How can you transition from a scheduling role to a Workforce Management leadership role?

I, myself have grown from an RTA to a scheduler to a planner before I became a manager and then to leadership roles. The key to success is to know all the aspects of workforce management and a bit of reporting exposure to various geographies and exposure to various industries. The key skills needed are alignment to the vision of the company, alignment to the workforce management strategy, problem solving skills, analytical skills, understanding and use of Tech and most importantly communication skills. It also helps to have a good mentor who can guide you through the career.

Winning a game often comes down not to the trick shots and plays, but getting the work done, and mastering the basics. Know in depth through and through WFM Theory and practice. If you know how to do the basics, moving inputs from forecast to schedule - then how to track, adjust, modify, and execute a plan you’ll succeed. In the end having the basics so thoroughly versed you can do them any time any where is key. You’ll be able to pick up any tool, and work in most any environment.

Scheduling is the art of allocating time and resource, its not just administrating working patterns. Step 1 is to shift your mindset from the routine tasks and processes and consider how you are influencing the workforce strategy. Next, listen to your stakeholders capturing feedback to understand their priorities. Then, develop stakeholder understanding by helping them to make better decisions earlier in the planning cycle, explaining the consequences and costs of more joined up thinking. By taking a more holistic view of the organisation, along with strategic objectives, developing a wider understanding of the customer and colleague journey you will become an in-demand workforce management subject matter expert who is leading by example.

There are no shortcuts to it, irrespective to this particular situation or any other situation in life although below can be considered to practice to develop the relevant capabilities: - Master your BAU & be the SME, put yourself as an source for your peers : this will add an outlook towards understanding of people behaviors & their expectations from a leader - Try engaging more with your leaders & offer to contribute wherever possible: This is to enable yourself with a leaders perspective - Engaging in a project, a wider project includes multiple stakeholders, team member will enable to work as a team & option to explore the outer world in-spite of limiting within scheduling BAU

For a leadership role, the first step is to be aware of what it means to be a leader: accepting increased responsibility, being accountable and able to empower others, so that they collectively solve problems and align with a common vision and goals. To grow as a WFM leader, it is important to: - master the technical skills: forecasting, staffing, tactical/short range planning, strategic/long range planning, real time management. - have a role model or a mentor that can share experience and teach the soft skills for leading others (active listening, honest and respectful communication, emotional intelligence). - develop skills, such as networking, stakeholder management, ability to work closely with the D- and C-suite of the organization.

Always think up-side-down and consider different people from different roles, organisations and even ways of life. Feedback is available from many sources, as long as we are receptive to receiving this and doing something with it. There doesn’t need to be a formal contract in place to be mentored, or an official survey or document to capture feedback. Senior business leaders are busy, however they will make the time to offer advice; maybe over a coffee, lunch, or a short walk – just ask. Think who is at a similar level within your business from a different role and start to learn more about the similarities and differences. Also, look for people more junior in their career as they can also be a source of valuable information.

n the realm of workforce management, even seasoned managers benefit from continuous growth. Embrace feedback as a compass for improvement, and seek mentorship to navigate complex challenges. A collaborative journey of shared insights ensures not just personal success but also cultivates a culture of excellence

A great way to expand your scope and network is to come to people with curiosity. If you are trying to learn forecasting, analytics, etc then come to those teams asking how their role is impacted by your scheduling (regardless if it's up or down stream). Seek to find out how you can help them in their role through your responsibilities, and then they'll be more open to teaching you about their responsibilities. This will also better position you for holistic thinking when you get to leadership. Also, a great WFM community for events/learning/networking/etc is the Society of Workforce Planning Professionals (SWPP). It's easily the best WFM group in the states and likely the world.

Keep a learning log, or diary, to capture your thoughts, ideas and progress so that you are always ready to share the difference you have made. Most importantly, think beyond “boring planning metrics” and consider what this means for customers, colleagues and commercial objectives. Being more outcome orientated demonstrates your broader awareness of why you do what you do. Use a mixture of diagnostic measures and targets, alongside customer/colleague quotes/stories will really help you to emotionally engage others. Always reference the help and support of others and how you have worked with. Look for opportunities to share your progress at business updates, external networking events and industry awards.

In my point of view should should show below personality traits: Highlight Transferable Skills: Emphasize skills from your scheduling role that are applicable to WFM, such as data analysis, time management, problem-solving, and attention to detail. Projects and Achievements: Showcase any projects or initiatives where you demonstrated leadership, strategic thinking, or process improvement in your current role.

Assessment of your own personal skill set is vital when transitioning into management from such an analytical role. Lots ties over but it is important that you are self analytical of your own soft skills and “hard” skills and draw out what you need for your future path and what isn’t as essential. An essential would be the ramp up in leadership skills; particularly soft skills which can be overlooked as requirements when transferring into a management role. One which comes to mind is emotional intelligence which is often used in a broader context for an analytical role like scheduling but in a management context needs to be understood in a very interpersonal way and become a day to day skill as you move into the management of people.

Develop Leadership Skills: Leadership Training: Seek out leadership development programs or courses to enhance your leadership skills. Focus on communication, team management, decision-making, and conflict resolution. Mentorship: Find a mentor, preferably someone in a WFM leadership role, to guide you through the transition, provide insights, and offer advice.