A practical toolkit for workforce planning (2002)

Strategic Staffing by Thomas P. Bechet • Hardcover: 336 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 1.17 x 10.34 x 7.10 • Publisher: AMACOM; Book and CD-ROM edition (June 15, 2002) • ISBN: 0814407285 • Average Customer Review: STRATEGIC STAFFING 9340$$ $$FM 04-23-02 12:02:43 PS @Team-FLY This Page Intentionally Left Blank STRATEGIC STAFFING A Practical Toolkit for Workforce Planning Thomas P. Bechet American Management Association New York • Atlanta • Brussels • Buenos Aires • Chicago • London • Mexico City • San Francisco Shanghai • Tokyo • Toronto • Washington, D.C. 9340$$ $$FM 04-23-02 12:02:44 PS Special discounts on bulk quantities of AMACOM books are available to corporations, professional associations, and other organizations. For details, contact Special Sales Department, AMACOM, a division of American Management Association, 1601 Broadway, New York, NY 10019. Tel.: 212-903-8316 Fax: 212-903-8083 Web site: www.amacombooks.org This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional service. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Bechet, Thomas P. Strategic staffing: a practical toolkit for workforce planning / Thomas P. Bechet. p. cm. ISBN 0-8144-0728-5 (hard : alk. paper) 1. Manpower planning. 2. Strategic planning. I. Title. HF5549.5.M3 B43 2002 2002004851 ᭧ 2002 Thomas P. Bechet. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. This publication may not be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in whole or in part, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of AMACOM, a division of American Management Association, 1601 Broadway, New York, NY 10019. Printing number 10987654321 9340$$ $$FM 04-23-02 12:02:45 PS To Ann and Leigh: Thank you for your love and support— and for putting up with all those nights away from home. 9340$$ $$FM 04-23-02 12:02:45 PS This Page Intentionally Left Blank @Team-FLY Contents Preface ix Section 1: Setting the Context 1 1. An Overview of This Book 3 2. What Is Strategic Staffing, Anyway? 7 3. Developing Staffing Strategies That Really Work 17 Section 2: Developing the Strategic Staffing Process 37 4. The Strategic Staffing Process 39 5. Defining Required Staffing Levels 79 6. Defining Staffing Requirements Where Plans Are Uncertain 107 7. A Staffing Model Example 123 8. Effective Strategic Staffing: Case Studies and Examples 141 Section 3: Implementing and Supporting Your Strategic Staffing Process 167 9. Implementing Your Process Effectively 169 10. Placing Strategic Staffing Within Your Business Context 183 11. Assessing Your Current Strategic Staffing Process 203 12. Involving Managers in the Strategic Staffing Process 207 13. Developing a Strategic Staffing Web Site 217 Section 4: Beyond Staffing Plans: Analyzing and Applying the Results 227 14. Measuring Staffing Effectiveness and Efficiency 229 15. Calculating Staffing Costs and Evaluating Staffing Options 237 16. Defining Staffing Reductions in a Strategic Context 253 Appendix A. Frequently Asked Questions 259 Appendix B. Using the Strategic Staffing Templates from the CD-ROM 267 Appendix C. Using the Suggested Overheads 287 Glossary 327 Index 331 About the Author 339 vii 9340$$ CNTS 04-23-02 12:02:53 PS viii Contents Computer Files (Provided on CD-ROM) Strategic Staffing Diagnostic Worksheet Strategic Staffing Assessment Form Staffing Model Example Strategic Staffing Templates Suggested Overheads 9340$$ CNTS 04-23-02 12:02:53 PS Preface Most organizations understand the benefits that a longer-term ap- proach to staff planning can bring. Many actually attempt to de- velop staffing strategies (or strategic workforce plans, as they are also known). Unfortunately, these companies often find that the tra- ditional approaches to strategic staffing and workforce planning that they are trying to implement are ineffective, and that the ex- pected benefits are not realized. To me, the solution to this problem lies not in trying to improve the effectiveness of the traditional ap- proach, but in implementing a completely different kind of process for strategic staffing. This book describes that process. It is a practical resource for those who are just starting to implement strategic staffing as well as for those who are searching for ways to make their current practices more effective. It can be followed step by step to initiate a strategic staffing process or used as a sourcebook that is referred to periodi- cally to maintain or improve the effectiveness of a process that is already in place. It contains process descriptions, hints, tools, exam- ples, and other practical advice. I’ve included only those approaches and techniques that have proved to be the most valued by clients and other practitioners. Many of the ideas here are new (at least, I hope they are!); others are simply improvements on the tried and true. Some of my sugges- tions may seem unorthodox at first, but based on my more than twenty years of consulting in this area, I know that they really work. Some of what I propose may challenge your understanding of what strategic staffing is and how it should be implemented. In some cases, I may seem to push the bounds of conventional thinking and challenge those more traditional approaches. Needless to say, the strategic staffing processes described here are not the only ones that can be beneficial. Your organization may have been successful in implementing some of the very practices ix 9340$$ PREF 04-23-02 12:02:54 PS [...]