Change With Analytics Playbook

The playbook has 16 action-focused plays. 13 are organized into the four sections below, and three on teamwork are repeated across all sections.

Change with

Analytics Playbook

The playbook has 16 action-focused plays. 13 are organized into the four sections below, and three on teamwork are repeated across all sections.

Everyone has a role in building an analytics-enabled institution, but we don’t all have the same role.

Colleges and universities are all unique, but all individuals at every institution will fill one or more of the five data roles outlined below. Readers should note that these five roles are not specific job positions or titles, but rather are functions that can be carried out by various stakeholders. Because these are roles and not job positions, (1) everyone—regardless of job title—has a data role, and (2) it is nearly certain that some stakeholders will fill multiple roles, sometimes simultaneously.

Everyone has a role in building an analytics-enabled institution, but we don’t all have the same role.

Colleges and universities are all unique, but all individuals at every institution will fill one or more of the five data roles outlined below. Readers should note that these five roles are not specific job positions or titles, but rather are functions that can be carried out by various stakeholders. Because these are roles and not job positions,
(1) everyone—regardless of job title—has a data role, and (2) it is nearly certain that some stakeholders will fill multiple roles, sometimes simultaneously.


Data and analytics professionals play a key role in the stewardship, management, analysis, and dissemination of data at institutions.

Data champions spearhead the data culture and analytics efforts.

Data champions spearhead the data culture and analytics efforts.











Much of the data used at colleges and universities are produced by, and therefore represent, people, or the data producers.

Executive sponsors are senior leaders who provide leadership by steering analytics initiatives and ensuring adequate resources.

Often referred to as data users, data consumers read, interpret, and use data products, such as reports or dashboards, as part of their job functions.



Data champions spearhead the data culture and analytics efforts.




Data and analytics professionals play a key role in the stewardship, management, analysis, and dissemination of data at institutions.




Executive sponsors are senior leaders who provide leadership by steering analytics initiatives and ensuring adequate resources.




Much of the data used at colleges and universities are produced by, and therefore represent, people, or the data producers.




Executive sponsors are senior leaders who provide leadership by steering analytics initiatives and ensuring adequate resources. Often referred to as data users, data consumers read, interpret, and use data products, such as reports or dashboards, as part of their job functions.

The majority of activities, workshops, and checklists in the playbook are designed for the data champion to lead. The playbook’s resources support data champions and their collaborators as they—

Click a section of the playbook to get started making your analytics plays now!

Team Plays

The Joint Statement on Analytics asserted that “analytics is a team sport.” Three plays that are repeated throughout the playbook emphasize and provide guidance for this.

The Assemble and Manage Teams for Analytics Initiatives play provides guidance to data champions, and perhaps executive sponsors, as they build the right teams for various analytics initiatives. This play can be conducted multiple times—for different analytics efforts or as needed with existing efforts.

The Executive Sponsor Checklist details the role of a senior leader before, during, and after analytics strategies or efforts.

Explore Typical Analytics Job Responsibilities is a resource for data and analytics positions in higher education.

Team Plays

The Joint Statement on Analytics asserted that “analytics is a team sport.” Three plays that are repeated throughout the playbook emphasize and provide guidance for this.

The Assemble and Manage Teams for Analytics Initiatives play provides guidance to data champions, and perhaps executive sponsors, as they build the right teams for various analytics initiatives. This play can be conducted multiple times—for different analytics efforts or as needed with existing efforts.

The Executive Sponsor Checklist details the role of a senior leader before, during, and after analytics strategies or efforts.

Explore Typical Analytics Job Responsibilities is a resource for data and analytics positions in higher education.

The Change With Analytics Playbook currently has 16 plays designed to support colleges and universities in developing and maintaining data-informed cultures and building capacities for analytics-enabled decision-making. Although these 16 plays can help an institution make significant progress on their data and analytics goals, there is also other work to be done at institutions that is currently beyond the scope of this playbook.

We encourage you to join our community in continuing the development of the playbook. Please reach out to us (info@changewithanalytics.com) with suggestions for plays that should be added, alternate approaches to plays that have worked for your institutions, and examples of how these efforts have had propelled your efforts to support students and fulfill your college or university’s mission.