15 of the best workforce planning software tools [2025]

Key takeaways on workforce planning software:

• Workforce planning software helps businesses optimize headcount, predict future staffing needs, and align workforce needs with budgets.
• Choosing the right platform streamlines operations, reduces manual work, and supports long-term growth.
• Integration with existing systems like HR, payroll, and finance platforms helps create seamless data management.

What is workforce planning?

Workforce planning is the process of anticipating future workforce needs and creating business strategies to meet them. It involves determining the right numbers and types of employees to ensure you’re adequately staffed for upcoming projects and initiatives.

The workforce planning process includes various activities such as analyzing employee turnover rates, designing compensation packages, assessing training requirements, forecasting labor demand, and more.

Workforce planning aims to visualize your current workforce and extrapolate from there to fulfill future demand.

Get our guide to strategic workforce planning for CFOs

Industry-specific workforce planning examples

As industries evolve, the strategic approach to workforce planning becomes a pivotal factor in navigating the dynamic landscape of workforce dynamics. Here are a few custom industry examples.

Real estate: Tailoring workforce planning software to align with project timelines, planning headcount needs for various phases, and adapting staffing levels based on evolving project dynamics and market trends.

SaaS (Software as a Service): Employing workforce planning for optimized tech staffing, agile scheduling, and adaptive resource allocation to meet dynamic software needs and align with evolving market and tech trends.

Healthcare: Optimizing workforce planning software for the dynamic needs of patient demand, implementing skill-based allocation strategies for healthcare professionals across specialties, and ensuring compliance adherence to achieve optimized and patient-centric staffing solutions.

Manufacturing: Analyzing historical production data and market trends to forecast seasonal peaks accurately. This insight helps the manufacturing company anticipate periods of increased demand.

What's the difference between workforce planning vs. workforce management?

According to ADP, workforce management has three big responsibilities:

1. People and resource allocation
2. Attendance tracking
3. Legal compliance

On the other hand, the NIH Office of Management says workforce planning has the following functions:

1. Analyzing, forecasting, and planning talent supply and demand
2. Assessing talent and skills gaps
3. Ensuring the organization has the correct number of skilled workers to fulfill its strategic objectives

So workforce management is more about managing people, while workforce planning is more of a long-term view. It's a higher-level view than the everyday actions and interactions of employees. 

Looking for workforce management software tools? We've got you covered.

What's the difference between workforce planning and headcount planning?

This is simpler than it appears. Headcount planning is a subset of the workforce planning process. With workforce planning, you're looking at the holistic company, but headcount planning is really only concerned with the number of heads you have.

That said, the terms are commonly used interchangeably; it's not "wrong" to say headcount planning when you mean workforce planning or vice versa.

Download this free headcount planning template for streamlined workforce planning

What is a workforce planning software?

Workforce planning software helps businesses manage their current and future staffing needs. It typically uses tools like AI-powered data analysis, reporting dashboards, and scenario modeling to align staffing with your company’s goals and budget. 

For example, it can show whether your team has the right number of employees for an upcoming project, highlight roles with skill gaps, or identify areas where you may be overstaffed. These insights help make decisions about hiring, training, or restructuring easier.

Why should you use strategic workforce planning software tools? 

Strategic workforce planning software can help companies make data-driven decisions. Workforce planning tools collect all your workforce data and create heads-up reports and what-if scenarios to help you determine who and what you’ll need in future quarters. 

With analytics and reporting capabilities, workforce planning software and workforce planning tools can provide visibility beyond headcount planning, covering areas such as employee turnover rates, skill trees, and labor demand forecasting. Companies can use this insight to adjust their plans accordingly. 

Workforce planning software also reduces the need for manual processes and tracking, saving time and resources. An automated system manages workforce planning activities so companies can more accurately track progress and identify opportunities for improvement.

What to look for in workforce planning tools

With so many entries into this product category over the last few years, buyers find themselves spoiled for choice when choosing between workforce planning software — but potentially overwhelmed with options.

