fife council workforce planning toolkit - west web viewthis document is designed to provide guidance...

West Lothian Council

A guide to workforce planning

August 2014

DATA LABEL: INTERNAL

Contents

Introduction..........................................................................................................................3

What is workforce planning?..................................................................................................3

Why plan your workforce?.....................................................................................................3

The benefits...........................................................................................................................4

The process...........................................................................................................................4

Stage 1 – Where are you now?...........................................................................................5

Establish current position.......................................................................................................5

Workforce profile....................................................................................................................5

Worked Example....................................................................................................................6

Stage 2 – Where do you want to get to?............................................................................7

Worked Example....................................................................................................................7

Stage 3 – Where are the gaps.............................................................................................9

Prioritisation of Gaps and Needs...........................................................................................9

Worked Example....................................................................................................................9

Stage 4 – How are you going to get there?.....................................................................10

Develop Your Workforce Development Plan.......................................................................10

Review and Evaluation........................................................................................................10

Making the Process Work....................................................................................................10

Further Information............................................................................................................11

Appendix 1 – Workforce Profile.......................................................................................12

Appendix 2 – Workforce Profile and Service Data Prompt Questions.........................16

Appendix 3 - PEST/LE Model..........................................................................................18


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Introduction

Our Corporate plan has promised that the council will ensure that it has the visionary leadership, organisational flexibility and people capacity required to deliver improved services, greater efficiency and better customer focus in front line services, in line with being an excellent organisation. The workforce plan should support the council’s mission, values and guiding principles.

This document is designed to provide guidance on the workforce planning process. It will outline the key stages of workforce planning and explain the tools that you will be given to help you through the process. In addition, this document also contains a worked example based on “HR – Any Council” to illustrate the process.

What is workforce planning?

There is no set model of workforce planning, nor is it a mechanistic or static process. It is about analysing the current workforce, and then extending that analysis to identify the future skills and competencies needed to deliver new and improved services.

The comparison between the present workforce and the desired future workforce will highlight shortages, surpluses and competency gaps, whether due to external pressure or internal factors. These gaps become the focus of a detailed workforce plan, identifying and implementing strategies that will build the relevant skills and capacity needed for organisational success.

Why plan your workforce?

The majority of improvements come when the right people with the right knowledge, skills and behaviours are deployed appropriately throughout the structure.

Workforce planning is about how you achieve that match. It can make the links between business strategies and your people plans for recruitment and retention, staff development and training. It is about how you get to where you want to be.

It also provides the opportunity for longer term thinking about future service pressures and needs, and what you need to do now to get workable strategies in place – not only for people development, but for financial and change management agendas. Workforce planning is perhaps the most important tool in managing change in any labour intensive service and as such will assist you in:

1. Analysing the current make up and skills of your workforce

Where are you now?

2. Identifying the future workforce required to deliver changing services

Where are you trying to get to?

3. Highlighting shortages, surpluses and competency gaps

What are the gaps?

4. Planning how you will change your workforce to meet your service needs

How are you going to get there?


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Stage1

Where are you now?

Stage 2

Where are you trying to get to?

Workforce planning should be an open process conducted with the collaboration of staff, trade union representatives and partners within and external to the Council it should be developed in accordance with best practice and procedures.

The benefits

Workforce planning will help you to:

Decide how many employees will be needed for future demands Cope with peaks and troughs in supply and demand for different skills Deliver improved customer focus by aligning service plans to people plans Retain employees and identify longer term workplace accommodation

requirements Implement diversity policies effectively Manage staff performance and sickness absence Ensure that sufficient and appropriate training and development is provided Build links between Financial Planning and WLAM requirements

Your plan should be prepared, reviewed and updated on a regular cycle that links closely with the Council’s Business Planning Cycle.

The process

The process for establishing a workforce plan is as follows:


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Stage 3 Stage 4

What are the gaps?

How are you going to get there?

Stage 1 – Where are you now?

