Real cases, not quizzes
Each simulation puts you in a working situation with documents, people and trade-offs, and asks you to decide.
HR Lab
Practise real HR decisions before you make them for real
Realistic simulations in recruitment, performance management and HR analytics, with scored feedback and certificates anyone can verify.
Overview
What HR Lab is
HR Lab is a place to practise professional HR decisions before you have to make them for real. You work inside realistic cases, make structured decisions, and see how your choices compare with expert benchmarks.
It is built for classrooms and for self-development: instructors run it with their own courses and cohorts, and learners earn certificates that anyone can verify.
Scored against expert benchmarks
Your decisions are compared with protected benchmarks written for each case, so the score reflects the quality of your judgement.
Feedback you can learn from
You see what you did well, where you drifted from the benchmark and why it matters.
How it works
From joining to your certificate
- 1
Join
Sign in and join your instructor's class with a join code or link.
- 2
Work through the case
Move through the stages at your own pace inside your own workspace.
- 3
Submit
Finish and submit. Your work is locked in, and you can rate your experience.
- 4
Results are released
Your instructor reviews and releases results, so everyone gets them at the same time.
- 5
Earn a certificate
Reach the pass mark set for the assignment and receive a verifiable certificate.
Available now
Recruitment Simulation
Fill the vacancy, and defend the hire.
You are the recruiter for a company with open roles. You get the job description, a pool of candidates, a fixed budget and a clock, and you work through selection stage by stage until every vacancy is filled.
Along the way, live events test your judgement: a candidate becomes unavailable, or counters your offer.
What you will practise
- Matching candidates to a job description objectively
- Structured screening and interviewing
- Choosing evidence under budget and time limits
- Making and negotiating job offers
- Justifying a hiring decision
How it is scored
Your screening, shortlisting, interview and offer decisions are compared with protected benchmarks for the scenario. You receive a performance report with quick-glance feedback once results are released.
The stages
- 1Screen
Review candidates one by one against the job description, using Previous and Next to move through the pool.
- 2Shortlist
Decide who goes forward. The shortlist must be confirmed before interviews open.
- 3Interview
Rate each interview answer and respond to live events while managing your time and budget.
- 4Evaluate
Decide which evidence checks are worth paying for, and weigh what they reveal.
- 5Offer
Make offers, handle responses and counteroffers, and fill every vacancy before you can submit.
At a glance
- Level
- Advanced and Expert
- Case library
- 35 scenarios, with variants so classmates do not get identical cases
- Stages
- Screen, shortlist, interview, evaluate, offer
- Attempts
- Set by your instructor
Available now
Performance Management Lab
Rate fairly, and justify it with evidence.
You manage a team of employees and review their performance. For each person you study the evidence, make a rating, test it against what the evidence really shows, and record your reasoning.
The aim is fair, defensible performance decisions: the kind that stand up when an employee, a manager or an auditor asks why.
What you will practise
- Setting and reading performance evidence
- Rating consistently and without bias
- Calibrating across a team
- Writing a clear, evidence-based rationale
How it is scored
Your structured rating decisions are compared with protected benchmarks. Your written rationale is read for reflection and instructor feedback: it is deliberately not given a machine score.
The stages
- 1Study the evidence
Read each employee's goals, results and context before you form a view.
- 2Rate
Make a provisional rating using the structured criteria.
- 3Calibrate
Review your ratings against the evidence and adjust where it does not hold up.
- 4Explain
Write the rationale behind your decisions, as you would for a performance review.
At a glance
- Case library
- 64 scenarios, each with a team of five employees
- Output
- Structured ratings plus written rationale
- Attempts
- Limit set by your instructor, who can grant another attempt
In development
HR Analytics
Turn HR data into a decision you can defend.
Every learner receives their own generated company dataset, so no two learners share the same numbers and answers cannot be copied. You analyse it using free spreadsheet tools, with no paid software needed.
The course climbs four levels: describe what happened, diagnose why, predict what is likely, and finally decide what to do within a budget.
What you will practise
- Core HR metrics and what they mean
- Separating real drivers from confounders
- Interpreting regression results
- Cost-of-turnover and training ROI
- Using people data ethically
How it is scored
Numerical answers are checked against a key generated from your own dataset. Written reasoning is assessed against a clear rubric, and results stay with your instructor until released. One reflective ethics case is required for the top certificate.
Want to hear when it opens? Send me a message.
The four levels
- 1Descriptive
Headcount, turnover, tenure, time-to-fill, cost-per-hire and more.
- 2Diagnostic
Why is turnover high? Segment by department, manager and tenure, and rule out misleading explanations.
- 3Predictive
Build and critique a flight-risk scorecard, and interpret a regression.
- 4Decision
Recommend an action under a budget, justify it financially and write the case to leadership.
At a glance
- Status
- In development
- Levels
- Four, with three stacked certificates planned
- Tools
- Free spreadsheet software
- Storylines
- Eight different company situations
For instructors
Run it in your own course
HR Lab handles the courses, cohorts, scoring and certificates, so you can focus on teaching.
Courses, cohorts and assignments
Create a course, enrol students from a roster or a join code, and assign any simulation with its own dates.
A dashboard across all simulations
See who has started, who has submitted and who is waiting for release, and click through to the students behind every number.
You control the release
Results stay hidden until you release them, immediately or on a schedule.
Certificates with your pass mark
Choose the template and the score a learner needs. Issued certificates keep a permanent record.
Attempt control
Set the number of attempts, and grant another if a learner needs one.
Easy to start a class
Students join with a code or a QR link, and each gets an isolated workspace.
Certificates and recognition
Proof that can be checked
A certificate is issued automatically when a learner reaches the pass mark that the instructor set for the assignment. Every certificate has a verification code and a public page that shows whether it is valid or has been revoked.
The Hall of Fame shows the best released results. Learners appear under their real name by default and can choose to appear anonymously. Instructors and administrators are never listed.
Fair and private
Built to be trusted
Results are embargoed
Nobody sees a score before the instructor releases results.
Benchmarks stay protected
Expert benchmarks never reach the learner's screen, so cases stay fair.
Your data is yours
Case data is synthetic. No real employee data is ever needed.
Ratings are anonymous
The feedback you give is never shown to your instructor with your name.
Learner ratings
What learners say
Ratings come only from verified learners who completed a simulation. They are anonymous to me, and I show every score, not only the good ones.
5.0/ 5
Practical
5.0
Supportive
5.0
Clear
5.0
Skills gained
5.0
See every score
5 stars
1
4 stars
0
3 stars
0
2 stars
0
1 star
0
Rated by verified learners who completed a HRThink simulation. Every rating is counted. These are not official course evaluations.
Questions
Frequently asked
Who can use HR Lab?
Students whose instructor has set up a class, and instructors who want to run the simulations in their own courses. You need an account to take part.
How is my score calculated?
Your structured decisions are compared with protected expert benchmarks for your case. Written reflection supports feedback but is not machine-scored.
Can I try again?
That is your instructor's choice. They set the attempt limit and can grant another attempt.
When do I see my result?
When your instructor releases results. This keeps it fair for the whole class.
Can my instructor see my feedback rating?
No. Ratings are anonymous to instructors and visitors, and giving one is always optional.
How do I check a certificate?
Enter its verification code in the box on this page, or open the verification link on the certificate.
Is HR Analytics available?
It is in development. The Recruitment Simulation and Performance Management Lab are available now.
Ready to practise?
Sign in to start, or get in touch about running HR Lab in your course.