Welcome to the inaugural edition of CEO Corner, a new series that gives me the opportunity to share updates on Holmes Corporation’s business initiatives and introduce you to some of the brilliant minds behind our work. I’m also an avid reader of articles, research publications and books, so I’ll share things that have interested and inspired me recently. My goal is to help you connect with our team, our business, and our passion for professional development.
This month, I’m thrilled to spotlight Steven Khraiss, our recently promoted VP of Data Strategy & Analytics. Data-driven insights are crucial to the success of HC’s products and services, to elevating the learning experience of our customers, and to the growth of our association partners. This is why I’m excited to introduce you to Steven, who’s leading our efforts to leverage data in transforming professional development.
Q: First, for those who don’t know you, I’d describe you as a passionate and positive individual in everything you do. What excites you about data and analytics?
Steven: Data has always fascinated me because of its ability to reveal patterns, tell compelling stories, and drive informed decision-making. I’ve always been drawn to problem-solving, and analytics provided a way to combine that with strategic thinking.
Q: What brought you to HC, and how has your role evolved with HC’s growing focus on data-driven solutions?
Steven: I joined HC because of its commitment to professional development and education, two areas that are highly data-driven at their core. Additionally, the welcoming, family-oriented environment and the ability to wear many hats made HC the best fit for me. I’ve been blessed to have mentors at HC that continually motivate me to push the envelope.
Initially, my role focused on marketing and customer insights, but as the organization recognized the power of data, my responsibilities expanded. Over the years, I’ve led initiatives that integrated data more deeply into decision-making, from optimizing strategies to shaping new product offerings and improving learner engagement. Today, my role as VP, Data Strategy & Analytics is about building a strong data infrastructure and culture that will drive HC’s next phase of growth.
Q: For people who don’t work in the field of data strategy, how would you define it? What role has or will data play in HC’s evolution and growth?
Steven: Data strategy is about using information intelligently to drive better decisions and outcomes. At HC, it means ensuring that we’re not just collecting data, but using it to enhance learning experiences, improve operational efficiency, and deliver greater value to our partners. As HC continues to grow, data will be at the core of how we refine our products, expand our reach, and measure success.
Q: Can you share a moment when you realized the transformative potential of data for HC and our partners?
Steven: One defining moment was when we leveraged data to refine our learner engagement strategy including creating an end-to-end journey map and really grasping user attrition rates. By analyzing learner behavior at critical milestone timings, identifying user strengths/opportunities in the content areas of our Learning Systems, and user engagement trends, we helped identify key friction points in our user certification journey.
Small, data-driven adjustments—such as optimizing study reminders and tailoring content recommendations—led to a significant increase in overall success rates, such as increasing certification pass rates by up to 25%. Seeing how insights directly impacted both individual outcomes and business growth reinforced my belief in the power of data to drive meaningful change.
Q: One of the reasons why I wanted to feature you early on in my CEO Corner articles was our shared belief in following the data. What are your top 3 favorite metrics to measure the success of our data initiatives?
Steven: This is kind of a tough question because every question or challenge has a unique set of data priorities, but overall, here are my top 3:
- Learner Success Rate which measures the effectiveness of our programs by tracking product completion and exam pass rates. This really ties our products to our mission of advancing professionals’ careers.
- Customer Satisfaction gauges how well we’re meeting learner and partner expectations using surveys and feedback. High satisfaction rates correlate with stronger engagement, referrals, and long-term loyalty. This feedback also guides development and innovation.
- User Engagement Score (UES)/User Attrition measures how actively and effectively users interact with our learning platform and resources. A high UES indicates that learners are not just present but are meaningfully engaging with content, directly impacting retention and success. In parallel, monitoring user attrition helps us identify pain points, refine retention strategies, and ensure that our offerings remain relevant and valuable.
Q: You’re an incredibly busy person and one of the reasons why is because everyone we work with wants to go directly to you for data insights because the answers you provide drive impact. Could you describe a partner challenge that was solved through data-driven insights?
Steven: You know I have a hard time saying no to requests because I love to help! It’s worth a few late nights because I see the potential impact.
To share a story, a partner wanted to expand their certification programs but wasn’t sure where demand was strongest. We provided market analysis that identified key geographic regions with high demand.
Additionally, we developed a personalized KPI and metrics dashboard tool that played a crucial role in guiding this expansion. It not only helps track their progress but also provides a wealth of insights into KPIs such as exam applications, certifications, eligible labor workforce, and member population trends as well as market penetration rates. By leveraging this comprehensive dataset, the partner was able to enhance their programs, refine targeting efforts, and make data-backed decisions that optimized their outreach and success. This data-driven approach led to a successful expansion strategy with measurable business growth.
Q: Let’s move from past achievements to the future of data in professional development. What emerging technologies are you most excited about for enhancing our data capabilities?
Steven: I’m particularly excited about AI-powered analytics, natural language processing (NLP) for learner insights, and real-time predictive modeling to optimize engagement and success rates.
AI-powered analytics will help us uncover deeper trends in learner behavior, making data-driven recommendations more intuitive and actionable. NLP is another game-changer—it allows us to analyze open-ended feedback, extract key themes from learner interactions, and create a more responsive learning experience.
Q: What trends in data and analytics should our partners be aware of and know that we’re tracking on their behalf?
Steven: Partners should keep an eye on AI-driven personalization, which tailors learning experiences and professional development programs based on real-time behavioral insights. This is especially crucial for our association partners looking to provide more relevant and targeted learning opportunities for their members, ensuring they receive content that meets their specific goals and skill development needs, now and throughout their careers.
Additionally, the growing importance of data ethics and security is shaping how associations handle and protect sensitive member data, ensuring compliance and maintaining trust. With increasing concerns about data privacy, associations must adopt transparent and responsible data practices to maintain member confidence.
This is just the beginning of HC’s data-driven evolution, and I’m excited to lead the charge!
Connecting the Dots
It’s great to speak with Steven because he embodies the perfect blend of analytical expertise and genuine passion for improving how professionals learn and grow. His ability to translate complex data into practical insights has been transformative for HC and our partners. What I appreciate most about Steven’s approach is how he keeps the human element at the center of data strategy – remembering that behind every data point is a professional working to advance their career.
Over five decades, HC has provided associations with the expertise, knowledge, and now—with Steven’s help—the data capabilities to build personalized learning programs that evolve throughout an individual’s lifetime based on their goals, challenges, and preferences.
With AI, machine learning, and advanced knowledge management systems, we now have the technology to enable these adaptive learning paths, assessing needs, facilitating efficient learning, and guiding next steps. By doing so, we engage members throughout their career journeys which results in long-term growth for our association partners.