It is important that the Head of Service and senior management team are signed up to the process and champion the cause, providing the necessary leadership to ensure the process is implemented effectively and consistently.

Establish current position

The key outcomes for this section is to generate useful information from a variety of existing management information systems and bring it together into a coherent framework for a specific service or directorate.

Allied to this is the generation of quality information about the supply of skills internally, in the wider external labour market and partner organisations. This is being driven by the need to address both shorter-term issues of recruitment and retention and longer-term business needs like partnership working.

Workforce profile

An in-depth understanding of the existing workforce is the basis for looking at trends and will help to establish strengths and weaknesses of your current situation. The information required for effective workforce planning will be collated from a number of sources. A workforce profile to support workforce planning has been suggested and will be collated from a number of sources:

Workforce profile – this will provide comprehensive information on the current workforce and will be provided by Business Partners. Appendix 1 gives further information on the information that will be provided.

Service specific information – information that may be useful includes

Service plans Improvement plans Planned initiatives (e.g. introduction of electronic forms) Project work (e.g. process review using lean management) Financial and other resource limitations Predicted legislative changes Benchmarking information

Workforce profile and service specific data prompt questions – appendix 2 provides details of the types of issues that should be considered when developing a workforce plan

Corporate Information – this could include the following:

Community Plan Corporate Plan Outcome Agreement Locality Plans Service Plan Improvement Plans Modernising Agenda Financial Plan Risk management plan and policy


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Worked Example

Service Unit Possible Issues Supporting Information

Health and Safety

Static workforce. Turn over - small team so 1 leaver inflates figure

Age Profile – 1 possible retiral within next 5 years

No temporary contracts No recruitment issues

Turnover 14.3% compares to council level of 6.2%

57% staff over 50

HR Business and Administration

Majority of female employees Young age profile Turnover figure inflated by

temporary contracts High number of temporary

contracts 4 casual employees No recruitment issues 4 temporary employees in post

more than 2 years.

90% female staff compares to Council level of 71%

58% under 40 9.7% turnover compared

to Council figure of 6.2% 22.6% temporary

contracts (7 out of 31)

Pay and Reward Static workforce. Turnover relates to council average

1 temporary contract Possible retirements in future. 8

staff aged 56 – 65. Predominately female workforce Many have over 10 years service Significant part time / jobshare

work patterns

45% of employees over 50

93% female employees 55% over 10 years

service 37% part time / flexible

working

Learning and Development

Manager and one staff member on secondment

Turn over significant. Many leavers no replacements to date

1 staff member nearing retirement Age profile is satisfactory Grades of posts. 4 advisers, 1

senior adviser, 1 manager.

33% on secondment 66.7% turnover

Policy Can staffing level support the policy review and development required by the organisation?

Static Workforce

1.4 FTE

Management Support

Turnover rate inflated due to small numbers of staff

1 possible retiral with in next 5 years.

50% turnover


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Stage 2 – Where do you want to get to?

To ensure that the service has the right people in the right place with the right skills at the right time to deliver continuously improving services it is necessary to try and predict the level of service required and the way that it will be delivered in the future.

Although it is impossible to predict the future with any certainty, undertaking this process enables the organisation to make staffing decisions now that take account of the longer-term context.

To help make that assessment the following information will be important:

A clear understanding of the corporate vision and objectivesThe likely impact of central government initiatives e.g. efficiency reviewThe key objectives for each service area.Planned major changes/reorganisationsThe predicted workforce profile in five/ten yearsWhat initiatives are already in place to fill future skill gaps e.g. succession planning,

specific training initiativesRecruitment and retention hotspotsDemographic changes that could impact on services

See Appendix 3 for the PESTLE model. This lists the external factors to be considered e.g. political, economic, social, technical, legislative and environmental which may influence where you are trying to get to.

Worked Example

Re structured service

Address acting up and temporary contract situation Current vacancy situation Review posts, grades and re-deployment Brigade knowledge, skills and resources to address corporate and HR agendas Consider administration support with new agendas and business as usual –

diagnostic? Efficiency agenda – how do we make savings?

