SAP Workforce Planning

What Is SAP Workforce Planning?

Companies that want to better anticipate staffing needs — be they through organizational change, growth, or seasonal impact — use workforce planning. The process of workforce planning brings a data-driven approach to forecasting workforce requirements and strives to ensure a company is optimizing its hiring and training. Technology also plays a role in workforce planning, and SAP Workforce Planning is offered in the cloud-based SAP SuccessFactors Workforce Planning module.

Good workforce planning typically includes analysis of the following:

Available talent
Forecasted talent needs
Gaps between what is forecasted and what is available
Determination of how to fill talent gaps.

Filling talent gaps goes beyond simply hiring full-time workers. It can also include part-time or seasonal labor or contract work. The solution to workforce deficits may be inside the company already and achieved through training and promotion from within.

SAP Workforce Planning with SAP SuccessFactors Workforce Planning is one option for SAP customers, but it’s not the only option available. For example, vendors such as Alight offer pre-packaged workforce planning solutions. SAP partners like IBM and Accenture help companies implement workforce planning processes and technologies.

What Is SAP Workforce Planning?

Good workforce planning typically includes analysis of the following:

Available talent
Forecasted talent needs
Gaps between what is forecasted and what is available
Determination of how to fill talent gaps.

Key Considerations for SAP Workforce Planning

Data-driven workforce planning is still a strategic advantage. While it may seem like every company is engaging in HR best practices that include workforce planning, the truth is workforce planning and analytics tools are among the lowest adoption of HR software types, according to data from our recent HR technology research. Implementing a workforce planning process can give your organization a competitive edge.
Bring HR together with finance and the business for workforce planning. Workforce planning is at its best when all relevant sources of insight and information are brought to the table. Finance can provide critical data on budget and forecasted company performance. Business executives drive the direction of the organization that will ultimately create staffing needs. Combine business and finance with HR’s insight for the best workforce planning outcomes.
Define your workforce planning requirements. Determining the goals of your workforce planning program before undertaking the actual analysis will help drive more effective results. Figure out which departments and skill sets are most likely to need planning assistance. Additionally, identify specific time frames for planning — are you looking at the next year or beyond?

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