International cafe chain Starbucks Coffee is using workforce demographic data to plan for a predicted peak in demand its Canadian business will experience during the Winter Olympics in Vancouver next February.

The coffee giant pioneered a workforce planning strategy three years ago, its head of strategic initiatives told a CIPD audience last week.

Lacey All told delegates the company’s strategy looked as far as two years in advance even though its expansion was mapped out in six-month periods. “We look at current statistics, environmental signals and business strategy using metrics like turnover, the home price index and consumer sentiment,” said All, adding that in the initial stages of development the strategy simply looked at headcount planning. The data also mitigates organisational risk, All added, who is involved with providing investors with information about the long-term sustainability of the company’s workforce.