Building a future-ready team: effective workforce development strategies

In a world as ever-changing as ours, some leaders may wonder whether creating a plan is even worth it. If everything is going to change anyway, what’s the point in laying out a map of what to do next?

In actuality, planning is more important now than it’s ever been before. Change may be our only constant, but that doesn’t mean we can’t create—and don’t need—plans to navigate these changes effectively.

In fact, with the right workforce development plan, businesses will be equipped with the tools and infrastructure needed to capitalize on emerging opportunities and conquer any curveballs that come their way. Since not all approaches are created equally, we’ll break down what a top-performing workforce development strategy looks like and share some tips so that you can level up your own approach.

What is a workforce development plan?

A workforce development plan is a formal or informal program implemented by businesses to support career development. Traditionally, these plans focused on building specific skills, usually through training programs. Today, common strategies for employee development have expanded, with the most comprehensive workforce development plans now including educational opportunities, mentorships, coaching programs, and forums and webinars for employees to share best practices.

Some workforce development plans also build partnerships with other organizations to create opportunities for employees to gain new skills and certifications, often through shadowing, mentoring, and apprenticeship programs.

What is the purpose of a workforce development plan?

A workforce development plan is important because it creates a single source of truth that dictates training and development goals, as well as the steps leaders will need to take to achieve these objectives. Workforce development plans keep leaders across the organization aligned on what they’re trying to accomplish and the skills their people will need to turn big-picture goals into tangible realities.

Without a workforce development plan, employees may complete training that doesn’t align with organizational priorities or the direction of the business. Even worse, they may not pursue any development opportunities whatsoever, contributing to ever-widening knowledge gaps that will eventually slow output levels and revenue growth to a halt.

What should be included in an effective work development plan?

While every work development plan will differ depending on business priorities and the needs of the organization, most are comprised of the following components:

#1. Training and upskilling

Upskilling and training describe intentional learning processes where employees gain exposure to deeper knowledge, typically through content-based coursework and experiential learning opportunities. They enable employees to develop their mastery of both technical and soft skills. The goal of these initiatives is to help people move into more advanced roles and ensure workforces have the skills their businesses need to accomplish strategic priorities.

#2. Career development pathways

When employees can see the various directions their careers can go in, they will be inspired to continue developing their skills to turn their professional goals into realities. The best career pathing tools, found within an agile workforce OS, can pinpoint the exact skills people will need to hone so they can step into their dream roles, as well as projects and gigs within their company that will help them advance their careers.

#3. Succession planning

Part of a successful workforce development plan is thinking ahead and determining what training employees will need to eventually step into high-priority leadership roles. Succession planning ensures that productivity and employee morale don’t take a hit during periods of management turnover because there will always be employees with the skills and experience required to lead with confidence

#4. Performance management

HR leaders must take stock of employees’ progress and monitor how the work they’re doing aligns with expectations for their roles. Managers should meet with their direct reports regularly to discuss how various projects and deliverables are going and identify any missing skills that are holding people back. By routinely evaluating employees’ performance, leaders can adjust their workforce development plan to ensure all-star workers are on track to move into high-priority roles and employees whose performance needs improvement are getting the help they need.

5 steps to creating an effective workforce development plan

Looking to level up your workforce development plan? Consider the following best practices:

#1. Assess current capabilities

Before you can create a workforce development plan that addresses existing and emerging skill gaps, you need to know where your people’s skills lie to begin with. Traditionally, gaining a bird’s eye view of workforce capabilities has been hard to come by because skills information is often siloed into a few different HR systems. Most taxonomies are also out of date, leading to skill-building strategies that may not address the actual needs of the organization.

Rather than settling for this subpar understanding of workforce skills, companies are harnessing AI-powered systems like Gloat’s Skills Foundation to gain visibility into all of their people’s capabilities. These platforms are updated in real-time and pull from an employee’s LinkedIn profile or CV, in turn capturing the full range of knowledge and experience they’re bringing to the table.

#2. Forecast future workforce needs

Leaders must keep a pulse on which roles in their organizations are becoming outdated, as well as new “sunrising” positions that are becoming more popular. With help from AI-powered skills intelligence systems, executives can gain insight into the capabilities that are surging in demand and the jobs that will be needed in the years to come. Armed with these insights, leaders can then create development pathways that will enable employees—particularly those in roles that are becoming less critical—to build the expertise needed to move into these sought-after sunrising roles.

#3. Set clear objectives and goals

Following an analysis of workforce skills, leaders must set goals that will guide their development plan. Skills benchmarking is one of the most useful tools for this goal-setting process because it allows leaders to measure employees’ skills to see how they compare to organizational and industry-wide standards.

This analysis can help HR and L&D leaders determine whether an employee has the skill sets required to perform a role well and identify upskilling opportunities to help bridge any existing gaps. Skill benchmarking is a relatively new phenomenon made possible by the rise of skills intelligence systems. As these platforms go mainstream, more organizations can evaluate their workforce’s capabilities against the competencies their competitors possess and adjust their strategies accordingly.

#4. Develop strategies and action plans

Once leaders have an in-depth understanding of their workforce’s skills, they must architect a plan to help employees build the competencies outlined in their development strategies. Employees need multiple pathways to hone new skills, including having the opportunity to pitch in on projects and gigs so they can gain on-the-job experience.

A talent marketplace that matches people to open opportunities based on the experiences they have and the skills they wish to build can be a game-changer for employee development. The platforms can also help employees find mentors in their organizations so they can receive one-on-one guidance as they expand their skill sets.

#5. Establish timelines and milestones

A workforce development plan isn’t complete once leaders have drafted it. Instead, executives must carefully monitor their organization’s skill-building efforts to determine who’s participating in development opportunities and how these opportunities are bringing employees closer to reaching their overarching skill goals.

Leaders can use skills intelligence systems to get an idea of which capabilities are growing more important and which are declining according to market and industry trends. Based on this information, leaders may choose to deprioritize developing a certain competency so they can shift gears and focus on skills that are more in-demand.

The role of leadership in workforce development

The quality of your leadership team can make or break the success of your workforce development plan. If leaders fail to engage their workforce and build enthusiasm for learning and skill-building, the development plan will likely fall flat.

In contrast, leaders who communicate transparently and emphasize how skill-building will not only help the business but enable employees to reach their career goals will motivate their workforce to pursue their plan. Leaders should give employees ample opportunities to ask questions about the workforce development strategy and to share feedback to help guide the initiative.

The long-term impact of effective workforce development

All too often, leaders don’t realize they have a skills shortage until it’s too late. Rather than letting skill gaps slow productivity and diminish performance, savvy executives can start executing workforce development plans to tackle any shortages head-on.

Simultaneously, creating a workforce skills plan sends a clear signal to your entire organization that leaders view continuous learning and development as a top priority. When employees are aligned on the skills their organizations need to be successful—both now and in the future—they will be inspired to continue training so they can play a part in helping the business reach its overarching objectives. A workforce development strategy creates a sense of transparency and reminds employees that they all must come together for this common goal.

Want to learn how one leading pharmaceutical company took workforce development to the next level? Listen to this conversation with Novartis’s Global Head of Talent Markus Graf and The Josh Bersin Company.