HRIS Analyst roadmap › Courses
Best courses for HRIS Analysts
This page covers the working tools of an HRIS analyst: the vendor’s own platform training, SQL, spreadsheets and reporting, API basics and one HR credential.
Much of it is free to take. Some of the vendor’s deeper courses and certifications are open to customers and partners only, so access depends on your employer.
Books on this site cover the field, data quality, privacy and change in depth. This page covers the tools.
Which course to take first
- Start
- Workday training and certifications are open to everyone for the basics, and SQLBolt and Intro to SQL cover the queries.
- Build
- Salesforce Certified Tableau Desktop Foundations and Postman Docs cover the reporting and integration work that follows.
- Lead
- The Workday Pro certifications and SHRM Certified Professional suit people who lead the platform or a people-data function.
- 8 items in 2 stages: 5 courses and tutorials, 3 certifications.
- We opened every page on October 9, 2026 and show only what the provider states.
- No prices, ratings or enrolment counts.
See the full HRIS Analyst roadmap →Best books for HRIS Analysts →
How to choose your courses
A short method, so you spend your hours on the right thing for where you are instead of collecting certificates.
Find your stage
Getting started · 4 items
The vendor’s open training, plus SQL and a spreadsheet course: the foundation for questions about people data.
Jump to this stage ↓Doing the job · 4 items
Reporting with a visualisation tool, API basics for integrations and the credentials employers name.
Jump to this stage ↓
If you are unsure, start one stage lower than you think. Later items assume what the earlier ones teach.
Begin with one course
Our starting pick
Workday training and certifications
Workday
It is the vendor’s own catalogue, and several items are open to everyone, so you can learn the platform’s vocabulary before you have a sandbox.
See the course ↓Then pick by your situation
Choose the next course by the problem in front of you, not by its place in the list.
If you need to answer people-data questions with a query
take SQLBolt (getting started)
If you are building the headcount view HR leaders ask for
take Salesforce Certified Tableau Desktop Foundations (doing the job)
If you want a recognised sign of HR knowledge
take SHRM Certified Professional (doing the job)
Free path or paid path?
3 of the 5 courses and tutorials can be read or taken without paying, so you can build most of the skill at no cost. Check each certification page for exam fees.
Paid courses earn their place when you need structure, deadlines or feedback. Check what the provider says is included before you commit.
Course or certification?
Credentials are a modest signal for an HRIS analyst. A report you rebuilt, a clean-up with checks or a tested process change counts for more.
They help most when:
- You are moving from outside HR and want a recognised base
- Your target employer runs the platform and names its certification
- You are stepping up to lead the function and want structured material
Start with the open training. Add a certification when a specific employer asks for it.
Set a time budget
| Stage | Items with a stated length | Hours of material | At 4 hrs a week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Getting started | 1 | 3 hrs | 1 wks |
| Doing the job | 0 | none stated | n/a |
| All stages | 1 | 3 hrs | 1 wks |
Totals are approximate.
Exam time is not included, and hands-on practice takes longer than the material itself. Treat this as a floor.
Judge any course before you commit
Who runs it
Prefer courses from the people who build or govern the tool. They tend to stay current, and an exam from a tool’s own maker is the clearest credential for that tool.
Hands-on or watch-only
In this field you learn by running things. Choose material where you build a pipeline, a cluster or a dashboard over material you only watch.
How current it is
Tools change fast. Look for a version or last-updated date on the provider’s page, and check anything several years old against the current docs.
What you will be able to show
Ask what you will have at the end: a working repository, a deployed service or a passed exam. If it is only a certificate of completion, pair it with a project of your own.
Getting started
The vendor’s open training, plus SQL and a spreadsheet course: the foundation for questions about people data.
What you will learn
- Workday Basics Series, listed for customers, partners and everyone
- Workday in Action for Business Users, listed for customers, partners and everyone
- Free course manuals, listed for customers, partners and everyone
- Product configuration courses and on-demand libraries, listed for customers and partners
Good for
The vendor’s own catalogue. Start with the items open to everyone, and ask your employer for the customer-only courses once you work on the platform.
Also stated by the provider
- Access depends on the item: some are open to everyone, others only to customers or partners
What you will learn
- Interactive SQL lessons and exercises in the browser
- Lesson 1 starts with writing SQL queries
Good for
A fast, free way to get fluent enough in SQL to check customer or revenue data yourself.
