We may earn an affiliate commission when you visit our partners.
Course image
Course image
Coursera logo

Essential Skills for Comp & Benefits Professionals

ADP Learning Academy

Successful Compensation and Benefit Analysts consistently use data to drive their decisions in managing projects, tasks, and strategies. This course provides you with the foundational knowledge needed to develop essential skills in project management, data analytics, Microsoft Excel, and data visualization. You’ll have a chance to strengthen these skills throughout the rest of this Certificate program as you complete hands-on projects for your professional portfolio.

Enroll now

What's inside

Syllabus

Module 1: Project Management Basics
This module focuses on a skill in high demand around the world: project management. You’ll start with basic definitions and concepts, then different methodologies – like waterfall, Agile, and critical path. You’ll also explore useful project tools and visuals. You’ll begin to apply your new knowledge by creating two common project artifacts: a RACI chart and a project timeline.
Read more
Module 2: Using Data Analytics to Support Data-Driven Decisions
In this module, you’ll begin to explore the area of data analytics – a skill needed for many of the tasks assigned to a Compensation and Benefits Analyst. You’ll start with learning what we mean by the term “data analytics” and how important it is to business across industry sectors. You’ll also delve into the common phases in the analytic process and look at data privacy. In the later part of the module, you’ll learn about the different types of data analytics, along with the types of data, analytic methods, and tools commonly used to perform each.
Module 3: Collecting Data for Analysis
The integrity of data is critically important in data analytics, so how you collect data is ultimately important too. Here, you’ll evaluate methods and tools for collecting data. You’ll start with broad concepts of primary and secondary data collection, then look more closely at the frequently used methods like surveys, interviews, and focus groups. You’ll also consider what makes for effective survey questions and how you can formulate questions that focus on the data that really matters.
Module 4: Preparing Data for Analysis
In this module, you’ll start using the data analytic concepts you’ve learned to prepare a dataset by "cleaning" it. By doing this, you will make it more useable for analysis, and perform qualitative methods. This module focuses on the use of Microsoft Excel, and you’ll learn to create a free account with Microsoft Office 365, if needed.
Module 5: Visualizing Data and Interpreting Results
In this module of the course, you’ll learn to use the data you’ve prepared to create visuals that will assist you interpreting and communicating conclusions. You’ll begin with exploring how to create effective visuals, and then apply those principles to the dataset you scrubbed and prepared in Module 4. You’ll learn how to use those visualizations to tell the conclusion of your story with reports and dashboards. Note: You will need the dataset you worked with Module 4 along with access to MS Excel or Google Sheets again in this Module.

Good to know

Know what's good
, what to watch for
, and possible dealbreakers
Provides foundational knowledge in project management, data analytics, Microsoft Excel, and data visualization
Suitable for Compensation and Benefit Analysts seeking to enhance their decision-making skills through data-driven analysis
Emphasizes the practical application of learned skills through hands-on projects for professional portfolio development
Covers essential aspects of project management, including methodologies, tools, and timelines
Introduces concepts and techniques for data analytics, data privacy, and different types of data analysis
Guides learners in collecting data effectively through various methods and tools

Save this course

Save Essential Skills for Comp & Benefits Professionals to your list so you can find it easily later:
Save

Activities

Be better prepared before your course. Deepen your understanding during and after it. Supplement your coursework and achieve mastery of the topics covered in Essential Skills for Comp & Benefits Professionals with these activities:
Review spreadsheet functions
Provide a fresh context and opportunity to practice using spreadsheet functions before the course begins
Browse courses on Microsoft Excel
Show steps
  • Look through your notes or textbooks from a previous course on spreadsheets
  • Go over basic functions such as SUM, AVERAGE, and COUNTIF
  • Try to apply these functions to a simple dataset
Learn about project management methodologies
Help students understand the different project management methodologies to prepare them for Module 1
Browse courses on Project Management
Show steps
  • Find online tutorials on project management methodologies
  • Watch the tutorials and take notes on the key concepts
  • Compare and contrast the different methodologies
Form a study group with other students
Facilitate collaboration and knowledge sharing among students
Show steps
  • Find other students who are taking the same course
  • Schedule regular study sessions
  • Discuss the course material and work on assignments together
Four other activities
Expand to see all activities and additional details
Show all seven activities
Practice creating data visualizations
Provide students with an opportunity to practice creating data visualizations to prepare them for Module 5
Browse courses on Data Visualization
Show steps
  • Choose a dataset to work with
  • Use a data visualization tool to create different types of visualizations
  • Analyze the visualizations and draw conclusions from the data
Develop a project plan
Allow students to apply the concepts they learn in Module 1 by developing a project plan for a real-world project
Browse courses on Project Management
Show steps
  • Define the project scope and objectives
  • Create a project timeline and budget
  • Identify the resources needed for the project
  • Develop a communication plan for the project
Write a white paper on a data analytics topic
Challenge students to synthesize their knowledge of data analytics and communicate it effectively in writing
Browse courses on Data Analytics
Show steps
  • Choose a specific data analytics topic to focus on
  • Conduct research on the topic
  • Develop a thesis statement and outline for the white paper
  • Write the white paper
  • Edit and proofread the white paper
Attend a data analytics conference or meetup
Encourage students to connect with professionals in the field of data analytics
Browse courses on Data Analytics
Show steps
  • Find a data analytics conference or meetup in your area
  • Register for the event
  • Attend the event and network with other attendees

Career center

Learners who complete Essential Skills for Comp & Benefits Professionals will develop knowledge and skills that may be useful to these careers:

Reading list

We haven't picked any books for this reading list yet.

Share

Help others find this course page by sharing it with your friends and followers:

Similar courses

Here are nine courses similar to Essential Skills for Comp & Benefits Professionals.
Ensure the Ethical Use of LLMs in Data Projects
Data Analysis with Shiny: R Playbook
Creating Data Integrations with SharePoint Framework
Data Science Fundamentals for Data Analysts
Security and Privacy for Big Data - Part 1
End-to-End Machine Learning: From Idea to Implementation
Data Science at Scale - Capstone Project
Cloud Computing Foundations
Generative AI Data Privacy and Safe Use for Developers
Our mission

OpenCourser helps millions of learners each year. People visit us to learn workspace skills, ace their exams, and nurture their curiosity.

Our extensive catalog contains over 50,000 courses and twice as many books. Browse by search, by topic, or even by career interests. We'll match you to the right resources quickly.

Find this site helpful? Tell a friend about us.

Affiliate disclosure

We're supported by our community of learners. When you purchase or subscribe to courses and programs or purchase books, we may earn a commission from our partners.

Your purchases help us maintain our catalog and keep our servers humming without ads.

Thank you for supporting OpenCourser.

© 2016 - 2024 OpenCourser