Resourcing Plan

A resourcing plan is a systematic and continuing process of analysing an organisation's human resource needs under changing conditions and integrating this analysis with the development of HR policies appropriate to meet those needs (Pilbeam and Corbridge,2006). The concerns of a resource plan are to assess future recruitment needs, design training programmes, work out a career development policy; cut costs while also allowing for competitive salaries, anticipate and avoid redundancies as much as possible, among other things.

The major aim of drawing up an appropriate resourcing plan for East London Life in its expansion plan with the International Convention Centre, is to ensure that the "right people with the right skills are in the right positions and at the right time"(Taylor,2005). The resource plan will use headings such as strategies, objectives, timescales and cost.

Below are brief notes on how each task in the plan will be implemented.

Review of organisational objectives

The most important way in which resourcing activities add value is by playing a significant role in achieving strategic objectives (Taylor,2005). Before beginning to formulate a resource plan, it is important that the objectives of the organisation are brought to the fore. Every organisation has its definite purpose for existence and East London Life's objectives are: to promote the advancement of education of local people and to foster the appreciation of contemporary life and art. Members of the East London Life board of trustees have made it clear that the original purpose of East London Life must not be completely taken over by the International centre's requirements. Therefore, it is important to ensure that these objectives are well aligned with that of the international convention centre.

Competency framework design

Competencies are sets of skills, knowledge and behaviours needed for an individual to carry out his/her roles effectively (Cheese et al,2008). Every organisation needs competency frameworks to align individual behaviours with organisational strategies. For East London Life, the resource plan is to review the existing competency frameworks (through job analysis) to determine whether the existing competencies are sufficient to achieve the organisational goals or not. The competency framework should focus on customer service and communication skills, experience in the arts, multitasking skills, team skills, problem solving skills, planning/organising skills, etc.

Internal labour market review

The essence of a labour market review is to find people who have the required skills and attitudes, and who are willing to work at the rates and conditions that the organisation provides. The resource plan would look at the internal labour market of East London Life, and the likelihood that existing employees are willing and have the sufficient skills to remain in the organisation through this period. This review will be done department by department, grade by grade, with the use of performance appraisal records and other HR records on length of service, age of employees, promotion, punctuality/absenteeism, disciplinary issues.

External labour market review

It is necessary for the resource plan to fill gaps to reconcile supply and demand of labour using the local external labour market, taking into account factors such as the population density, age distribution, social class, unemployment rates, school leavers and skill levels using information from the dailies and recruitment agencies/job centres within that environment.

Recruitment strategy

Recruitment and selection form the axis on which all other HR issues turn (Porter et al,2008). The first step in a recruitment strategy is to determine if there's an actual need for recruitment by assessing the staff needs in relation to the proposed convention centre. The resource plan should adopt a competency-based recruitment strategy. Vacancies should first be advertised internally, allowing existing members of staff to apply for these positions. Internal promotion should also be adopted. External prospective candidates could then be sought for the vacancies left by placing adverts on the website, recruitment agencies and job centres with a focus on people with the competencies sought that will be willing to take up fixed-term jobs.

Selection strategies

A selection process is aimed at measuring individual characteristics and matching them with the job requirements to predict subsequent job performance (Porter et al,2008). The first step in any selection exercise would be short-listing qualified candidates based on the competency approach adopted. The interview will be the next step. In