Public-Sector HR Practitioners Being Trained In Strategic Workforce Planning

Eighty human resource (HR) practitioners in the public sector are being trained in Strategic Workforce Planning as the Government seeks to improve the capacity of HR departments to plan for staffing needs in their various organisations.

This will enable a more holistic view of gaps in the workforce and how these may be addressed to achieve the priorities of government.

The course, which began on April 27, is being conducted in four cohorts of 20 persons. They are being trained over four days between April and August, after which there will be a series of follow-up assessments leading to certification.

The course is organised by the Transformation Implementation Unit (TIU) and is being delivered virtually by the Human Capital Institute (HCI), an institute for talent management and leadership related to human capital, with its headquarters in Washington DC.

Executive Director of the TIU, Maria Thompson Walters, told JIS News that the course aims to provide a solid foundation of the principles of workforce planning and how to create and use a strategic workforce plan.

She indicated that it will enable HR practitioners to support their organisations by aligning the planning of talent acquisition and development to the strategic priorities of their organisations.

“As we seek to adjust our HR operating model to the requirements of the 21^st century and to create a more agile and responsive public sector, strategic workforce planning is essential in ensuring that we have a workforce of the right size, with the appropriate competencies and skills, that is agile, and at a manageable cost,” said Ms. Thompson Walters.

Meanwhile, Senior HR Officer at e-Gov Jamaica Limited, Michelle Hamilton, said that she is thankful to be among the first batch of participants in the course.

She said the training has helped to enhance her work in many ways, specifically as it relates to “linking the business strategy to human capital strategy, in order to get results for the Government of Jamaica”.

Ms. Hamilton pointed out that there is a shift that is currently taking place within government to have HR professionals “come up to speed, in terms of what is happening now”, and as such, the training course will help to get each professional where they ought to be.

“This training has given us the skillset and the necessary tools in order to transition there,” she said, adding that it will enable them to adequately serve the public as well as their internal stakeholders.