Workforce Planning

Defining Strategic Priorities

A strong workforce plan starts with a clear business strategy.

I partner with Total Rewards, HR business partners, and leaders to understand where the business is today and what it needs next. I use STARS to identify the current stage and TOWS to turn that insight into clear strategic priorities.

STARS

Every function or initiative sits at a different point in its life cycle, and that stage changes what actually needs to happen next. I use Michael Watkins' STARS model to diagnose which of six stages a team or initiative is really in before deciding on a strategy, since the right move for a struggling turnaround looks nothing like the right move for a team in accelerated growth.

Some are just getting off the ground, building their foundation from nothing (Startup). Others are scaling fast and need to hold onto agility while the pace picks up (Accelerated Growth).

Some have already found their footing and just need steady hands to keep the momentum going, especially if they're following someone who did the job well before them (Sustaining Success). Others are starting to drift off course and need a correction before small issues become a real crisis (Realignment).

Some are already in serious trouble and need real work to rebuild trust and performance (Turnaround). And some have simply run their course and need a clean, deliberate wind-down rather than being kept alive past their usefulness (Shutdown).

TOWS

A strategy built only from internal opinions misses half the picture. I use TOWS analysis, a deliberate flip of the traditional SWOT, to map external threats and opportunities against internal weaknesses and strengths first, so the priorities that come out of it are grounded in the real environment, not just internal assumptions.

Row 1: External Environment

External Environment: the market trends, economic conditions, customer needs, and competitors that shape business strategy from outside the organization.

Threats: external factors that could hurt performance, competitiveness, or the organization's ability to hit its goals.

Opportunities: external conditions or emerging trends the organization can use to drive growth, innovation, or competitive advantage.

Row 2: Organizational Capabilitiesw

Organizational Capabilities: the internal strengths, resources, processes, and competencies that make business success possible.

Weaknesses: internal limitations, capability gaps, or process inefficiencies that hold back performance or create risk.

Strengths: internal advantages, expertise, or capabilities that set the organization apart and support its strategic goals.

Row 3: Strategy Development

Strategy Development: where internal and external insight come together to define priorities, address risks, and act on opportunities.

Critical Threats: the risks serious enough to need immediate attention, given their potential impact on business continuity or strategic goals.

Targets of Opportunities: the highest-value opportunities worth the organization's investment, resources, and focus for maximum impact.

Workforce Assessment

You can’t plan for the future without understanding the workforce you have today.

I partner with leaders to assess team structures, identify gaps, and determine whether the right people are in the right roles. A talent review brings five areas together:

Competencies: What skills and capabilities exist today.
Performance: How employees are performing against expectations.
Aspirations: Where employees want to grow.
Skill Gaps: What capabilities are missing for future needs.
Retention Risk: Who may leave and the potential impact of losing them.

Together, these build a single, comprehensive talent inventory, the foundation every later step in workforce planning builds on.

Talent Strategy

Closing workforce gaps starts with choosing the right approach.

I build workforce strategies that develop future skills, retain key talent, and prepare for workforce needs over the next three years. Depending on the gap, I use five approaches: buy, build, borrow, redeploy, or automate. I measure the results to make sure the value outweighs the cost.

Buy: Hire external talent to fill skill or role gaps.
Build: Develop existing employees through upskilling and reskilling.
Borrow: Use contractors, freelancers, or temporary talent for short-term or specialized needs.
Redeploy: Move employees into roles where their skills are needed most.
Automate: Use technology to handle routine work and improve efficiency.

Strategic Workforce Planning Toolkit

Good workforce planning needs structure without being rigid.

I use a flexible workforce planning toolkit that lets leaders focus on the steps that fit their needs. Each step provides a clearer view of workforce structure, skills, risks, and readiness using the frameworks outlined above.

Define Strategic Priorities: Connect workforce needs to business strategy using STARS and TOWS.
Assess Current Talent: Understand workforce strengths, gaps, and risks using tools like the 9-box, skills analysis, succession plans, spans and layers, and talent inventories.
Develop Talent Strategies: Close workforce gaps using buy, build, borrow, redeploy, automate, and targeted retention strategies.
Implement Action Plan: Turn strategy into a 3-, 6-, and 12-month plan with clear actions and success measures.
Monitor and Adjust: Track performance, engagement, retention, goal attainment, and attrition, then adjust the plan as needs change.

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