Workforce Planning for General Contracting
Workforce Planning is the structured process of matching the company’s future work to the people and skills required to deliver it. It connects project backlog, bid pipeline, and current staffing levels to forecasted needs by role, trade, and timeframe. The process looks at hiring, training, subcontracting, and overtime options to close gaps without overstaffing. When done well, workforce planning ensures the right people are available at the right time to support safe, profitable, on-schedule delivery.
Define workforce planning objectives and cadence
Step 1: Clarify the goals of workforce planning
Write down in plain language what you want workforce planning to achieve, such as “ensure we can staff awarded work without last-minute hiring,” “reduce emergency subcontracting,” or “improve utilization of field crews.” Confirm these goals with leadership.
Step 2: Define the planning time horizon
Decide how far ahead the plan should look (for example, rolling 12 months) based on typical project durations and sales cycles. Note that different horizons can be used for office roles and field crews if needed.
Step 3: Set the planning frequency
Decide how often you will update the workforce plan (for example, quarterly for a full refresh and monthly for light updates). Choose dates that align with budgeting and project review cycles.
Step 4: Identify participants and decision makers
List the roles that must be involved, such as human resources, finance, operations manager, and lead project managers. Clarify who provides data and who makes final decisions on hiring and staffing priorities.
Step 5: Document the standard inputs and outputs
Write down what inputs will be used (such as project backlog, bid pipeline, current staff list) and what outputs are expected (such as a hiring plan, training needs list, subcontracting targets). This keeps the process consistent over time.
Step 6: Create and share a simple workforce planning procedure
Turn the decisions above into a short, one- to two-page procedure. Store it in the shared procedures folder and send a copy to all participants before the first planning cycle.
Gather project backlog and bid pipeline data
Step 1: Compile current project backlog
Work with project management and estimating to pull a list of all awarded projects, including job name, client, contract value, expected start date, expected end date, and status (for example, design, pre-construction, active).
Step 2: Collect bid pipeline information
Ask the estimating and business development teams for a list of significant bids and proposals, including estimated contract value, probability of award, and estimated start dates. Focus on opportunities likely to impact staffing.
Step 3: Standardize information into a single format
Combine backlog and pipeline data into one spreadsheet or system report with consistent columns. Use clear labels for “awarded” versus “pipeline” and include a probability field for pipeline projects.
Step 4: Estimate project durations and key phases
For each project, note the expected duration and major phases (for example, sitework, structure, interior build-out). If schedules are not final, use typical durations based on similar past projects.
Step 5: Identify key labor-intensive activities
Flag projects and phases that are particularly labor intensive, such as self-performed concrete, interior demolition, or fast-track fit-outs. These will drive the largest staffing needs.
Step 6: Review the combined list with operations leadership
Share the consolidated backlog and pipeline list with the operations manager or equivalent. Ask them to confirm dates, probabilities, and any likely changes before using the data in calculations.
Inventory current workforce by role, skill, and availability
Step 1: Export current employee list from HR or payroll system
Pull a list of all active employees and key long-term temporary workers. Include name, job title, department, employment type (full-time, part-time), and primary location.
Step 2: Group employees into standard roles
Create a set of standard role categories relevant to your company (for example, “project manager,” “assistant project manager,” “superintendent,” “foreman,” “carpenter,” “laborer,” “project engineer,” “estimator”). Assign each employee to one primary role.
Step 3: Capture key skills and certifications
For each employee, note any major skills or certifications that affect how they can be deployed (for example, ability to run crews, specific equipment licenses, safety certifications, experience with certain project types). Use checkboxes or short codes to keep this manageable.
Step 4: Map current project assignments and utilization
Work with project managers to document which project each person is assigned to, what percent of their time is committed, and expected assignment end dates. Note people who are over-allocated or under-utilized.
Step 5: Build a workforce inventory worksheet or dashboard
Combine this information into a single worksheet or dashboard where you can filter by role, skill, and project. Make sure it shows how many people you have in each role and how fully they are currently booked over the next several months.