... creating) staffing strategies that fully address the first! Tailor the Process for Each Issue In a traditional system, each unit is typically asked to provide the same information regarding staffing, using a common template, at the same time each year, for the same planning period/time frame While this approach may bring consistency, it also forces every unit to adopt a process and a set of planning parameters... those areas or job categories in which staffing strategies are really needed Then develop a series of separate staffing strategies that address these particular areas and jobs Here are some examples of strategy development that addresses particular critical staffing issues: • Build a staffing strategy that focuses solely on positions that are absolutely critical to business success • Create a strategy for a. .. is an issue, the organization should: • Define its needs for management talent at a particular point in the future • Project the availability of qualified staff at that same point in time • Compare the two to see if there is indeed a critical gap Clearly, a definition of an issue that is based on a ‘‘gut feel’’ alone is inadequate Strategy Typically, a strategy is defined as a long-term, directional plan... to allow you to implement the strategic staffing process and see real benefits quickly @Team-FLY C H A P T E R 3 Developing Staffing Strategies That Really Work Traditional Approaches Just Aren’t Effective Most organizations that attempt to implement a strategic staffing process follow a fairly traditional approach Usually, these companies make staff planning a component of their annual business planning. .. mean ‘‘innovative.’’ There are many standard staffing practices that can be implemented in a very strategic manner Conversely, many innovative staffing practices are implemented only in the short term (and thus are not strategic at all) Staffing I have a very broad definition of staffing To me, staffing includes any action or movement that relates to getting people into, around, and/or out of an organization... solely staff-driven—or, worse yet, disappears completely More Effective Approaches to Strategic Staffing Often, implementing a different, more pragmatic approach to strategic staffing can yield the high-quality results that organizations need and expect Any approach to strategic staffing (or workforce planning) will include estimating staffing requirements, projecting staff availability, and calculating the... these cases When creating cross-unit staffing strategies, include in the analysis only those positions that are to be managed from a broader, cross-unit perspective (e.g., the project managers) Don’t look at all jobs across all units just because you need to look at some jobs that way Here is an example of a focused staffing strategy that spanned organizational units A company was implementing a new nationwide... request that managers identify their future staffing needs for each year of the planning period (usually in terms of headcount, not required capabilities), using a common template or form The templates are at a common level of detail and are based on common planning parameters (e.g., all units define requirements at a job-specific level for each of the coming three years) Once these templates are completed,... (including actual, numeric examples with solutions) • A discussion of various techniques that can be used to define useful staffing plans even when specific business plans are not complete or available • A complete numerical example of a staffing strategy (and the staffing plans that result) • Two detailed, ‘‘real-world’’ case studies, each of which describes the issues that an organization was facing and the staffing... (some for many months) Obviously, maintaining the unused facilities was quite costly A review of available staffing before the construction decision was made would have shown that a sequential (not simultaneous) opening of the medical centers would be more cost-effective Focus on Issues, Not Organizations Many organizations feel that because a particular staffing strategy is beneficial in one area, strategies . organizations understand the benefits that a longer-term ap- proach to staff planning can bring. Many actually attempt to de- velop staffing strategies (or strategic workforce plans, as they are also. Unfortunately, these companies often find that the tra- ditional approaches to strategic staffing and workforce planning that they are trying to implement are ineffective, and that the ex- pected. Page Intentionally Left Blank STRATEGIC STAFFING A Practical Toolkit for Workforce Planning Thomas P. Bechet American Management Association New York • Atlanta • Brussels • Buenos Aires • Chicago