While your individual business will have specific needs to fulfill its workplace planning goals, your chosen workforce planning tool should offer flexibility, visibility, and automation. 

When selecting a workforce planning solution, here are some key features to look for:

• Automation capabilities: Planning software with automated systems can save time and resources by reducing the need for manual data entry and tracking.
• Flexible reporting: Look for reporting tools that allow you to track progress and identify opportunities for improvement.
• Scenario planning: Workforce planning software should enable you to create heads-up reports and scenario planning to help determine who and what you'll need in future quarters.
• Turnover rate tracking: As part of workforce planning, you'll want to monitor employee turnover rates, so having these analytics built into the software saves time and improves results.
• Skill tree analysis: Understand how employees' skill sets fit your organization's goals as part of your workforce management strategy.
• Labor demand forecasting: Gather insights on labor costs and demand so you can adjust your workforce planning accordingly.

The best workforce planning software for CFOs and business leaders

We’ve researched and reviewed a wide range of workforce planning software to find tools that can tackle your real-world business challenges. Let’s look at the best workforce planning software for CFOs and business leaders.

1. Cube

What it is: FP&A software for workforce planning, headcount forecasting, and financial analysis.

Who it’s for: Finance teams who need to align workforce costs with budgets, evaluate multiple hiring scenarios, and streamline workforce planning directly within Excel or Google Sheets

Cube is the first spreadsheet-native FP&A platform with powerful AI capabilities that can help you simplify workforce planning and stay ahead of the changes. Finance teams rely on Cube every day to make smarter, faster decisions about headcount and resource allocation.

You can use Cube’s advanced headcount forecasting to align workforce costs with budgets and model multiple hiring scenarios. The native integrations with Excel and Google Sheets allow teams to plan, analyze, and collaborate better while sticking to the spreadsheets they know and love.

Companies like Edge Fitness Club and Smart City trust Cube to optimize their planning, eliminate manual work, and give their leaders more time to focus on strategy. Cube also provides quick onboarding, competitive pricing, and responsive support to drive faster time to value.

Features:

• AI-powered insights: Automate data consolidation, detect anomalies, and surface predictive insights to make smarter, faster decisions.
• Automated data consolidation: Connect data from numerous sources for automated rollups and drilldowns.
• Multi-scenario analysis: Model how changes to key assumptions affect overall financials.
• Endless integrations: Integrate with spreadsheets (Google and Excel), accounting & finance, HR, ATS, billing & operations, sales & marketing, and business intelligence systems.
• Customizable dashboards: Build and share dashboards based on your needs.
• Native Excel and Google Sheets integration: Work bi-directionally with your preferred spreadsheets.
• Multi-currency support: Evaluate your financials in both local and reporting currencies.
• User-based controls: Make sure the right data goes to the right people at the right time with user controls, validations, and an audit trail.
• Centralized formulas and KPIs: Store all calculations in one central location and manage from a single source of truth.
• Drilldown and audit trail: Get straight to the transactions and history behind a single data cell in just one click.

➡️ See all of our features here.

Pros:

• Offers powerful reporting and KPIs to automate and analyze important data.
• Streamlines manual data, reduces errors, and improves collaboration, helping teams make smarter business decisions faster.
• Enables easy collaboration with industry-leading FP&A experts and an award-winning support team.
• Integrates with dozens of applications for seamless functionality.
• Provides real-time cash flow visibility with easy-to-update actuals and drill-down capabilities into specific cells.

Cons:

• Works best for mid-sized businesses—it’s not a personal finances app.
• Doesn't provide multilingual support right now.

Pricing: Custom pricing starts at just $2,000/mo

2. ADP Workforce Now

What it is: HCM software for workforce forecasting, headcount planning, and HR management.

Who it's for: HR teams who need tools to manage employee data, forecast staffing needs, and streamline workforce planning processes.

ADP Workforce Now is a human capital management (HCM) platform with tools for workforce forecasting and headcount planning. It offers customizable dashboards and predictive analytics on headcount and attrition so organizations can address staffing needs.

