Workforce planning: a review of methodologies

William J. Peck ()
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William J. Peck: Modern Manufacturing Methodologies

Annals of Operations Research, 2025, vol. 352, issue 1, No 9, 294 pages

Abstract: Abstract Workforce planning deals with determining the number of employees and associated skills necessary to meet the future operational needs of an organization. A workforce system consists of six elements: recruitment, attrition, promotion, training, retention, and scheduling. Historically, several workforce modeling and analysis methodologies have been developed to capture these elements. This paper reviews the results of workforce and manpower models published within peer-reviewed literature between 1959 and 2021 to provide an in-depth analysis of current models. The focus of this review is on analytical, simulation, and empirical models found in literature that were collected based on a citation requirement and keyword search criteria. Results demonstrate the trends in workforce modeling research and discuss the common uses of each model type and the advantages/disadvantages related to each model. Based on the common attributes of workforce systems, the discussion focuses on the most frequently used model type for each element and the best use for each model. Finally, recommendations are made for the development of workforce models that allow the most comprehensive view of the workforce systems of the future.

Keywords: Workforce planning; Simulation; Markov processes; Mathematical programming; System dynamics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1007/s10479-025-06734-1

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