Future-Proofing Skills With Strategic Workforce Planning

This article has been written from a session at the Aon Human Capital Insights Conference which Alicia Roach and Chris Hare from eQ8 presented.

For HR leaders in Australia, the challenge of managing skills has become central to workforce strategy. Rapid changes in technology, customer expectations and business models mean that roles and capabilities required today will be radically transformed in years to come. Ensuring that organisations remain competitive calls for a disciplined approach to planning that links strategy with skills and builds confidence in decision-making on roles, training and hires.

This topic was explored in detail at the 2025 Aon Human Capital Insights Conference in Sydney, where Chris Hare and Alicia Roach, Co-founders of eQ8 led a discussion on how strategic workforce planning (SWP) can help organisations plan for a successful future. They shared insights on the importance of translating organisational strategy into a clear, evidence-based view of workforce demand, comparing it with current supply and making informed choices about where to focus resources.

Viewing Workforce Demand Through a Strategic Lens

The foundation for an effective SWP approach is strategic clarity. This involves translating business objectives into specific workforce requirements to determine what roles and skills will be needed to achieve them. A clearer understanding of where and how skills and objectives intersect starts with looking at the organisation’s value chain to identify where it creates value and what capabilities will be critical to doing this in the future.

“We need to understand quantitatively who needs to have what skills and when in order to meet future objectives,” said Roach. “By defining demand in these terms, organisations create a common language for executives and HR leaders. The discussion shifts from abstract ideas about digital capability or leadership potential to precise, time-bound requirements that can be measured and tracked.”

Roach stresses that the more precise skills requirements are, the more accurate the picture of the future workforce will be. “Rather than asking whether the organisation has enough technology skills, this process determines whether the business will need 300 data analysts with a defined set of competencies by 2027, and where they should be located,” said Roach. “This precision sets the stage for a practical and forward-looking assessment of current skills supply.”

Once demand is defined, the next step is to compare these requirements with the existing workforce. This analysis shows where skills are abundant and available today, where they are concentrated, and where gaps can be expected to emerge. By applying a skills taxonomy and breaking down roles into their component tasks, organisations can see how jobs will evolve over time.

“By breaking down roles into the skills and tasks they need, organisations can see how jobs will change as ai augments work”

Chris Hare, Co-founder, eQ8

Data, Forecasting and Business Priorities

A common concern among HR leaders is whether they have enough accurate data available data to inform their SWP decisions. Both Roach and Hare encourage HR leaders to prioritise progress over perfection. “Organisations can begin with the best data they have, supplement it with external insights, and improve quality over time,” said Roach. “Even when data is incomplete, it can show meaningful patterns that guide priorities. For example, an organisation might see that digital sales skills are projected to fall short by 25 per cent in three years, prompting early investment in training programs and targeted retention efforts.”

Hare noted that this approach supports robust discussions with other senior executives. “When leaders see the numbers on demand and supply, skills investment becomes a business-critical decision.” By presenting skills gaps in financial terms — linking them to revenue impact or delivery risk — HR leaders can secure support for initiatives that would otherwise be further down the business agenda.

This insight shows the importance in making SWP an ongoing process that organisations revisit regularly as markets evolve and business objectives shift. This creates a foundation for evidence-based decision-making that builds confidence in the value of SWP among leaders and keeps the organisation agile in its skills and capabilities.

“Strategic workforce planning is not about perfect data, it is about giving leaders the confidence to act with what they have.”

Alicia Roach, Co-founder, eQ8

Embedding Skills Resilience Across the Organisation

Looking beyond data and forecasts, SWP also introduces a change in mindset for how organisations manage their people. Rather than relying on employee turnover to meet skills requirements, leaders can focus on developing, engaging and retaining critical skills among their workforce. By embedding this approach into planning cycles, organisations move away from reactive measures and towards sustainable workforce management. As a result, a workforce can adapt to change with less disruption, giving the organisation a competitive edge in a dynamic market environment.

Roach and Hare stressed that this resilience does not come from running a single SWP initiative. “Workforce resilience is the product of consistently aligning workforce planning with business strategy, making targeted investments and engaging employees on the journey,” said Roach. “When done well, SWP becomes part of an organisation’s DNA, providing leaders with the confidence that they have the skills needed for future success.”

For a quick snapshot of understanding the skills needed for organisations now and into the future, please watch the short video below.