Step 6: Review the inventory with operations and adjust
Share the draft inventory with operations leadership and project managers to confirm accuracy. Adjust role assignments and availability dates based on their feedback.
Forecast labor demand by role and timeframe
Step 1: Define time buckets for forecasting
Choose the time intervals for your forecast (for example, monthly for the next 12 months). Add these as columns in your forecast worksheet or tool.
Step 2: Estimate required resources per project
For each project, estimate how many people in each role will be needed in each time bucket, based on project size, complexity, and phase. You can use simple rules of thumb at first (for example, one superintendent per active job, crew sizes by square footage or trade scope).
Step 3: Convert project needs into role-by-month counts
Use your worksheet to sum resource needs across all projects for each role and month. This will show total demand, such as “5 superintendents needed in May” or “8 carpenters needed in September.”
Step 4: Apply probability weights to pipeline projects
For projects that are not yet awarded, multiply their resource needs by their probability of award (for example, 50 percent). Add these weighted needs to the forecast so you can see best-case and most-likely demand.
Step 5: Create charts or tables for easier interpretation
Present the results in simple charts or tables showing demand curves by role over time. This makes it easier to see spikes where demand is significantly higher than current staffing.
Step 6: Review demand forecast with operations leadership
Walk through the forecast with the operations manager and key project managers. Ask them to challenge assumptions and refine resource estimates based on their experience.
Compare forecasted labor demand to current capacity
Step 1: Align workforce inventory with forecast roles
Ensure that the role categories in your demand forecast match those in your workforce inventory. Adjust labels if needed so that comparisons are clean (for example, combine “lead carpenter” and “carpenter” into one role for planning).
Step 2: Calculate capacity by role and month
Using current staff assignments and end dates, estimate how many people in each role are available in each time bucket. Consider planned departures, retirements, and known leaves of absence.
Step 3: Overlay demand and capacity
For each role and month, place the forecasted demand next to the available capacity. Calculate the difference so you can see positive numbers (surplus) and negative numbers (shortage).
Step 4: Highlight significant gaps
Decide what counts as a significant gap for your company (for example, a shortage of more than one superintendent or more than two carpenters). Highlight these cells in your worksheet with color.
Step 5: Review gaps with operations and HR
Meet with operations and human resources to discuss the most critical gaps and surpluses. Validate that the numbers make sense based on upcoming project requirements and staffing realities.
Step 6: Document key gap areas for follow-up
Create a short list of the most important gaps by role and timeframe, such as “need 2 additional superintendents by Q3” or “excess general laborers in Q1.” This list will drive hiring and training decisions.
Identify strategies to close workforce gaps (hire, train, subcontract, overtime)
Step 1: Classify gaps by role type and criticality
For each gap, note whether the role is a core internal role (such as project manager), a flexible field role (such as general labor), or a role commonly filled by subcontractors. Also mark how critical the gap is to delivering planned work.
Step 2: Consider direct hiring as a primary option
For core roles that will be needed long-term, evaluate whether direct hiring is the right solution. Estimate how many hires are needed and by when, considering recruitment lead times.
Step 3: Evaluate training and internal development options
Identify employees who could be promoted or cross-trained to fill higher-level or different roles. Note where investment in training or mentoring could reduce the need for external hires.
Step 4: Assess subcontracting and temporary labor use
For roles or spikes that are temporary or project-specific, consider whether using subcontractors or staffing agencies is more appropriate than hiring full-time employees.
Step 5: Define acceptable overtime limits
Discuss with operations leadership how much overtime is acceptable for certain roles to cover short-term spikes without creating safety or burnout issues. Include these limits as part of the strategy.
Step 6: Select preferred strategies for each major gap
For each significant gap, decide on the primary approach (such as “hire one new superintendent,” “promote one assistant project manager,” or “use a subcontractor for this scope”). Document these decisions for the hiring and training plans.
Create a workforce hiring and backfill plan
Step 1: List all roles that require external hiring
From your gap analysis and strategy decisions, create a list of roles that will be filled by external hires, including how many people are needed in each role.
Step 2: Assign target hire dates by role
Working backward from project start dates and training time, set realistic “date needed” and “start recruiting” dates for each role. Remember that some roles may take several months to fill.
