Week 2 Discussion

Forecasting and Staffing Planning

Once the necessary initial decisions have been made in the human resource planning (HRP) process, forecasting activities can begin. There are three techniques of forecasting: statistical, judgmental, and scenario planning. In the statistical technique, methods such as trend analysis, ratio analysis, and regression analysis are used to give a speci�c estimate for staf�ng requirements and are increasingly common as human resource (HR) professionals are more often required to offer hard data to support their HR decisions.

After the organization’s staf�ng needs are clearly outlined, internal candidate availability is considered. Current employees can be vetted for promotability, gauging skill and job interest. Another method is Markov analysis that tries to predict availabilities based on historical job data. Markov analysis has limitations because it uses a small sample size, does not have the ability to detect multiple employee moves to other jobs, contains job levels that are too broad, and does not delve into the underlying causes of movement. Replacement and succession planning are methods in which current employees can be identi�ed for promotional or lateral movement within an organization. Replacement planning focuses on promotable employees who are ready for higher level positions or have the potential to �ll these positions.

The next step of the process is the staf�ng planning process. This step requires outlining staf�ng objectives. Gaps in Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, and Other Characteristics (KSAOs) and availability are examined, and quantitative and qualitative targets for staf�ng are created. Decisions must be made on the number of staff and the general minimum quali�cations required for hire. A baseline number of staff should be determined for the core workforce and decisions need to be made regarding the use of a �exible workforce option. Ensuring that groups covered under Title VII are included in the labor pool should address diversity concerns (Heneman, Judge, & Kammeyer-Mueller, 2015).

Additional Materials

From your course textbook, Staf�ng Organizations, read the following chapter:

Planning

From the South University Online Library, read the following articles:

How to. . .do HR Forecasting and Planning (http://www.thecampuscommon.com/library/ezproxy/ticketdemocs.asp? sch=suo&turl=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx? direct=true&db=ofm&AN=510204939&site=ehost-live)

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