Key Features:

• Demographic insights: Break down employee age, gender, and skills
• Headcount planning: Forecast and allocate headcount based on organizational needs
• Attrition insights: Analyze turnover trends and areas of concern
• Predictive algorithms and historical data: Use past workforce data to forecast future staffing needs

Pros

• Offers a wide variety of reporting options
• Features a user-friendly design

Cons

• Users report customer support can be difficult to get ahold of
• Users report the onboarding experience can be confusing for employees.

Pricing: Pricing is not publicly available

3. Anaplan

What it is: Planning software for scenario modeling, headcount forecasting, and workforce optimization.

Who it’s for: Teams who need to evaluate hiring scenarios and analyze skill gaps.

Anaplan is a planning platform that connects HR, finance, sales, and operational strategies to tackle workforce planning. It offers tools for real-time collaboration, scenario planning, and skill gap analysis. 

[Source]

Key Features:

• Scenario planning: Model multiple workforce scenarios to anticipate future needs
• Skills gap analysis: Identify skill shortages and plan targeted hiring or training initiatives
• Real-time collaboration: Enable cross-departmental teams to update and align workforce plans instantly
• Demand forecasting: Predict workforce requirements based on market trends and internal business goals

Pros

• Handles large datasets effectively with in-memory processing capabilities, making it popular among data scientists and analysts
• Utilizes the proprietary Hyperblock® calculation engine, enabling users to create scenarios with unlimited dimensions
• Provides multi-device support for PC, iOS, and Android so users can access data on any platform

Cons

• Requires in-depth training and support, making it difficult for users to learn and navigate intuitively
• Demands a challenging implementation process, often involving third-party consultants and taking over a year in complex cases
• Comes with a high price tag, making it out of reach for most small and medium-sized businesses

Pricing: Pricing is not publicly available

4. Board

What it is: Enterprise planning software for workforce planning, scenario modeling, and performance tracking.

Who it’s for: HR teams who want to model various scenarios and optimize resource allocation.

Board is an enterprise planning platform that can help HR teams run their talent management. It provides tools for tracking headcount, modeling workforce scenarios, and optimizing talent acquisition strategies. It should be noted that Board markets itself towards enterprises, not smaller to mid-sized companies.

Key Features:

• Headcount modeling: Forecast workforce needs and evaluate the impact of hiring or downsizing scenarios.
• Talent analytics: Monitor metrics like turnover rates and workforce productivity.
• Skill gap analysis: Identify gaps in workforce skills.
• Dynamic dashboards: Visualize workforce data and performance metrics in customizable reports.

Pros

• Features a user-friendly interface suited for those with some financial software experience
• Offers a low-code experience, various customizations, and ad hoc reporting opportunities
• Provides strong data discovery and analysis capabilities that deliver deep insights into financial position and future planning.

Cons

• Users report a steep onboarding process and learning curve requiring significant time for training and implementation
• Limited training resources and documentation are available within the platform
• Best suited for financial planning power users who aim to build bespoke financial applications and reporting structures

Pricing: Pricing is not publicly available

5. ChartHop

What it is: People operations software for headcount planning, organizational charting, and workforce analytics.

Who it’s for: HR and operations teams who want to visualize workforce data and identify gaps in skills or team structures.

ChartHop is a people operations platform with added HRIS features. It’s designed to help organizations match staffing needs to business goals. Charthop allows teams to forecast headcount, analyze workforce trends, and visualize organizational changes in real time. 

ChartHop’s flexible architecture allows users to easily create their own custom reports and dashboards and develop powerful visualizations that help them make sense of it all. Additionally, ChartHop users can access up-to-date data in real-time across all their departments and teams, so they always have accurate and current data on what’s going on at any given moment.