Respond to Current agendas

Move to Civic Centre Modernisation agenda – electronic forms, new ways of working, self service Efficiencies agenda – how do we make savings? Recruitment Portal – training for staff and managers Single Status – phase 2 EDRM Mobile / flexible / home working Review of manager programmes Maintenance and development of MyToolkit and e-learning New and revised policies and procedures required for agendas - e.g. mobile and

home working AHP – Sickness absence Developing new skills and knowledge - e.g. data manipulation and analysis for

HoS reports.


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Services efficiencies agendas will have impact on HR Input Equalities legislation Government Legislation – e.g. changes in Employment Law Demands from Council Services

Possible Issues

Do we have the breadth and depth of knowledge and experience to address the agendas?

Do we have the right mix of personnel working in the right areas? Can we support the policy development required to address the main corporate

agendas? What systems and processes can be developed to ensure smooth transitions? Adviser groups in HR Business and health and Safety split under single status.


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Stage 3 – Where are the gaps

Having established what the future may look like together with the skills and competencies that may be expected it is necessary to compare that information with the information gathered from Stage two. Once the imbalances have been identified it will then be necessary to prioritise based on their impact.

Prioritisation of Gaps and Needs

The following table identifies the types of gaps and needs that may be highlighted as part of the workforce planning process

Low impact High impact

Large gap Priority 3 large gap and low impact

Priority1 high impact and large gap

Small gap Priority 4 small gap and low impact

Priority 2 high impact and small gap

Worked Example

Low impact High impact

Large gap

Gender balance of workforce

Developing a consistent customer focused, consultative approach

E-learning expertise within team

Structure required to support vision and objectives

Do we have the resources in place to support the policy development required for current agendas?

Do we have the resources in place to respond appropriately to the large Corporate agendas? (Single status, Civic Centre, EDRM, EHP, mobile and home working)

Accuracy of information from CHRIS

Small gap

Links with support units within services eg. H&S, L&D

IT skills to manipulate data for analysis Numbers and length of time staff have

been on temporary contracts Tension between expectations of

Services and addressing corporate agendas

Sharing knowledge and cross working between teams in HR Service


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Stage 4 – How are you going to get there?

Develop Your Workforce Development Plan

Once the gaps have been identified and prioritised it will be possible to draw up a workforce development plan that will set down how you intend to deal with them. Not all of the gaps may be capable of local solution but it will be possible to identify regional and national issues enabling both West Lothian and other local authorities to work together with local and national agencies to help find appropriate solutions.

The workforce development plan is an action plan detailing what action you will take to meet future needs. Actions should not be restricted to learning and development solutions only but should also include the following:

Redesign and remodel jobs Opportunities for joint delivery or shared services with partnersExtended sources of recruitmentEnhanced role/promotion opportunities for internal employees across service

boundariesReview of qualification and entry requirements for posts that are difficult to recruitGreater job flexibility e.g. more flexible working Increase Learning and Development opportunitiesUndertake process redesign and improvement Improve productivity

The workforce development plan should also include performance measures to measure progress and clearly indicate resource implications. It should also take account of other initiatives that may impact upon the plan.

Review and Evaluation

For workforce planning to be effective it should be subject to regular review and evaluation. The review process should be integrated into the annual service planning process and should be updated when major initiatives/changes are planned. The authors of any reports proposing significant changes within the service or directorate should therefore be required to show the people management and consequent resource implications of their proposals as well as the impact upon the workforce development plan.

Making the Process Work

For the process to work there needs to be:

Commitment from the senior management team and leading members. An approach that is merged into existing corporate and service/business planning

processes rather than something which just appears to make more work. Willingness by managers to help, especially in identifying future service needs. A champion or champions with influence to drive the initiative forward. A flexible approach A willingness to look at a variety of different and innovative solutions to resolve

supply, competency and skill gaps


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Further Information

http://webgis/wlc/webgis.htm A mapping portal with information from service based geographical information systems.

http://www.idea.gov.uk Improvement and Development Agency for Local Government.

