submove / behavioral simulation / vs people analytics
Behavioral simulation vs people analytics
Last updated: June 2026
People analytics (the category that includes tools such as Visier or Worklytics) analyzes existing workforce data to explain and predict patterns like attrition and engagement. Behavioral simulation estimates how people are likely to respond to a specific change before it is made. One reads what has happened and is likely to continue; the other rehearses what would happen if you made a particular move.
They are not competitors. People analytics is continuous and backward-and-present-looking; behavioral simulation is episodic and forward-looking, used at the moment a decision is on the table. For the underlying method, see what is a behavioral simulation engine.
Comparison at a glance
| People analytics | Behavioral simulation (submove) | |
|---|---|---|
| Question it answers | What is happening in the workforce, and what is likely to continue? | How are people likely to respond to this specific change before we make it? |
| Direction | Backward and present: learns from data about changes that already happened | Forward: rehearses a named change that has not happened yet |
| Data it uses | Existing HRIS, engagement, and activity data (often PII) | Anonymous, role-coded profiles inside your real network; no PII |
| Output | Dashboards, trends, risk scores (e.g. attrition likelihood) | Likely trajectories for stress, morale, trust, performance, and where they concentrate |
| Best for | Monitoring the organization and spotting emerging problems | Deciding and shaping a specific change while it is still reversible |
When to use people analytics
Use people analytics to continuously monitor the workforce, surface trends, and flag emerging risks from the data you already hold. It is the best instrument for understanding the current state and catching problems early. Its limit is the counterfactual: it learns from changes that already happened, so it cannot rehearse a specific move you have not made.
When to use behavioral simulation
Use behavioral simulation when a specific change is named but not committed and you want to see how it is likely to land first. It plays that change forward across a model of your real organization and shows the likely response, so you can sequence, soften, or rethink it. It is calibrated, not validated: it describes likelihoods, not guarantees.
Analytics tells you where you are. Simulation rehearses where a decision would take you.
Do they work together?
Yes. People analytics is how many teams notice that something needs to change; behavioral simulation is how they decide what to do about it without finding out the hard way. Analytics can even inform how a model is set up, while the simulation keeps no personal data of its own.
- Spot: people analytics surfaces a risk or an opportunity in the current data.
- Rehearse: behavioral simulation tests the change you are considering in response.
- Act and re-measure: you make the call, then analytics tracks how it actually landed.
Frequently asked questions
Is behavioral simulation the same as people analytics?
No. People analytics analyzes existing workforce data to explain and predict patterns such as attrition or engagement. Behavioral simulation estimates how people are likely to respond to a specific change you have not made yet. One reads the past and present; the other rehearses a future move.
Can people analytics predict reaction to a reorg before it happens?
People analytics can flag who is at risk based on historical patterns, but it is built on data from changes that already happened. A behavioral simulation plays a specific, not-yet-made reorg forward across your network to estimate the response while the decision is still reversible.
Does behavioral simulation need our HRIS or people-analytics data?
No. submove needs no PII and no HR records. It resolves the organization into anonymous, role-coded profiles inside your real structure. People-analytics outputs can inform how a model is set up, but they are not required and never enter it as personal data.
Is behavioral simulation just attrition prediction?
No. Attrition prediction estimates who may leave based on past signals. Behavioral simulation models how stress, morale, trust, and performance are likely to move across the organization in response to a named change, and where the strain concentrates, not a single leave-or-stay score per person.
Should people analytics or behavioral simulation come first?
They sit at different points. People analytics continuously reads the current state; behavioral simulation is used at the moment a specific change is on the table, to rehearse it before committing. Many teams use analytics to spot a problem and simulation to decide how to act on it.
Rehearse the change, not just the dashboard
If you have a change on the table and want to see how it is likely to land before you commit, you can request a simulation and tell us the situation. Engagements are invitation-only, so we will talk first about whether submove is the right fit.