We have a dedicated workforce planning team that supports leaders through a process designed to address changes impacting our ability to meet goals.
The method leads departments through four sessions that include systems thinking, design thinking, and scenario planning. The result is a comprehensive plan that has short-term and long-term objectives to meet future needs.
In this session, the leadership team is provided with workforce data analytics including industry, region, University, and department-specific information. We discuss the current indicators that change is occurring and identify challenges to meeting goals. The session introduces both system and design thinking and how we will apply these concepts in planning for our future workforce. This session also includes a discussion on what the vision of the team is. This sets the stage for our future discussions.
This session is a brainstorming session where we facilitate the gathering of all the changes that the team see around them. We discuss barriers to success, new work requirements, and group the indicators and trends into key change drivers. We first identify the change drivers, then generate solutions to solve them. These drivers are the focus of our next session.
In session three, we change the discussion to focus on possibilities. There is a summary of what is happening and what we expect to happen, and then start to discuss “what we might do.” This is a visionary exercise where design thinking is applied. There are no bad ideas, and all ideas are considered.
At this session, we regroup to discuss which options should be our preferred outcome. We plan for stakeholder feedback and backcast our ideas to ensure they are anchored to the University strategic plan, the academic mission, the student experience and support our research/scholarship activities.
Once all sessions are complete, an implementation plan is created to set short, medium- and long-term goals. A dedicated Human Resources Partner participates in Workforce Planning and supports the execution of the workforce plan, including change management. This results in translating strategy into day-to-day activities and goal setting at the team/individual level.
Regular touchpoints will be established to continue to monitor success and stay abreast of changes that could impact our ability to meet goals. This process should be revisited when multiple indicators exist that suggest revision to the workforce plan is needed.
We welcome the opportunity to discuss workforce planning and encourage you to reach out with questions or to book a meeting to get started.
General Inquiries | workforceplanning@uwaterloo.ca
