Leveraging relational analytics in human resource research and practice

Abstract Relational analytics—the leveraging of data on workplace relationships—acts as a complement to traditional people analytics and moves scholars and practitioners closer to an understanding of the realities of the modern workplace. This article serves as a primer for relational analytics by highlighting the potential of the perspective for human resources, the levels of analysis that can be used to study relational analytics, and some of the common theoretical perspectives employed in this area. We introduce the 15 articles in the special issue by positioning them within broader trends we see in the field of relational analytics. Finally, we provide commentary on challenges and future directions in relational analytics with a focus on how the articles in this special issue may serve as examples of best practices and inspiration for future research and practice.