{{peacock, date=January 2014 Workforce modeling is the process by which the need for skilled workers at a particular point in time (demand) is matched directly with the availability and preference of

skilled workers A skilled worker is any worker who has special skill, training, knowledge which they can then apply to their work. A skilled worker may have attended a college, university or technical school. Alternatively, a skilled worker may have learned the ...

(supply). The resulting mathematical models may be used to perform

sensitivity analysis Sensitivity analysis is the study of how the uncertainty in the output of a mathematical model or system (numerical or otherwise) can be divided and allocated to different sources of uncertainty in its inputs. A related practice is uncertainty ana ...

and generate data output in the form of reports and schedules. Due to the complexity level of building a workforce model, adoption of a workforce model is usually found in industries that have complex work rules, skilled or certified workers, medium to large teams of workers and fluctuating demand. Some examples include healthcare,

public safety Public security or public safety is the prevention of and protection from events that could endanger the safety and security of the public from significant danger, injury, or property damage. It is often conducted by a state government to ensur ...

, and retail. A workforce modeling solution can also refer to software that effectively captures all the complexity of process from start to finish and delivers complete and correct results. Components include: *

Demand management Demand management is a planning methodology used to forecast, plan for and manage the demand for products and services. This can be at macro-levels as in economics and at micro-levels within individual organizations. For example, at macro-leve ...

– tracking the demand for skilled workers by small units of time (generally 15 or 30 minutes) *Employee availability – tracking of contractual work hour obligations and limits on an individual basis for each employee *Employee preference – tracking of preferred times and dates that employees wish to work (used to help increase

job satisfaction Job satisfaction, employee satisfaction or work satisfaction is a measure of workers' contentedness with their job, whether they like the job or individual aspects or facets of jobs, such as nature of work or supervision. Job satisfaction can be ...

) *

Workflow management A workflow consists of an orchestrated and repeatable pattern of activity, enabled by the systematic organization of resources into processes that transform materials, provide services, or process information. It can be depicted as a sequence of ...

– ability for the solution to automate normally manual processes such as requesting and approving time off, requesting shift swaps, and generating and posting schedules *Optimization Engine – uses the mathematical model to create numerous schedules that are complete and correct and can be optimized on many dimensions simultaneously. The most important are cost,

overtime Overtime is the amount of time someone works beyond normal working hours. The term is also used for the pay received for this time. Normal hours may be determined in several ways: *by custom (what is considered healthy or reasonable by society) ...

and

employee satisfaction Job satisfaction, employee satisfaction or work satisfaction is a measure of workers' contentedness with their job, whether they like the job or individual aspects or facets of jobs, such as nature of work or supervision. Job satisfaction can be ...

Definition

For a more detailed definition, the term must be differentiated from traditional staff

scheduling A schedule or a timetable, as a basic time-management tool, consists of a list of times at which possible tasks, events, or actions are intended to take place, or of a sequence of events in the chronological order in which such things are i ...

. Staff scheduling is rooted in

time management Time management is the process of planning and exercising conscious control of time spent on specific activities, especially to increase effectiveness, efficiency, and productivity. It involves of various demands upon a person relating to work ...

and encompasses the mere administration of past and future working times. However, during the last ten to fifteen years, this traditional approach has evolved towards a demand-oriented solution which, under economic aspects, also includes changes in personnel requirements and objectives when optimizing the scheduling of staff. Besides the two core aspects of demand-orientation and optimization, workforce modeling also incorporates the forecast of the workload and the required staff, the integration of employees into the scheduling process through interactivity, the management of working times and accounts as well as analyzing and monitoring the entire process. Workforce modeling solutions can, and should, be deployed enterprise-wide wherever complex scheduling needs or legal staffing ratios must be met. Due to the complex nature of a workforce model, creating one by hand is nearly impossible. By using a software solution for demand-oriented workforce management, planners can optimize staffing by creating schedules that at all times conform as closely as possible to the actual requirement. At the same time, a workforce modeling solution helps users to observe all relevant legislation, local agreements and the contracts with individual employees – including work-life balance guidelines.

Complexity of model

Many workforce modeling solution applications use the more common

linear programming Linear programming (LP), also called linear optimization, is a method to achieve the best outcome (such as maximum profit or lowest cost) in a mathematical model whose requirements are represented by linear relationships. Linear programming is ...

approach to create the Workforce Model. Linear methods of achieving a schedule are generally based on assumptions that demand is based on a series of independent events, all of which have a consistent, predictable outcome.Clancy, Thomas R. ''Managing Organizational Complexity in Healthcare Operations.'' The Journal of Nursing Administration 38.9 (2008): 367-70. Print. Although this method is very common, the results are in most cases not as complete or efficient. In general, they produce a resulting schedule that is up to 75% complete and leaves the scheduler to complete the remaining shift assignments.

Heuristics A heuristic (; ), or heuristic technique, is any approach to problem solving or self-discovery that employs a practical method that is not guaranteed to be optimal, perfect, or rational, but is nevertheless sufficient for reaching an immediate, ...

have been applied to the problem and

metaheuristics In computer science and mathematical optimization, a metaheuristic is a higher-level procedure or heuristic designed to find, generate, or select a heuristic (partial search algorithm) that may provide a sufficiently good solution to an optimizatio ...

has been identified as the best method for generating complex scheduling solutions.Burke, Edmund, Patrick De Causmaecker, Greet Vanden Berghe, and Hendrik Van Landeghem.
The State of the Art of Nurse Rostering
'' Journal of Scheduling 7.6 (2004): 441-99. Print. Using this technique, many more solutions are available to the modeling process resulting in schedules that are not only closer to 100% complete, but are also optimized to many different criteria at the same time.

Definition

Complexity of model

Notes

Further reading