Why Organisations should move towards skills-based strategic workforce planning

TL;DR

Work is changing faster than ever. Traditional workforce planning based on job roles is no longer enough to keep up with disruption. Skills-based Strategic Workforce Planning (SWP) gives organisations the agility to adapt to new job requirements, emerging technologies, and talent shortages.

• Job requirements are evolving fast – The skills needed for jobs are increasing by 10% per year, while many existing skills are becoming obsolete.
• Skills-based SWP makes businesses more agile – Mapping workforce skills helps organisations anticipate disruption and redeploy talent effectively.
• Adoption challenges remain – Many organisations lack accurate skill data and struggle with employee buy-in, but AI-driven skills intelligence is making skills-based workforce planning possible at scale.

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Why the traditional approach no longer works

For years, workforce planning has focused on job roles and functions. But with rapid automation, AI advancements, and evolving skill demands, this model is quickly becoming outdated.

"As organisations move from their initial pandemic response to more sustainable operations, they try to build resilience into everything, from strategy to work design, so as to enable the organisation, its leadership, and employees to sense and respond to change repeatedly."
Mark Whittle
VP Advisor at Gartner

The need for agility and adaptability has never been greater. Skills-based Strategic Workforce Planning (SWP) offers a new way forward by focusing on what people can do, rather than what their job title says.

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What is Skills-Based Strategic Workforce Planning?

Unlike traditional workforce planning, skills-based SWP views employees as a combination of skills rather than fixed roles.

"Two network engineers might hold the same job title, but their skill sets could be completely different. A skills-first approach recognises these differences and enables smarter workforce decisions."

By shifting the focus from job roles to capabilities, companies can unlock hidden talent, identify skill gaps, and ensure workforce agility.

The advantages of skills-based Strategic Workforce Planning

1. Better Workforce Insights – Traditional SWP focuses on jobs, but skills-based SWP provides a granular view of capabilities across the organisation.
2. More Agile Decision-Making – Companies can anticipate disruptions and react faster by tracking how skills evolve.
3. Smarter Talent Redeployment – Skills-based SWP enables lateral movement within the organisation, reducing reliance on external hiring.

"The number of skills required for a single job is increasing by 10% every year. One-third of the skills in a 2017 job posting are now obsolete. Companies that fail to track skills risk being left behind."

Understanding & Reacting to Disruption

1. Understanding disruption

Companies need to measure how skills are changing to stay ahead.

• Research shows that many employees are learning outdated skills that won’t be needed in the near future.
• A real-time skills framework helps businesses predict and prepare for workforce shifts.

"Viewing skills as a currency gives employees a tangible understanding of their value—and gives businesses the ability to predict disruption."

2. Reacting to disruption

Once an organisation understands its skill gaps, it can take proactive steps to redeploy talent where needed.

• Skill adjacencies allow employees to transition into new roles with minimal training.
• Internal mobility programs reduce hiring costs and improve retention.
• AI-powered skills intelligence helps companies match employees to new opportunities in real time.

"Lateral redeployment is only possible with a skills-first approach—without it, companies miss out on talent that already exists within their workforce."

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Why aren’t more companies doing this?

With so many advantages, why hasn’t skills-based SWP been widely adopted?

1. Lack of Skill Data – Only 2 in 5 HR leaders say they have a clear view of workforce skills. [ Mercer study]
2. Complex HR Tech Implementation – Integrating real-time skills data into HR systems is a challenge.
3. Employee Resistance – Many employees hesitate to upskill or transition to new roles, fearing job instability.

"HR has a ‘dirty little secret’—implementing skills-based workforce planning is harder than it looks.."
Josh bersin  

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The Future of Skills-Based Workforce Planning

The good news? AI and automation are making skills-based SWP possible at scale.

What’s Changing in 2025?

• AI-powered skill inference is eliminating the need for manual skill tracking.
• Skills data integration is becoming easier with API-first HR systems.
• Organisations are investing in skills intelligence to future-proof their workforce.

A survey by Insight222 found that 90% of global companies want to build a skills-based SWP process.

"The status quo is shifting—companies that embrace skills-based SWP today will lead the workforce transformation of tomorrow."

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Final thoughts

Companies are at an inflection point. The workforce is evolving faster than ever, and businesses that fail to track skills will struggle to compete. Skills-based SWP isn’t a trend—it’s the future of workforce strategy.

"The world of work is shifting from roles to skills. Companies that embrace this change will gain a major competitive advantage."

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