Key Features:

• Headcount forecasting: Predict workforce needs and allocate resources based on business priorities
• Org chart visualization: Create dynamic org charts to track team structures and plan future changes
• Scenario planning: Model different hiring scenarios to understand potential outcomes and budget implications
• Budget tracking: Integrate headcount planning with financial data to account for budget constraints

Pros

• Provides an easy-to-use system that allows users to quickly view their data in real-time
• Offers AI-powered data insights to help decision-makers contextualize and analyze large datasets
• Delivers competitive pricing and strong value for the features included on the platform

Cons

• Lacks flexibility in customizing reports, dashboards, and certain visualizations
• Features a user interface that isn’t intuitive, making it challenging for new users to adapt quickly
• Presents issues with editing or modifying data once it’s in the system—particularly for business goals and org chart data

Pricing:

• ChartHop Basic: $2/mo per employee
• Code Modules: $6/mo per employee

6. Deel

What it is: Global HR software for managing international hiring and workforce management across multiple countries.

Who it’s for: HR teams who need to streamline global workforce planning and ensure compliance with international labor laws.

Deel is a global HR and payroll platform that offers tools to help organizations manage international workforce needs. While its primary focus is on global payroll, its AI-driven insights can support strategic workforce planning. The real-time data visualization and a global hiring toolkit can help make decisions about compensation, talent allocation, and compliance across 150+ countries.

Key Features:

• Global talent insights: Analyze workforce data to guide strategic headcount planning across different countries
• Automated compliance checks: Ensure all hiring practices meet local labor laws
• Real-time data dashboards: Visualize workforce and financial data to support headcount allocation and cost management
• Compensation benchmarks: Access market salary data to plan competitive and cost-effective compensation packages

Pros:

• Supports direct hire, temp-to-hire, and contract-based planning
• Provides numerous integrations to connect with other HR and payroll functions from various microservices
• Includes compliance support for international hiring, payroll costs, and taxation requirements

Cons:

• Customer service receives mixed reviews, with users citing a lack of support after the initial sales process
• Billing operates on a calendar month cycle with no proration so signing up early in the month is necessary to maximize value
• As a newer product, the platform has some rough edges in design and user experience according to user feedback

Pricing:

• Deel Contractor: $49/mo
• Deel EOR: $599/mo
• Deel Payroll: $29/mo per employee
• Deel US Payroll: $19/mo per employee
• Deel US PEO: $89/mo per employee

7. ActivTrak

What it is: Workforce analytics software for productivity monitoring and workload management.

Who it’s for: Finance teams who want to optimize resource allocation and track workforce efficiency.

ActivTrak is a workforce analytics platform that helps with workforce planning through productivity insights and team performance tracking. It provides visibility into employee workload distribution, engagement, and capacity planning to help teams make decisions about resource allocation. 

ActivTrak’s tools use AI to enable businesses to monitor staffing levels and identify skill gaps. It also offers real-time alerts so managers can be alerted when employees engage in risky behavior—like visiting malicious websites.

Key Features:

• Capacity planning: Monitor team capacity to maintain balanced workloads and avoid overburdening employees
• Skill gap analysis: Identify skill gaps within teams to inform training and hiring decisions
• Workload forecasting: Predict future workload demands to plan staffing levels
• Employee engagement insights: Measure engagement metrics to maintain morale and productivity across the workforce

Pros:

• Features an intuitive user interface with expected functionality and additional extras that pleasantly surprise users
• Includes productivity tracking tools enabling managers to assess team productivity and refine internal processes effectively
• Offers security measures like two-factor authentication and ActiveDirectory integrations for secure access

Cons:

• Implementation can be challenging with some reviewers noting a lengthy process that might hinder user adoption
• Pricing lacks transparency with some users reporting higher-than-expected total costs per license compared to initial marketing communications
• Limited flexibility in features like whitelisting or restricting access to specific websites

Pricing:

• Free: $0
• Essentials: $10/mo per user
• Essentials Plus: $15/mo per user
• Professional: $19/mo per user

8. Planful

What it is: FP&A software for budgeting, forecasting, workforce planning, and performance tracking.

Who it’s for: Finance teams who need to streamline headcount planning and create financial strategies.

Planful is a cloud-based financial performance management platform with features for workforce planning. It can model various workforce scenarios, forecast staffing needs, and manage employee-related expenses. Planful also provides dashboards that allow HR and finance teams to work together on workforce allocation. 

Key Features:

• Workforce modeling: Simulate different staffing scenarios to assess their impact on budgets and forecasts
• Collaboration tools: Enable collaboration between HR and finance teams 
• Automated reporting: Generate reports on staffing levels and expenses
• Model comparison: Compare real-time comparisons of plan versus actuals

Pros:

• Offers a feature-rich platform that can serve as an all-in-one financial planning tool for smaller companies.
• Provides flexible pricing, which reviewers say is competitive and scales with companies as they grow.
• Benefits Excel users with familiar syntax, making it easier for savvy users to stay in their spreadsheets—even though it’s not fully Excel-native.

Cons:

• Delivers a wealth of features that may overwhelm smaller companies—even the lower price tiers might exceed their needs.
• Struggles with integration, with implementation times ranging from 4 months to up to a year.
• Operates sluggishly at times, with users reporting slow data pulls and the need to restart processes to make adjustments or research other data.

Pricing: Pricing is not publicly available

9. Orgvue

What it is: Organizational design software for scenario modeling, workforce analytics, and data visualization.

Who it’s for: HR and leadership teams who aim to optimize workforce structure and forecast future needs.

Orgvue is an organizational design platform that enables businesses to tackle workforce planning. It offers AI-powered tools for data visualization, scenario modeling, and continuous planning. Orgvue integrates data from multiple sources to provide a comprehensive business view.

• Dynamic data management: Consolidate data from multiple sources into a single view
• Scenario planning: Simulate various future workforce scenarios and assess their impact
• Advanced visualization tools: Access interactive dashboards for visualizing workforce composition, trends, and areas needing optimization
• Collaboration and Workflows: Support cross-department task assignment and status tracking

Pros:

• Offers robust customization features within an easy-to-implement platform
• Provides end-to-end workforce and employee management tools to seamlessly connect operational needs with centralized data
• Includes various templates for creating clean, user-friendly reports and dashboards

Cons:

• Advanced features come with a steep learning curve requiring prior knowledge of organizational data systems
• Handling large datasets, especially those with links, can cause lag or freezing
• The absence of an autosave function necessitates careful data management
• Limited integration options make it challenging to maximize the software's overall value

Pricing: Pricing is not publicly available

10. Visier

What it is: AI-powered workforce planning software for predictive analytics.

Who it’s for: HR and finance teams who need to forecast workforce trends, address skill gaps, and make staffing decisions.

Visier is a workforce planning and people analytics platform that uses AI to help businesses make decisions about their workforce. It offers tools to identify talent gaps, forecast workforce needs, and model staffing scenarios. Visier can integrate with existing HR systems to provide insights for workforce planning efforts.

Key Features:

• Workforce analytics: Analyze workforce trends and uncover areas for optimization
• Scenario modeling: Test different workforce strategies and evaluate their impact on business outcomes
• Talent gap identification: Identify skill gaps across the organization to plan future hiring or upskilling initiatives
• Data Integration: Pull information from various HR systems for a centralized workforce view

Pros:

• Provides a high-level overview of staffing, enabling easy access to workforce data
• Includes robust analytics tools to help contextualize and understand organizational metrics
• Features an intuitive software design, making it accessible for casual users to navigate and derive value from reports and data

Cons:

• Mobile functionality lacks the smoothness and intuitiveness of the full web-based platform
• Reporting, customization, and export features have room for improvement​​—as noted by multiple reviews
• Lacks notifications or follow-up features for time-sensitive tasks or required communications

Pricing: Pricing is not publicly available

 11. SAP SuccessFactors Human Capital Management

What it is: HCM software for workforce analytics, headcount planning, and employee lifecycle management.

Who it’s for: HR teams who want to optimize workforce planning, track performance metrics, and staffing decisions.

