Workforce Planning

---

(May 27, 2004) - Workforce planning can seem so complicated that it never gets done. The visionary systems suggest that a combination of scenario planning and deep skills assessment can lead to a decision-making framework. We're closer to the back of the envelope school of thinking. That is, some level of planning is far superior to none at all. As we've mentioned before, John Sullivan's article, "Why Workforce Planning Fails" is an important point of departure.

In more complex settings, organizational dynamics and political issues complicate the problem. Ultimately, good workforce planning is an iterative (and ongoing) process. The bottoms-up estimating procedure will always be modified by top-down concerns. Workforce Planning is, after all, a planning conversation. Learning to engage the organization in the give and take of planning is at the heart of successful implementation.

The good news is that the techniques for small scale Workforce Planning are simple and easy to use. To the extent that workforce planning is a local problem, it can be more easily solved. The issue becomes complex at the point that you try to integrate the details at a system level. Then workforce planning becomes subject to the sorts of organizational issues that drive other strategic conversations.

Here are a few additional resources:

http://www.interliance.com
Workforce Assessment analysis and strategy.

http://www.KnowledgeStorm.com
Workforce Planning. Solutions for Your Business, Free Reports, Info. & Registration

http://www.schedulesource.com
Workforce Scheduling and optimization.

http://www.successionwizard.com
Workforce Planning Tool

http://www.workforce.com/
HR info on staffing, compensation, workforce mgmt, benchmarks...

-John Sumser

Hire Top Targeted Candidates at Lowest Prices!

Niche Boards fill 4x more jobs than Careerbuilder - CareerXRoads survey
The secret is choosing the right niche boards!

Accounting / Finance ...... CareerBank.com
Call Center ...................... CallCenterJobs.com
Executive ........................ NETSHARE.com
Health / Medical .............. HealthJobsUSA.com
Hispanic / Bilingual ......... LatPro.com
Logistics .......................... JobsInLogistics.com
Manufacturing ................. JobsInMFG.com
Mortgage/Insurance ........ TheBoardNetwork.com
Retail ............................... AllRetailJobs.com
Software Industry ............ SoftwareJobLink.com
Rhinomite.com ................ South Florida | New England
Tax Specialists ................ TaxTalent.com

For more Specialty Boards, visit:
The Employer's Corner on TopUSAJobs.com

marketing@TopUSAJobs.com

---

Home | ERN | Bugler | The Blogs | Blogroll | Advertise | Archives | Careers

---

Contacting Us: