In today’s rapidly evolving business environment, traditional talent acquisition—focused on prior job roles (workloads/experience)—has given way to a skills-based approach. As enterprises face increasingly specialized skills requirements, they are turning to Skills-Based Workforce Planning (SBWP) to ensure agility in talent acquisition. The challenge of niche skills There is a rise of mission-critical niche skills, driven by technological advancements, supporting fast-changing business scenarios and organizational initiatives. However, the rise of niche skills has created an imbalance in the demand-supply ratio of talent.
Many organizations struggle to predict talent availability for key business initiatives, particularly in specific locations and timeframes, and arriving at a cost modeling structure takes time and effort. A staggering 93% of managers report difficulty finding the right talent, with 55% citing a lack of candidates with the required skills for the roles. Enterprises can adopt skills-based workforce planning (SBWP) – engaging candidates based on workloads and relevant skills required for high-priority business initiatives, irrespective of their current/past roles or titles.
Understanding skills-based workforce planning
Skills-based workforce planning prioritizes skills over job titles, aligning talent acquisition with business objectives. This involves:
1.Prioritizing high-priority business initiatives – Organizing high-priority projects by workload to understand resource needs.
For example, an enterprise launching an e-commerce platform could be a critical business initiative requiring significant investment and resources.
2.Breaking down workloads – Identifying the tasks required to drive initiatives and mapping the specific skills needed.
The workload to launch an e-commerce platform could be broken down into:
Website development (frontend and backend)
Product catalog management
Payment gateway integration
Critical Steps for a Successful Skills Architecture Journey
