capacity clearly, withstand AI-era scrutiny, and prompt action. A makeover-based approach turns noisy people data into decisions while maintaining trust, transparency and ethical guard-rails.

• Audio makeover cold open using the book's before → after cadence, plus a closing five-point checklist.
• Narrative planning for 2025: audience, tension, single message, and 'minimal change, maximum clarity'.
• Dashboards vs curated stories: where monitoring ends and decision storytelling begins for people analytics.
• GenAI as co-pilot: faster theming and summarising with human oversight for accuracy, nuance and ethics.
• Boardroom translation and trust: CHRO/COO/CFO framings, evidence and calls to action, with ways to measure impact.

• Plan a persuasive narrative that aligns to executive priorities and removes visual clutter.
• Decide confidently when to stay in live BI and when to craft a one-page decision story.
• Apply 'Before & After' editing moves – title, highlight, declutter, annotation – to sharpen comprehension.
• Use GenAI responsibly as a first-draft accelerator while preserving judgement, context and transparency.
• Measure whether your story worked with leading and lagging indicators tied to business outcomes.