SHuRePlan

Are the assumptions made in each of the steps still valid and if not how does the plan need to be reworked?

There may come a point at which the regular cycle of monitoring, review and course correction can no longer ensure that the goals of the plan are achieved.  At this point a more radical revision of the plan may be needed.  The advantage of using a systematic step approach to planning such as the one set out in this Toolkit is that a clear process has been mapped. It's therefore relatively easy to retrace your steps to find out which part of the planning was 'flawed' or insufficiently robust.  Even where problems are not occurring it may be sensible to schedule a review of the plan to account for changes since the orginal plan was made.

The review process is not just about producing an updated plan but is also a learning exercise.  A methodical approach will ensure that you learn what was good and what was not so good in the original approach.

• Don't be tempted to throw the old plan away and start from scratch - you will lose the learning.
• Do go through every step of the planning process again - even if you have a hunch where the problem lies. You can learn from what went right as well as what went wrong.
• Do make sure that you have kept all the assumptions, modelling, data, etc from the original planning and check or update them. 
• Do re-engage with all the stakeholders and involve them in the process to make sure that they are still signed up to the goals and assumptions.

Too often planning cycles are seen as a routine where each plan is an isolated event.  The advantage of a review process is that the workforce plan constantly evolves and improves as a result of the learning that comes from revisiting what was done in the past and understanding what worked and what did not.  It's really important to keep the data and assumptions on which the plans were originally based as well as updating the information feeds on a regular basis. Otherwise you cannot know quickly enough whether workforce supply is on track to meet the service demand.

Project planning

Many organisations use a project planning approach to their workforce planning which includes 'ownership', stage reports, variance reports and so on. By using project management, the organisation is also geared up to the review processes it entails.

These days, the organisation and its management tends to be more willing to accept that plans are on-going rather than 'one-off' annual activities. With the increasing devolution of planning to the local level, this is more likely to be the case than previously when massive exercises were done 'to feed the beast'. Local 'self-determination' is likely to increase local ownership and responsibility.