Step 3: Identify internal backfill moves
Where employees will be promoted or moved to fill gaps, note which positions they will leave open and whether those positions need backfilling with new hires or can be absorbed.
Step 4: Prioritize hires by business impact
Rank roles based on their importance to delivering work and revenue. For example, superintendents for large awarded jobs may be top priority, while general laborers for low-risk work might be lower priority.
Step 5: Create a simple hiring plan document
Summarize this information in a hiring plan that lists each role, number of hires, target hire date, recruitment start date, and priority. Include notes about backfill implications.
Step 6: Review and approve plan with leadership
Share the hiring plan with company leadership and operations for approval. Once approved, hand it off to the recruiting team as the roadmap for upcoming job postings and candidate sourcing.
Define training and development needs from the plan
Step 1: Review gaps suitable for internal development
Look at your gap list and mark those roles where current employees could realistically be trained or promoted within the planning horizon, such as assistant project managers moving into project manager roles.
Step 2: Identify specific skills and certifications needed
For each role targeted for internal development, list the key skills, experiences, and certifications required (for example, scheduling software proficiency, safety certifications, leadership of a full project).
Step 3: Match potential internal candidates
Using your workforce inventory, identify employees who are close to meeting these requirements and who have the interest and potential to grow into the role.
Step 4: Estimate training time and resources
For each development path, estimate how long it will take for the employee to be ready and what training resources are needed (formal courses, on-the-job assignments, mentoring).
Step 5: Create a training needs list grouped by role
Summarize these needs in a document that lists roles, target employees, and required training activities. This should be structured so it can feed directly into the Training Assignment process.
Step 6: Share training needs with HR and operations
Review the training needs list with human resources and operations leadership. Agree on which development paths to prioritize and how they will be supported in the coming months.
Document and publish the workforce plan
Step 1: Create a concise workforce plan summary
Develop a summary section that explains in plain language the overall outlook: where the company is short or long on staff, major hiring needs, and key development priorities.
Step 2: Include detailed tables and charts
Add supporting sections that show demand versus capacity by role and month, the list of required hires with timing, and key training and subcontracting plans. Use simple, easy-to-read visuals.
Step 3: Highlight critical roles and time periods
Clearly mark roles and months where staffing risk is highest (for example, “superintendent shortages in Q3”) so readers can quickly see where attention is most needed.
Step 4: Define responsibilities and next steps
Add a section that lists who is responsible for each part of the plan, such as human resources for recruitment, operations for subcontractor agreements, and managers for employee development.
Step 5: Review the draft plan with leadership
Present the draft plan to company leadership and operations in a meeting. Walk through key findings and recommendations and capture their feedback and decisions.
Step 6: Finalize and distribute the plan
Revise the document based on feedback and mark it as the current approved workforce plan. Store it in a shared location and send it to all relevant stakeholders, including human resources, operations, and project management.
Monitor workforce plan execution and update regularly
Step 1: Set a review schedule aligned with planning cadence
Based on your earlier decision, schedule recurring workforce plan review sessions (for example, monthly check-ins and quarterly full updates). Add these to calendars for human resources and operations leaders.
Step 2: Track progress on key actions
Maintain a simple action log listing planned hires, training initiatives, and subcontracting arrangements. For each action, record current status, owner, and any blockers.
Step 3: Update inputs with latest information
Before each review, refresh the project backlog and pipeline, workforce inventory, and any major staffing changes such as new hires, departures, or promotions.
Step 4: Recalculate gaps and compare to prior plan
Update your demand versus capacity analysis and compare the new gaps to those identified previously. Note where risks have increased, decreased, or shifted to different roles or time periods.
Step 5: Adjust strategies and actions as needed
Based on the updated analysis, revise hiring priorities, training plans, and subcontracting decisions. Add new actions where needed and close out items that are complete or no longer necessary.
Step 6: Communicate updates to stakeholders
After each review, provide a brief update to leadership, human resources, and operations summarizing key changes to the workforce plan. Save updated versions of the plan and action log in the shared folder for future reference.
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