Workforce Planning Manager

We are recruiting for a Workforce Planning Manager to join the team in our Leeds office.

We’re looking for someone to effectively oversee and ensure the optimal use of operational resources in line with charity objectives through in-depth analysis, forecasting, and strategic planning, fostering operational effectiveness, addressing future staffing requirements, and contributing to informed decision-making at the senior leadership level.

A key objective in the first year will be to support the embedding of our new contact centre platform, a proven track record of this would be preferable.

This is a hybrid role with a real work/life balance. This role may also require occasional travel and overnight stays.

What you will be doing:

• Lead and develop your team and act as a leadership role model, consistently demonstrating exemplary behaviours in line with the charity’s values and Leadership Behaviour Framework, empowering your team through effective coaching and collaboration to work on their own initiative and deliver results.
• Requirement to communicate regularly with the senior leadership team and executive articulating any risks and seeking approval for mitigations
• Refine and own the demand and forecast modelling process for the multi-channel contact centre operation.
• Analyse workforce trends, forecasts, and data to inform and guide planning and decision-making.
• Assist in the development of planning and scheduling processes and methodologies.
• Proactively develop the capability and efficiency of the workforce management (WFM) platform.
• Ensure the delivery of optimal schedules, real-time performance management, and MI production and development in both inbound and outbound operational environments.
• Ensure resource planning strategies meet the strategic aims of the charity and exceed the expectations of the client.
• Provide support, expertise, and analytics for inbound, outbound, email, and web functions of the contact centre.
• Actively manage and influence schedule adherence and optimise the use of resources.
• Enhance the operational effectiveness and accuracy of operational MI and Performance Dashboards.
• Build short to long-term demand and forecast models across various channels and determine workload demand to effectively allocate resources in accordance with these forecasts.
• Provide key input and insight into the operational budgeting process while balancing staffing levels against the budget, with a focus on exceeding average speed of answer and service level targets.
• Discharge all responsibilities assigned and perform all tasks, duties and responsibilities with due care and diligence as required by the charity and in doing so have full regard of the FCA conduct rules and adherence to charity policies and procedures.
• Take responsibility for own personal development.

What we want from you:

• Demonstrable experience in workforce planning in a multi-channel contact centre operation that utilises modern workforce management tools.
• Proven ability to work with complex data and transform it into actionable strategies.
• Effective stakeholder management and operational leadership skills.
• Ability to effectively communicate complex plans to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Demonstratable leadership skills with a focus on results and performance.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to foster effective working relationships.
• Extensive knowledge of workforce planning tools and methodologies.
• Proficient in MS Office suite and relevant software.

Behavioural competencies:

• Act purposefully – Thinks broadly, and makes commercial, insights-driven decisions.
• Empower talent – Develops everyone to reach their full potential.
• Create connections – Builds strong relationships, partnerships, and teams through transparent conversations. Inclusive and values diversity of thinking.
• Drive change – Adaptable and agile in response to changing requirements.
• Build trust – Authentic, self-aware and respectful. Creates a culture of openness and trust and brings people along.
• Deliver results – Drives individual accountability and ownership, enabling others to take action and make decisions.

Equality, diversity, and inclusion:

Equality, diversity, and inclusion are incredibly important to us; we have a culture of belonging. We’re always looking to increase the diversity of our workforce to ensure we can provide the best service possible for everyone. It’s not just about the professional experience you bring – we’re interested in who you are and your potential. If there’s an adjustment to our recruitment process that would help you to be your best, speak to our team and they’ll be happy to help.