Workforce planning involves determining current and future staffing needs based on corporate objectives and external factors. It includes analyzing the existing workforce, assessing future demand, identifying skills gaps, and developing strategies to address shortages or excesses. Effective workforce planning helps businesses achieve goals by ensuring the right staffing at the right time and place, but it faces challenges around costs, training needs, and employer-employee relations.

1. Developing & Implementing Workforce Plans

2. What is workforce planning? Workforce planning is about deciding how many and what types of workers are required

3. Steps in workforce planning

8. Internal influences on workforce plan Corporate objectives Simply the most important internal influence – any significant change in, or new corporate objective will impact the workforce plan Production and marketing objectives The required production capacity, product quality and delivery timetables are significant to the business demand for labour Financial position and objectives The workforce plan must take account of the financial budgets in place and the cash flow forecasting. Staff remuneration is usually a major operating cost and cash flow Strength of the current labour supply The number, skills and experience of existing staff clearly influence workforce planning since the process examines whether the existing supply is sufficient to meet demand Existing organisational structure How production is organised (e.g. cells, teams, production lines) and management structure (e.g. flat, matrix) all affect existing internal supply of labour

9. External influences on workforce plan Market demand The most important external influence. Demand for the firm’s products determines production output which in turn sets out the requirement for labour Labour market trends Also very important. The strength of the overall labour market determines how easy or difficult it is to recruit staff and the market rate for paying them Economic conditions Closely linked to market demand. A weak economy may lower wage rages and make it easier to recruit (and vice versa). But poor economic growth is likely to result in lower market demand too Social and political change E.g. demographic factors may affect the supply of labour (ageing population; more single-person households). Legislation such as the minimum wage directly affects staff costs in many industries. Local factors Local labour market may be affected by specific factors such as changes in transport links, quality of local schools, major changes in substantial local business employers

10. Handling a labour shortage When a business does not have enough labour to be able to meet production demand

13. Excess labour When a business has too many employees for its needs

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