So, You Have A Plan?

During these days of economic upheaval and tremendous job losses, it’s hard to think about workforce planning …in fact it initially seems counter-intuitive! But wait; there’s more! While we’re in the middle of making decisions of huge impact regarding reductions-in-force, hiring freezes, plant closings, compensation and benefits redesigns and other employee-related issues, it makes perfect sense to really understand what we’re doing …and that involves workforce planning! Think about it for a moment; how many of us really did this process well during good times? How many of us will do it well during the bad times?

Many previous surveys demonstrated that most organizations, though being aware of the issues of the retiring baby-boomers, the aging workforce, different generations working together, etc., really didn’t understand the specifics of the impacts on them. Now that we’re in “survival mode” many companies are making mistakes that they might regret later. Let’s talk …

Just prior to the bottom falling out of the market, we all realized that well over 40% of our employee base was comprised of “Baby Boomers” who would become retirement eligible within a couple of years. We were all concerned about the loss of institutional knowledge, mentorship, etc. In fact, there are many companies and even many individual departments where the data is even more alarming! That hasn’t changed. In fact, the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) reported in their Workplace Forecast Executive Summary for 2006-2007, “demographic trends most likely to have a major impact on or cause a radical restructuring of the workplace”, some very notable data. Within the top five of these trends were; Aging of the workforce (#2), Demographic shifts leading to a shortage of skilled workers (#3) and Retirement of large numbers of baby boomers at around the same time (#4). Also in the same report, the fourth most significant “economic trends most likely to have a major impact or cause a radical restructuring of the workplace” was “Labor shortage at all levels.” As we deal with severe economic uncertainties and attempt to quickly reduce costs we may make bad decisions without some appropriate efforts toward workforce planning. When it comes to our workforce, the supply hasn’t much changed; just the current demand. When we reduce our workforces without careful study, it may be compared to lightening our load by throwing our most treasured possessions out first! Also, with extremely limited opportunities to hire, we should be maximizing our decisions.

So, Workforce Planning 101 asks, “do you really know your human capital inventory?” Do you really know, for instance:

• The number in each department who will be retirement eligible within X years?
• Of those who will become retirement eligible, how many will actually leave?
• Your diversity balance within each department?
• The cost of losing key employees?
• The available supply of the types of people necessary to run your business (those with the specific education, experiences, compensation, locations and interest)?
• How the way you currently treat your people will affect their willingness to stay when the market improves?
• How the way all the above and more will affect your ability to recruit, develop and retain your workforce in the future?

It makes good sense, especially when we are making such critical decisions, to do some basic workforce planning. Even if we’re having difficulty attempting to predict our future business needs, we can all have a much better understanding of our current human capital assets. With better knowledge, we can make better decisions. An investment in workforce planning makes sense considering the stakes!



The ISAAC Network, LLC is a consulting firm specializing in the issues that surround recruiting, employment and retention since 1994. Typical offerings include recruiting/employment process consulting; outsourced employment services (bundled or unbundled); competency modeling; interviewer/selection training; web-based employee surveys and analysis; workforce planning; mentor programs; and professional/executive search services. With offices in both New York and Tennessee the firm works with organizations of all sizes and types across the U.S. (and Canada). Call to discuss your issue in confidence at either 865-448-8700 (Townsend, TN) or 585-223-8810 (Fairport, NY).