Also stated by the provider
- Runs in the browser, no setup
What you will learn
- Getting started with SQL and BigQuery
- SELECT, FROM and WHERE
- GROUP BY, HAVING and COUNT
- ORDER BY
- AS and WITH
- Joining data
Good for
A short, free, hands-on practice round once you have seen SQL syntax.
Also stated by the provider
- The page lists Python as a prerequisite
- Free, like all Kaggle Learn courses
- Course
Excel Skills for Business: Essentials
Macquarie University (on Coursera)
- 3 weeks at 10 hours a week
What you will learn
- The Excel interface, formulas and functions
- Formatting spreadsheets professionally
- Charts to visualise data
- Solving common business problems with Excel
Good for
Anyone whose first analyses will happen in a spreadsheet.
Also stated by the provider
- Beginner level; no prior Excel experience required
- Includes a certificate
- The page says you can enrol for free; financial aid is available
Doing the job
Reporting with a visualisation tool, API basics for integrations and the credentials employers name.
- CertificationPaid exam
Salesforce Certified Tableau Desktop Foundations
Salesforce (Tableau)
- Exam: 40 questions, 70 minutes
What you will learn
- Data integration
- Data management
- Data analysis
- Data visualisation
Good for
When the postings you are targeting name Tableau.
Also stated by the provider
- No prerequisites
- Written for people with foundational Tableau skills and at least 3 months using the product
- The Tableau page redirects to this Salesforce exam page
What you will learn
- How to use Postman
- Searchable documentation and support resources
Good for
The tool most people use to try an API by hand. Learn it before you read an integration spec or debug a customer call.
Also stated by the provider
- Reference documentation rather than a single course
What you will learn
- Workday Pro Platform Administrator Certification, listed for customers and everyone
- Workday Pro Certification, listed for customers and partners
Good for
The credential employers that run the platform tend to name. Plan it once you work on the system or a partner sponsors the training.
Also stated by the provider
- The page does not state an exam format or fee
- Eligibility differs: one is listed for customers and everyone, the other for customers and partners
- Certification
SHRM Certified Professional (SHRM-CP)
SHRM
- Exam: 134 questions (80 knowledge items, 54 situational-judgment items), four hours including 3 hours 40 minutes of testing
What you will learn
- Aimed at people performing HR or HR-related duties or pursuing a career in human resources
- Exam covers 80 knowledge items and 54 situational-judgment items
Good for
Worth it if your background is outside HR and you want a recognised sign that you know the work your systems support.
Also stated by the provider
- Current or most recent HR work should be operational in nature, per the page’s eligibility notes
- Review the full eligibility criteria on the SHRM site before registering
Details such as hours, format and whether material is free are as the providers state them on October 9, 2026, and can change. Confirm on the provider’s page before you commit. See our disclosure.
Frequently asked questions
Which course should a HRIS Analyst take first?
Workday training and certifications, from Workday. It is the vendor’s own catalogue, and several items are open to everyone, so you can learn the platform’s vocabulary before you have a sandbox.
Can a HRIS Analyst learn this for free?
Largely, yes. 3 of the 5 courses and tutorials here can be read or taken without paying (SQLBolt, Intro to SQL, Postman Docs). Check each certification page for exam fees: not every page states one.
Do I need a certification to work as a HRIS Analyst?
Credentials are a modest signal for an HRIS analyst. A report you rebuilt, a clean-up with checks or a tested process change counts for more. They help most in these cases: (1) you are moving from outside HR and want a recognised base; (2) your target employer runs the platform and names its certification; (3) you are stepping up to lead the function and want structured material. Start with the open training. Add a certification when a specific employer asks for it.
How long does it take?
The providers state 3 hours of material across 1 of the 5 courses and tutorials; the rest do not state a length. At four hours a week that is about 1 weeks for the stated material alone, before projects and exam preparation.
How was this list put together?
We opened each course, tutorial and certification page on October 9, 2026 and wrote down only what the page states: who runs it, what it covers, hours and exam format where given, and whether the material is free to read. We do not show prices, ratings or enrolment figures. Details can change, so confirm on the provider’s page before you commit.