SAP SuccessFactors offers workforce analytics within its HCM suite. It provides insights into employee trends, skills gaps, and performance metrics. SAP SuccessFactors uses AI to power reports with 2,000+ predefined metrics on people data for HR to make staffing decisions.

Key Features:

• Real-time workforce insights: Access up-to-date information on workforce trends and performance metrics
• Predictive analytics: Forecast workforce needs and potential challenges using historical and real-time data
• Skill and competency analysis: Identify gaps in workforce skills and develop plans to address them
• Data integration: Combine data from various HR systems into one unified platform 

Pros:

• Provides visibility across different business units, enabling better-informed workforce planning decisions
• Offers automated onboarding and offboarding features like assigned training and hosted video courses, simplifying transitions and improving tracking
• Integrates seamlessly with the larger SAP environment for businesses already using other modules

Cons:

• The user interface and navigation need improvement with elements like pop-up modals causing frustration
• Search functionality is less robust, making navigation challenging for unfamiliar users
• System speed can lag, particularly when handling large datasets or customizations in workforce planning

Pricing: $33.48/year per person

12. Vena

What it is: FP&A software for financial planning, workforce forecasting, and scenario modeling.

Who it’s for: Finance teams who need to streamline budgeting, forecast workforce costs, and headcount planning.

Vena offers workforce planning software that integrates with Excel to help businesses manage labor expenses and headcount planning. It offers tools for employee-level planning, payroll and benefit forecasting, and automated variance analysis. It can connect with HRIS and ERP systems to pull in people's information.

[Source]

Key features: 

• Scenario planning: Model different workforce scenarios to assess their financial impact
• Dynamic modeling: Plan for changes to payroll, tax, and fringe benefit rates
• Data integration: Sync with HRIS and other tools for up-to-date workforce insights

Pros: 

• Works within Excel spreadsheets
• Enables multiple members to work together on a single report

Cons: 

• Suffers from a high learning curve
• Slows down as your datasets get bigger

Pricing: Pricing is not publicly available

13. Runn

What it is: Resource management software for capacity planning, project scheduling, and forecasting.

Who it’s for: Project managers who need to allocate resources, track team workloads, and forecast future staffing needs.

Runn is a resource management software with features to plan and allocate workforce needs. It offers features for resource scheduling, project planning, capacity management, and project forecasting. Runn provides a comprehensive view of team availability and project timelines for decision makers.

Key features: 

• Resource scheduling: Assign team members to projects and manage workloads
• Project planning: Plan, budget, and track projects to ensure timely delivery
• Capacity management: Monitor team capacity to prevent overbooking and underutilization
• Project forecasting: Predict project outcomes and financials to inform strategic planning

Pros: 

• Features a user-friendly UI
• Allows you to see where people and projects are at a glance

Cons: 

• Users report minimal reporting options
• Users report minimal security profiles

Pricing: 

• Starter: $10/mo per person
• Professional: $14/mo per person
• Premium/Enterprise: Pricing is not publicly available

14. Connecteam

What it is: Workforce management software for scheduling and communication.

Who it’s for: Operations teams managing deskless or mobile workforces.

Connecteam is a workforce management platform that can streamline communication, scheduling, and employee engagement. It offers tools for managing daily operations and real-time communication. Its mobile-first design makes it favorable for remote and deskless teams.

Key features: 

• Employee scheduling: Create, manage, and distribute schedules while tracking availability and shift swaps
• Task management: Assign tasks, monitor progress, and get status updates to improve efficiency
• Real-time communication: Share updates, send announcements, and facilitate team chats
• Time tracking and timesheets: Monitor work hours, track overtime, and generate detailed timesheets for payroll

Pros: 

• Allows teams to align their projects remotely
• Centralizes scheduling, payroll, and HR in one app

Cons: 

• Mobile app lacks features from desktop app
• Users report the search functionality can be clunky

Pricing: 

• The Small Business Plan: Free
• Basic: $29/mo
• Advanced: $49/mo
• Expert: $99/mo

15. Clearcompany

What it is: Talent management software to support hiring, engagement, learning, and performance tracking.

