HMLR: Strategic Workforce Planning
Case Study:
Strategic Workforce Planning
In 2022, His Majesty’s Land Registry (HMLR) adopted a new strategy reflecting changes in the focus of the organisation and the balance of its work. At its heart was a shift from purely transactional services (land registration), to one where the data held on land ownership could become the cornerstone of a data-driven and sustainable economy. To support this strategy HMLR recognised that the capacity and capability requirements of its workforce would change, and that they needed a plan, firstly to identify the high-level workforce requirements over the 3-5 year period to deliver their ambitious objectives, and secondly to transform the workforce from its current state to the future requirement, i.e. a Strategic Workforce Plan (SWP).
Our brief was to work with HMLR colleagues to identify workforce capacity and capability requirements over the 3-5 year timescale, develop a people plan to get there, and in so doing, embed repeatable SWP capability within HMLR.
What We Did
From the outset, we proposed HMLR use the project to model the 1st iteration of a ‘strawdoll’ SWP process of our design, ‘learning by doing’, and building and embedding the governance, processes, tools, data analytics and individual knowledge and skills that would constitute HMLR’s SWP capability, through collaboration with the wide range of internal stakeholders involved. The output of this process would be SWP #1.
In agreeing these objectives, we recognised the need for a consulting team with the following core skills: stakeholder management at multiple levels; SWP specialist expertise; design and facilitation of workshops; data analysis and model design; plan writing. Dearden HR successfully partnered with Tricordant to deliver this programme of work.
What We Achieved
The key outcomes of the project were HMLR:
- Conducting SWP#2 without external assistance.
- Overcoming what appeared initially as a daunting challenge and embedding SWP into their core planning process.
- Recognition of the risk to strategy of the lack of a set of delivery assumptions over the 3–5-year period, and a commitment to developing and maintaining such a set through future iterations.
- Recognition that SWP is principally concerned with developing and sustaining workforce capability across departments, and a consequential pivot to a profession centered approach to SWP.
- The first iteration of the plan endorsed, future requirements identified, and a plan to resource them agreed, and responsibility for resourcing actions assigned.
- The process for SWP#2 built on lessons learned from SWP#1 agreed, together with commitment across HMLR to engage with it.
- Presenting their SWP project as a case study at Civil Service collaboration events.
Below we have shared a testimony from the Client lead on this project:
“We had the pleasure of working with Dearden HR and Tricordant, and the experience was first rate. The objective was to produce a first iteration of a strategic workforce plan that would support delivery of our significant transformation agenda. Nick and Clare truly listened to our needs and tailored their approach, rather than relying on a generic, off-the-shelf process. Their commitment to understanding our particular requirements was evident from the start.
Their outcome-based approach ensured that everyone involved was clear on what needed to be delivered, and it kept us all focused on achieving our goals. The clarity and direction provided by Dearden HR and Tricordant were instrumental in the success of our project.
There was a genuine concern for knowledge transfer so that we were equipped to continue after the end of the consultancy period. This was invaluable in maintaining the momentum and ensuring long-term success.
Since this initial engagement, we have further engaged Dearden HR and Tricordant on another activity, and their professionalism, adaptability, and results-driven methodology continue to deliver.”
Samantha Mills
Head of HR Business Partnering
HM Land Registry