Executive Training

WORKFORCE FORECASTING AND MANAGEMENT

The purpose of workforce forecasting and management is to ensure agencies have the workers with needed skills and competencies to support the strategic direction, agency mission, goals and objectives. To build a highly skilled and competent workforce, Human Resource solutions must be flexible and business-oriented.

ISI Professional Services has the capacity to help your organization align workforce forecasting and management with the agency’s strategic direction to ensure you have the resources to accomplish your mission.

The ISI Model, described below, is both flexible and business-oriented. Its purpose is to guide workforce forecasting and management decisions. The process does not need to be time consuming or cumbersome and many agencies may have already accomplished aspects of the Model.

Phase I – Create Strategic Direction

An understanding of the agency’s strategic direction and human capital plan is the first step to translating the strategic direction to workforce strategies. This phase of workforce forecasting and management complements the strategic direction of the agency. With this knowledge, proper workforce analysis and strategies can be accomplished.

Phase II – Conduct a Workforce Analysis

The process involves identifying critical positions as well as relevant workforcedata. This would include retirement and turn-over projections, workforce demographics, employee skill assessment, anticipated program and workforce changes, number and kinds of employees and contract workers, and the like. The kind and amount of data will vary by agency and its workforce needs. The analysis results in a workforce profile to be used to devise workforce strategies such as addressing skill gaps and / or surpluses.

Phase III – Devise Workforce Strategies

The process includes identifying measurable recruitment, retention, employee development, technology, and sourcing options, as well as strategies for reducing, expanding or restructuring the workforce. This Phase results in expected deliverables with associated timelines, and budget, technology and other resource projections. Measures and metrics are devised to identify if the strategies employed meet the intended result.

Phase IV – Implement Workforce Strategies

This step brings the plan to life and involves implementing recruitment, retention and development strategies to address identified skill gaps and / or surpluses, and other identified workforce and organizational needs using timelines identified in Phase III. It also involves communicating the strategies and the plan.

Phase V – Monitor and Evaluate

This Phase includes measuring the success of the strategies employed. Periodic evaluations of workforce strategies are key to continuous improvement and the ability to re-focus strategies to address unanticipated program, workforce or organizational changes. This phase also involves an assessment of the implementation strategies to identify if they contribute to the organization’s strategic direction.

Phase VI - Revise

This Phase involves readjusting the model, as needed, to maximize results and to respond to unanticipated changes.

---

The ISI Workforce Forecasting and Management Model will systematically allow your agency to:

• Build and sustain a high performing workforce
• Identify skills needed to accomplish the mission and strategic goals
• Determine if the current workforce possesses the required skills
• Define strategies and sources to meet future skill requirements
• Identify functions or skills that may no longer be required
• Prepare for restructuring, reduction or expansion of the workforce
• Address the loss of knowledge, experience and skill imbalances
• Anticipate workers’ changing values and expectations
• Identify realistic staffing projections
• Maintain and improve workforce diversity
• Link expenditures for training, re-training, recruitment, and retention to the strategic direction
• Ensure replacements are available to fill critical positions quickly
• Create the right balance of staff across disciplines

ISI Professional Services will ensure that workforce plans compliment the agency’s strategic direction and annual performance plans so that accurate decision making about structure, alignment and deployment of the workforce can be accomplished.

One of the most difficult situations in any organization is determining how to deal with organizational changes caused by shortage of funds, closure of a program, restructuring or a lack of work. Many times these changes result in the need to reduce the current workforce. ISI can help you institute procedures to eliminate or mitigate the need to involuntarily separate employees due to these organizational changes.

Call ISI Professional Services to explore your current and future workforce challenges. Our senior-level consultants will help your organization with its workforce needs and guide you toward maximizing organizational performance. Seek out our expertise today by calling 202-263-0898.