Workforce Planning, Sheffield City Council

Sheffield City Council’s HR function wanted to assist their operational colleagues with increased support on workforce planning.
They were aware they need to enhance their capability and also “practice what they preached” in terms of a planned and analytical approach.
Ways HR Consulting offered assistance to facilitate the strategic plan of the new HR agenda and utilise their job family data to highlight role and structure issues.
Sheffield City Council had approximately 175 FTE HR professionals in 15 role profiles across three job families. Additional transactional services are contracted to Capita.

Objectives

To improve and develop a collective understanding of workforce planning across the Sheffield HR Function.
To enable the development of a considered and analytical workforce plan.
Undertake an intervention in a way that models workforce planning and provides a “skill transfer” to HR participants who will be involved in wider workforce planning.

Solution

We reviewed and analysed all of Sheffield’s existing role profiles, HR business plans and organisational structures.
We provided a facilitated workshop which was fully integrated with the existing HR business plan, the strategic financial context and the new OD alignment plan.
The workshop focused on a number of important issues including:
1. A discussion of the definitions and drivers of HR and workforce planning.
2. Overcoming the financial and logistical barriers to workforce planning.
3. The development of an HR plan and Gap Analysis for Sheffield City Council.
4. Review and analysis of HR talent to deliver a workforce plan.
The work highlighted clear gaps in the alignment of levels of HR roles with the current change agenda and specific expertise gaps.

Outcomes

Recommendations for an action plan for the development of the HR workforce based on the analysis and facilitated debate.
Increased capability and understanding regarding HR’s role in enabling wider organisational workforce planning.
Consultancy advice was provided for the HR management team as a summary of the exercise.

Contact

Ways HR