HRM FPX 5025 Assessment 3 Hiring and Training Forecast Plan

Student Name

Capella University

HRM-FPX5025 Talent Acquisition and Workforce Planning

Prof. Name

Date

Hiring and Training Forecast Plan

Introduction

HR forecasting is one of the most critical roles of the HR planning function in an organization. It helps determine the expected numbers and skills needed in the future. HR professionals use different techniques for HR forecasting, with quantitative techniques being the most common, utilizing data to plan for future staffing needs. This essay uses data to predict the future staffing needs of CapraTek, considering the training needs applicable to every staffing level (Mathis & Jackson, 2010).

CapraTek needs to plan for skilled, unskilled, shift leaders, department supervisors, and operations management. Staffing forecasting includes both external and internal sources of human resources. External sources include outsourcing and new hires, while internal sources include internal transfers and promotions (Mathis & Jackson, 2010). Internal promotions are one of the least expensive ways for organizations to fill vacant positions. CapraTek has identified that it will use internal supply, mainly through promotions, to meet future staffing needs.

Operations Management

The current staffing capacity in the operations management department is 22 employees. Over the next year, the staffing capacity will remain the same, indicating a perfect balance because demand and supply are equal. Therefore, there is no need to source human resources, either internally or externally. The same applies to departmental supervisors, meaning CapraTek does not need to promote departmental supervisors into operational managers or shift leaders to departmental supervisors, assuming there are no layoffs or deaths in the respective departments.

Shift Leaders

Currently, CapraTek has 82 shift lead supervisors. Future projections show that the company will need 84 supervisors, indicating a shortage of two. Promoting from the skilled workers will be the best option for CapraTek.

Skilled Workers

CapraTek currently employs 512 skilled workers. In the coming year, CapraTek will need 540 skilled workers. Excluding the two employees who will be promoted to shift leaders, CapraTek will need to fill 30 positions. It may not be possible to promote workers from the unskilled category since the KSAs differ between unskilled and skilled levels. CapraTek can conduct a skills assessment and inventory among the unskilled laborers to determine their skills and identify those who meet the qualifications for promotion to the skilled labor category. If unskilled workers cannot fill all the vacant positions in the skilled labor department, the company will have to hire externally.

Unskilled Labor

CapraTek currently has 390 unskilled laborers but will require 410 unskilled laborers in the next period, or more depending on the number of employees promoted to the skilled laborer level. The only option to fill staffing needs at this level is external hires.

Impacts of Technology

CapraTek is based in Georgia. One way to make HR planning decisions is to use demographic and employment trends from government websites. In Georgia, the unemployment rate is expected to reach 13.90% by the end of 2020 and 14.50% by 2021 (Trading Economics, n.d). Consequently, CapraTek will not have a problem getting employees as there is no shortage of labor in the market.

In terms of educational attainment, over 25% of the population in Georgia has a high school achievement, and 30.7% have a bachelor’s degree or higher. Consequently, it will be easy for CapraTek to find qualified candidates for its unskilled labor category. Georgia also has a population of 8.7% who are under 65 years and living with disabilities. Approximately 39.5% of the people in Georgia are a minority population (US Census Bureau, n.d). CapraTek must factor in this population in its hiring decisions, especially because the company has had instances of discrimination against minorities and protected classes in the past. The use of technology helps CapraTek test whether the market can meet its labor demands and make the necessary arrangements. Moreover, using technology helps the company make decisions regarding the employment of protected classes (Satav, 2016).

Training Recommendations

The first recommendation for CapraTek is to conduct onboarding and orientation for its new hires. Onboarding and orientation help employees familiarize themselves with the organization, feel welcome, and prepare them for their new roles. Onboarding equips new hires with the KSAs needed for success in the organization. Onboarding takes place during the first few weeks or months on the job. CapraTek must create an onboarding plan for new hires that involves all stakeholders, specifying the program’s goals and timeline (Lawson, 2015).

Training at other levels involves succession planning. Training and development are crucial for succession planning to ensure employees are prepared and well-equipped for their new roles. On-the-job training, where a supervisor or manager shows employees what to do and what is expected, is suitable for all levels (Mathis & Jackson, 2010). CapraTek can use this method to help unskilled laborers promoted to shift leaders. CapraTek must ensure that trainers are available and experts in their field, and that training does not disrupt productivity.

HRM FPX 5025 Assessment 3 Hiring and Training Forecast Plan

CapraTek will need to consult leadership training and development for workers promoted from skilled workers to shift lead supervisors since they have no prior leadership experience (Roupnel, Rinfre, & Grenier, 2019). Leadership development equips leaders with knowledge and soft skills for their roles. CapraTek should identify candidates for leadership positions early and start preparing them. Leadership training can take various forms, such as coaching, mentoring, and action learning (Roupnel, Rinfre, & Grenier, 2019). CapraTek can use mentoring, which allows candidates to learn by interacting and observing leaders in the organization. The company can place candidates under the mentorship of other shift supervisors.

Mentoring is effective for organizational development as it helps mentees gain confidence, focus on objectives, and develop career and network opportunities. Additionally, mentorship is a less expensive option for CapraTek, allowing the company to allocate funds for new hires. Using technology will enable CapraTek to consider minority populations according to their numbers to comply with equal employment opportunities.

References

Lawson, K. (2015). New Employee Orientation Training. Association for Talent Development.

Mathis, L. R., & Jackson, H. J. (2010). Human Resource Management. Cengage Learning.

Roupnel, S., Rinfre, N., & Grenier, J. (2019). Leadership development: Three programs that maximize learning over time. Journal of Leadership Education.

Satav, R. M. (2016). National Conference on Recent Trends in Computer Science and Information Technology: Human resources management and technology.

HRM FPX 5025 Assessment 3 Hiring and Training Forecast Plan

Trading Economics. (n.d). Georgia unemployment rate. Retrieved from https://tradingeconomics.com/georgia/unemployment-rate

US Census Bureau. (n.d). Quick facts Georgia. Retrieved from https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/GA