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/home Scottish Government information

http://www.improvementservice.org.uk Improvement Service

Organisational Change and People Development team – HR Shared ServicesEmail [email protected]


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mailto:[email protected]

http://www.improvementservice.org.uk/

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/home

http://www.idea.gov.uk/

http://webgis/wlc/webgis.htm

Appendix 1 – Workforce Profile

Topic Management Issue

Employment Status 1

1.1 Total number of employees

1.2 Number of employees with permanent contracts

1.3 The number of people on temp contracts

1.4 The number of staff in specific apprenticeship posts

1.5 Number of casual/supply workers

1.6 Number of employees on a fixed-term contract for longer than 2 years

1.7 Total number of employees

1.8 Number of full-time employees

1.9 Number of part-time/job share employees

1.10 Number of casual/supply workers

Salary Grades 2

% No

2.1 Band C

2.2 Band D

2.3 Band E

2.4 Band F

2.5 Band G

2.6 Band H

2.7 Band I

2.8 Band J

2.9 Band K

2.10 Band L

2.11 Band M

2.12 Band N


Topic Management Issue

Equality Issues 3

3.1 Percentage of staff from Black and Ethnic Minority Communities within the service

3.2 Percentage of staff from Black and Ethnic Minority Communities within West Lothian Council

3.3 Percentage of West Lothian population from Black and Ethnic Minority community (2001 census)

3.4 Percentage of Female staff within the service

3.5 Percentage of Female staff within West Lothian Council

3.6 Percentage of Females within West Lothian (2001 census)

3.7 Percentage of disabled staff within the service

3.8 Percentage of disabled staff within West Lothian Council

3.9 Equality Monitoring Questionnaire return rate across West Lothian Council

Age Profile 4

% No

4.1 Staff aged over 70

4.2 Staff aged 66 - 70







4.9 Staff aged under 21Leavers 5 5.1 Turnover rate for the service area (12 months to 31 October 2008)


Topic Management Issue5.2 Turnover rate for West Lothian Council (12 months to 31 October 2008)

5.3 No of staff leaving employment due to the non-renewal of a fixed-term contract

5.4 Number of employees on fixed term contracts nearing completion in the next 6 months (1.11.08 - 30.04.09)

5.5 Number of staff who left in the last 12 months (Not inc Contract Expired)

5.6 Number of staff who left in their first year (Not inc Contract Expired)

5.7 Number of employees leaving due to:

5.7.1 Retirement

5.7.2 Early Retirement

5.7.3 Ill Health Retirement

5.7.4 Deceased

5.7.5 Other Employment in WLC

5.7.6 Other Employment out of WLC

5.7.7 Dismissal – Capability

5.7.8 Dismissal – Misconduct

5.7.9 Leaving Area

5.7.10 Pregnancy

5.7.11 Personal Reasons

5.7.12 Voluntary Severance/Redundancy

5.7.13 Other Reason – Non-SpecificLength of Service 6

6.1 Employees who will reach their normal retirement age in the next 5 years

6.2 Percentage of staff with 10 or more years service6.3 Percentage of staff with 1 to 9 years service


Topic Management Issue6.4 Percentage of staff with less than 1 years service

Recruitment 7

7.1 Total number of posts advertised

7.2 Total number of posts advertised externally

7.3 Total number of posts advertised internally only

7.4 Total advertising spend

7.5 Average length of time taken to fill a post (days)


Appendix 2 – Workforce Profile and Service Data Prompt Questions

Workforce Profile Data - Prompt questions

Topic Questions to consider Gaps/issues Identified (HR Example)

