Workforce planning is the process of balancing labour supply (skills) against the demand (numbers needed). It includes analysing the current workforce, determining future workforce needs, identifying the gap between the present and the future, and implementing solutions so that an organisation can accomplish its mission, goals, and strategic plan. It’s about getting the right number of people with the right skills employed in the right place at the right time, at the right cost and on the right contract to deliver an organisation’s short and long-term objectives. Workforce planning can enable sustainable organisation performance through better decision-making about the future people needs of the business.

Larger organisations may have dedicated workforce planning teams. Others may start the process following a specific event such as a merger, acquisition or a transformational change project. But a focus on broader workforce planning is important at any time. It can uncover obstacles or unrealistic targets that could hinder strategic change, and provide solutions to mitigate risks to strategic objectives.

Workforce planning processes can:

In turn, this will inform HR practices such as:

For more information on some of these topics, view our other factsheets on talent management, succession planning, recruitment, flexible working, job design and identifying learning and development needs.

Workforce planning will vary in timeframe, scale and the roles covered. It can be seen in fairly basic operational terms, such as the need for call centres to be appropriately staffed, or that sufficient people are recruited to fulfil a specific project or deadline. Alternatively, it can be longer-term plan to ensure the right talent is in the right roles and better understand what future workforce will be needed. Many people practitioners link workforce planning to talent planning or succession planning and the results inform resourcing plans which are implemented locally by line managers.

Whatever its form, workforce planning should be linked to the organisation’s goals and be part of the strategic business planning process. It is an opportunity for senior leaders to engage with and set the agenda for workforce change.

Our Strategic workforce planning guide gives more detail and a variety of approaches.