The critical factor in the operation of many businesses is HR management . Dependant upon market sector, the payroll is usually the second highest cost after materials and consumables.

Establishing a 5 year manpower resourcing plan sits at the heart of business planning and HR management and should consider:

• Manpower levels and deployment requirements
• Changes in existing roles, creation of new roles
• Manpower skills and level of attainment required
• Identification of skill shortage
• The establishment of training needs
• Manpower recruitment and succession thinking
• Accommodation and equipment requirements

The problem with forecasting attempts is that nothing is constant. Whilst we may not be capable of predicting with accuracy how external events may impact upon the business we should be capable of assessing the internal dimension. Key to HR management and manpower resourcing plans therefore is:

No employer can ignore labour turnover as it is an indication of the health of the organisation. Specialist people are hard to find, costly to develop and their replacement can devastate output targets.