Employment Status Has your workforce grown - or reduced? Does this change match with your plans or did something unexpected

happen? Is there a trend towards part-time working? Is it at all levels or only certain grades? Are there levels of staff, which are more likely to work part-time? Does this mix of full and part-time staff affect shift arrangements Has your agency/temporary staff increased or decreased over the review

period Has your use of overtime increased or decreased? Have you examined the reasons for overtime working

Reduced. mainly through retirement. Supports efficiency agenda but was

in the main unplanned. Not a trend but balanced Mainly administration staff N/A N/A Increased OT during Pay award

processing and SS requirements

Salary Grades Is the distribution appropriate for service delivery Is there a relationship between salary band and gender

Currently under review Predominately female workforce

Equality Issues Is this mix appropriate – does it match your local population? Have you analysed your ethnic mix by grade/level and by training uptake to

ensure equality of opportunity for all your staff?

Does not reflect population profile No analysis. Development

monitored through PR&PDPAge Profile and Length of Service

Have you tried to match the age profile with the length of service patterns to see how this is contributing to your retention issues?

Have you used this to inform your succession and development plans? Can you use this information to estimate likely turnover? Are there clusters of retirements at certain ages or in certain groups? When forecasting retirements, have you allowed for the residual early

retirement rights of certain groups of staff (e.g. mental health officers)? Have you discussed with your HR Business Partner flexible working options

for staff nearing retirement? What are the key skills and knowledge you will be losing when these people

retire? Have you looked at how to replace these skills?

Issues in P&R however there are no recruitment issues in this area

Review under way + new ways of working.

Can contribute to process Nature of processes changing so

anticipated retirements and required skill sets will be factored into workforce planning activities.

Leavers Is the rate unusual? If so, can you explain why? Is your turnover rate consistently high or low? Does this vary by staff group or by grade?

Acceptable except in L&D Consistent with Council figure

except for L&D


What is the effect on your recruitment budget? Is there a trend building up? Have you analysed the reasons why staff are leaving? Is there a particular

labour market issue involved here (e.g. new employers in the area offering more competitive terms and conditions)

Can you see a relationship with high levels of recruitment, vacancies, age etc?

Is there too much stability in some areas?

No pattern emerging Online advertising reduces costs No trends evident Have not analysed reasons for

leaving

Recruitment Is the vacancy situation unusual - if so, why? Which posts are particularly hard to fill? Has the recruitment effort been redirected to address the problem areas? What other strategies are being explored to reduce vacancies? Have you looked at the cost-effectiveness of your recruitment effort? Is your actual recruitment reflecting your equal opportunity targets? Have you looked at the labour market for other forms of recruitment and other

sources of recruit? Have you been able to recruit enough new qualifiers? Have you had skills issues with the new qualifiers? Has this been followed

up? Are staff aware of opportunities and possible career pathways? Has additional training been required to up skill staff? Do you support staff to pursue necessary qualifications (i.e. appropriate study

leave etc)

Not unusual No hard to fill vacancies Mobile and flexible working being

considered Can recruit new qualifiers and

experienced staff Skill sets and knowledge (eg.

Employment Law) constantly being reviewed

Support staff to gain CIPD and Payroll Qualifications


Appendix 3 - PEST/LE Model

PEST/LE Model for Workforce Planning

Political Issues Economic Issues

Accountability

Transparency

Equal opportunity

Diversity

Best value

Partnership working

E-government

Public/private finance

Pay rates

Skill shortages

Economic development plans

Cost of living

Housing costs

Corporate risk

Social Issues Technological Issues

Changing customer expectations and needs

More sophisticated market

Changing demographics

Changing employee expectations and need e.g. work/life balance

Inequalities and deprivation

Qualifications, skills and competencies

Flexible working opportunities

Innovation – new equipment, new techniques, new methodologies

Information technology

Communications

Improved transport/increased mobility

New ways of working

Legislation Environmental Issues

Service obligations

Employment legislation

Human Rights Act

Environmental legislation

European directives

Increased awareness and expectations

Local markets

Stricter controls

Pressure groups


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