Employers should look beyond short-term budgetary planning to the longer term needs of the organisation for sustained performance, according to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD).

The CIPD’s Resourcing and Talent Planning survey shows most organisations carry out workforce planning for the next 1-2 years (41%), while a fifth plan less than one year in advance (20%).

Angela Baron, engagement adviser, CIPD, says: “Workforce planning provides the basis for better decision-making to meet the future needs of the business in terms of its people resource. While some organisations have these processes in place, for many there is still a ’knowing-doing’ gap when it comes to workforce planning  This is a shame as it presents an important opportunity for HR to ‘raise the bar’ and ensure they are involved in strategic-level planning.

“While there should be a focus on the long term, it’s important that workforce plans are ‘living’ documents and are not set in stone. They need to be constantly reviewed and refreshed to ensure that the organisation can be agile and responsive to the demands of the changing business environment.”