Teaser: A workforce planning tool increases efficiency and productivity. Finding the right one depends on business needs, pricing, and features provided.
The purpose of a workforce planning tool is to help any company stay organized and identify any gaps between current staff and future needs. These data-driven tools assist companies in anticipating staffing needs while reducing risks and saving costs.
While numerous workforce planning tools exist in the market, how can one identify what’s best for you? We have done the legwork for you. Here’s our roundup of the 10 best workforce planning tools in the market.
By definition, workforce planning is the process of understanding workforce supply and making adjustments as per business needs and conditions. Therefore, a workforce planning tool is a digital or paper-based tool that aids this analysis process. It helps identify any potential gaps between the current workforce (your current set of employees) and future needs (based on upcoming demand or projects).
A workforce management tool leads to better, more informed decision-making. It eliminates guesswork and questions like, “Do we have enough staff and skills to take on these new projects?” and “How many people will we need to complete this milestone?”
Examples of workforce planning tools include:
When workforce planning tools are used correctly, benefits to an organization can include:
Manual methods may be suitable for small businesses that don’t have many employees or simple needs. However, we are in the age of technology, and as any business grows and workforce dynamics become more complex, software solutions become essential.
Manual workforce planning tools are also more prone to human errors like spreadsheet formula mistakes. These overnights can lead to missed opportunities, poor decisions, and increased costs. Manual workforce planning tools primarily rely on dated data. One person has to manually enter the data, such as resource availability or tasks they are assigned. And then, by the time the calculations are processed, the resource requirement might have changed.
Software, with all its real-time data and features, like AI-powered predictive modeling and automated data collection, makes your workforce planning journey accurate and effective. Software-driven systems are more accessible to scale, something that’s a must to thrive in today's dynamic business landscape.
A software-based tool is also easier to understand as they are more visual. Reports can be generated on the go, and therefore, the decision-making time is substantially less. Let’s admit it: spreadsheets can get boring, and it takes time to generate a report. With a software-based workforce planning tool, you can save time and focus on more important tasks, making your work more efficient and productive.
Strategic workforce planning isn't possible without the right planning tool. Fortunately, we have made things easier. We examined the top software solutions in the market and have provided a detailed snapshot of their advantages and price points.
Meet eRS: A powerful workforce planning tool for different types and sizes of businesses. It can be used in construction, healthcare, software, professional services, and many other markets. The software features all the “must-have” features, like real-time data reporting, capacity modeling, scheduling, and resource utilization rates.
eRS is a visual tool that makes it easy to understand workforce inefficiencies and whether you have loaded a resource too much. The resource overload indicator enables users to quickly identify and address such issues effectively.
The system’s centralized database houses all pertinent information regarding all the employees, no matter where they are based. A project or business leader can enter the required specs and quickly identify who is the right person for a task. At the end of the day, successful projects come from having the right people available at the right time for the right task.
One of the most lauded features of eRS is its ability to show actual vs. planned effort, costs, and utilization. If you planned a task to take 3 hours and it actually takes the employee only 2.5 hours, you will be able to use this data to improve project planning measures.
Runn is an all-in-one workforce management platform that helps companies plan, manage, and deliver work and their employees. It has a centralized location for all project-related information, including tasks, deadlines, and resource allocation.
Users of Runn love the software for its ease of use, scalability, and visual appeal. For instance, Runn has a color-coded visual chart that shows team capacity and workload distribution.
Some of the key features of Runn are:
If you're looking for a workforce planning tool that could provide a detailed overview of your employee's schedules and your entire project workflow, then Workfront by Adobe is an option. This cloud-based, complete project management tool is used by giants like Sony, AMC, and Cisco. The tool includes a variety of features like resource requests, time tracking, digital asset management, financial reports, and workflow templates.
Workfront seamlessly integrates with other tools like Adobe Creative Cloud, Microsoft Office, and Google Workspace.
Other top features include:
Workday, favored by over 9000 customers (including Fortune 500 companies), claims to be different from other workforce planning tools because it all goes beyond what other enterprise resource planning software offers. This unfragmented app has AI at its core, making it superior to existing legacy systems.
The tool, designed to help companies manage their resources and processes, offers a range of features like real-time reporting, remote employee tracking, and a centralized HR database.
Workday’s other prominent features are:
Visier, used at companies like Micron, EA, Nielsen, and Bridgestone, is a robust analytics and collaborative solution that has a “Visier People” module. Like most of the new workforce planning apps, Visier too has a powerful AI running the show.
Visier allows HR teams, company leaders, and project managers to exactly understand their current and future resourcing needs. The software lets you make adjustments on the go, so your forecasts and projections are always accurate. It lets you see the big picture of your people (such as headcount, turnover, mobility, etc.) so you can make informed decisions.
Visier also has other workforce planning solutions that allow you to address pressing questions like, “What will my headcount look like a year from now?” and “How can we fill the talent gaps we have?”
Planful is a flexible yet powerful end-to-end workforce planning tool. Like other workforce planning tools, Planful can help you identify skill gaps and develop training programs, and it can even be used for succession planning. Some of Planful’s most noted customers include Five Guys, Bose, Temple University, and Nerdwallet.
Planful eliminates all the manual workforce planning, filling shift data, and tracking progress. It breaks through organizational silos and makes collaboration between different departments a breeze by providing a unified data source. The software also lets you build multiple “what-if” scenarios to plan for the unexpected.
Some other notable features include:
Wish to break free from Excel spreadsheets and build a workforce plan that’s easily customizable? Consider ChartHop. ChartHop offers a straightforward and visual approach to workforce planning that comes with customizable workflows, scenario planning, and budgeting features. The tool also has AI-powered dashboards that allow you to see the complete picture of your company’s people.
ChartHop promotes communication, transparency, and data-driven decisions with its easy-to-understand visual representations of your workforce, such as organizational charts, headcount plans, and succession plans. The software can easily integrate with payroll systems and other popular digital tools like Gusto, Slack, and Google Workspace.
Paymo advertises itself as an affordable and complete project management tool for small businesses. The tool can track time, tasks, and financials, manage project workflow, and send invoices. With Paymo, you can break down big projects into manageable tasks, prioritize them, and then assign a resource for each. The tool is meant to streamline workflows, enhance productivity, and improve overall project visibility.
Are you wondering why to pick Paymo? Here are some of its best features:
ClickUp, diverse in its capabilities, is not just another workforce planning software. It’s a completely customizable tool that seamlessly merges into your organization’s workflows and systems while optimizing all processes and ensuring peak performance. What people love about ClickUp is that every part of a project can be broken down into lists, tasks, and subtasks. A project manager can easily identify which employee will be the perfect fit for each and then monitor the progress.
ClickUp also provides a visual activity chart that highlights each person’s workload, improving resource utilization. The software is intuitive and requires no special training or coding knowledge.
Below are a roundup of ClickUp’s best features:
ActivTrak is more than just a workforce planning software—it provides a unique blend of productivity, employee satisfaction, and well-being. ActivTrak traditionally started out just as an employee monitoring tool. However, it has since expanded its offerings to include workforce planning.
It provides valuable insights into employee productivity (who is doing what and how much they can take on), which can help businesses optimize resource allocation. The software makes it easy to identify work patterns and potential bottlenecks. With ActivTrak, leaders can make data-driven decisions that drive their overall efficiency.
ActivTrak is very intuitive to use. However, it’s quite feature-rich. Therefore, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and try to do too much too soon. Some customers have noted that the installation and onboarding process can be a bit slow.
Even with our narrowed-down list of workforce planning tools, picking just one is not easy. Therefore, invest in a workforce planning tool that:
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