S’pore business leaders need to strengthen workforce planning: report

SINGAPORE: HR experts said the top human capital challenges for business leaders in Singapore are attracting new talent (24 per cent), retaining top performers (17 per cent) and increasing workforce performance and productivity (14 per cent).

Despite this, around half (46 per cent) of all business leaders in Singapore admit they spend 10 per cent or less of their total strategic planning time on future workforce planning.

They said business leaders need to prioritise workforce planning in order to meet future human capital challenges.

The findings were released as part of Randstad’s latest World of Work Report.

This year’s report gathered the feedback and opinions of more than 1300 people, some half of them (625) are business leaders in Singapore.

Asia Pacific Regional Director of Randstad Sourceright, Doug Edmonds, said a lack of planning can impact an organisation’s ability to innovate, lead and succeed in the future.

He said it’s also important to think about the work options, systems, processes and performance measures that will support these managers, so as to ensure their success and their loyalty well into the future.

The report also found the workforce planning horizon is alarmingly short.

Over a third of employers don’t plan their workforce a year in advance, just over half plan 12 months ahead and only 10 per cent plan for a two—year period.

Another finding, less than 10 per cent of organisations currently engage employees at all levels in workforce planning.

— CNA/ck