Who it’s for: HR teams and business leaders seeking tools to align workforce planning with recruitment, employee development, and performance management goals.

ClearCompany is a talent management platform that supports workforce planning through analytics and talent alignment tools. It helps businesses centralize headcount forecasting, staffing scenarios, and budget inputs in one common system. ClearCompany can also integrate with payroll and HRIS systems in real time.

Key features: 

• Workforce analytics: Analyze workforce data to forecast staffing needs and identify skill gaps
• Performance tracking: Monitor employee contributions to projects
• Recruitment tools: Streamline hiring processes with customizable workflows and automated candidate screening
• Employee engagement insights: Gather feedback and measure engagement to improve retention strategies

Pros: 

• Features a straightforward user interface
• Offers customizable workflows for workforce reports

Cons: 

• Suffers from slow customer support response times
• Slows down on load times when running reports

Pricing: Pricing is not publicly available

How to choose between these workforce planning software 

Before you demo any specific tools, take a step back and think about your company’s challenges and priorities. Here are some key considerations to keep in mind as you evaluate your options:

1. Identify what you need 

Start by writing down the specific workforce challenges you’re trying to address. For example, are you struggling to forecast workforce costs, align headcount with financial goals, or plan for seasonal hiring surges? You might need software that offers tools for headcount planning, financial scenario modeling, or analyzing the cost implications of hiring decisions. Use your list to narrow down your options to tools that address both workforce and financial planning pain points.

2. Evaluate your budget

Set a clear budget that factors in the upfront cost, ongoing subscription fees, training, and potential upgrades. Meet with key stakeholders like HR, finance, and operations leaders to determine what your company can realistically invest. Keep in mind that while premium solutions may seem costly, the right software can pay for itself by getting more from your workforce.

3. Pick must-have features

Identify the features your business can’t function without. For example, if you need help forecasting, look for tools with powerful data modeling capabilities. If you need collaboration to be as simple as possible, prioritize software with dashboards that allow multiple teams to share insights with each other. Stick to your company’s priorities rather than being swayed by extras you might not use.

4. Prioritize ease of use and support 

The right workforce planning software won’t add value if it’s too complex for your team to adopt. Look for tools with user-friendly interfaces and minimal setup time. The right vendor will also offer reliable customer support and training resources. 

Common workforce planning pitfalls to avoid

Even the best workforce planning strategies can fall short if certain mistakes are overlooked. Here are some common pitfalls to avoid so your organization can build a more effective, cohesive, and future-ready workforce plan.

1. Incomplete or outdated data: Mitigate this risk by establishing a proactive approach to regularly updating and maintaining accurate workforce data. This ensures that decision-makers have timely and reliable information for effective workforce planning.
2. Lack of integration across departments: Overcome this obstacle by fostering cross-departmental collaboration and investing in integrated workforce planning systems. This ensures a cohesive approach and a shared understanding of workforce dynamics across the organization.
3. Failure to anticipate future skill needs: Address this challenge by engaging in regular skills assessments and implementing continuous learning initiatives. Proactively identifying and cultivating the skills needed for the future ensures that the workforce remains adaptable and aligned with evolving organizational requirements.
4. Inability to adapt to external factors: Avoid this risk by staying informed about external influences and proactively adjusting workforce planning strategies. A keen awareness of industry trends and dynamics allows organizations to remain agile and responsive to external changes, ensuring ongoing strategic alignment.
5. Misalignment with business strategy: Ensure cohesive planning by aligning workforce goals with the broader strategic objectives of the organization. This strategic alignment enhances the effectiveness of workforce planning in contributing to overarching business success.

Improve your workplace with the right workforce planning software

Now that you know all about workforce planning software, you're better prepared to choose the right tool for your business. Effective workforce planning fills critical roles, aligns your people strategy with your financial goals, and helps to build a forward moving organization.

If you’re looking for a tool that covers workforce and financial planning, consider Cube. Cube meets finance teams where they already work: Excel and Google Sheets. 

Book your free demo with Cube today.