5RST Resourcing and Talent Planning

Introduction to 5RST Resourcing and Talent Planning

Resourcing and talent planning is a level 5 CIPD unit that plays a fundamental role in Human Resource Management. The unit was developed with the sole purpose of teaching on resourcing and talent planning. The primary focus of the module is the mobilisation of the workforce to ensure than an organisation has access to the skills needed at a particular time and a given place. The unit is meant to ensure that the organisation gets to attract the right personnel to carry out the right organisational roles to meet the goals set. Learners of this unit will gain an understanding of resourcing and talent planning which involves attracting, retaining and managing employee turnover. The unit will give insights into strategic and operational activities of resourcing and talent planning.

Primary objectives of 5RST

1. To introduce students to the strategic approaches used by organisations to position themselves as employers in the labour market.
2. To introduce learners to primary operational tools, techniques and practices used by organisations to select, maintain, plan, dismiss and retire their workforce.
3. To enlighten students on the different ways of resourcing and talent planning.

Unit content

Resourcing and Talent Planning is a unit that explains the need to attract, recruit, and retain the staff members within the organisation. There are four main lessons deducted from the unit objectives that will be taught. This section will provide the indicative unit content with the expected learning outcome. It is important to understand that the content described in this section is neither prescriptive nor exhaustive but it is adequate to describe the expected learning outcome.

The first lesson covers the basic contemporary market trends and their significance for workforce planning. In this lesson, students will be taught about the tight and loose labour market conditions. The tight labour market condition is that which the employees available for the jobs are less and thus the competition is high towards getting the right candidate for the job. Loose labour market on the other hand is the condition where employees are many with fewer job opportunities. Issues of demand and supply trends, demographic profiling, talent availability and labour supply among others will be discussed. Learners will also learn about market dynamics and characteristics. Resourcing and talent planning requires that human resource practitioners understand the language of business and the necessary skills for sustainable organisation performance. The lesson further elaborates on market and stakeholder analysis and other variables that are essential for an employer’s competitive advantage and business sustainability.

The second lesson focuses on undertaking talents planning and recruiting process. In this lesson, students will be expected to analyse and interpret trends, metrics and patterns of demand and supply of skills.  This is an important lesson because the students will be able to identify the supply of skills suitable for current and future success of an organisation. Learners will also be taught on the internal and external factors that affect the selection and recruitment process. The students will learn the major recruitment methods that could be either internal or external and formal or informal. Additionally, the major selection methods ranging from application procedures to selection interviews will also be taught. The second lesson is broad because it also involves learning about the legal requirement for both local and international markets with regards to recruitment and selection process.

The third and the fourth lessons are on the maximization of employee retention and managing dismissal redundancy and retirement respectively. The most effective insights for maintaining and increasing the rate of employee retention will be covered in the lesson. Students will learn how to make a retention plan that is useful in the reduction of employee turnover. The current government legislative requirements both locally and internationally will be assessed and detailed based on the lesson. Students of these lessons will be expected to, understand international jurisdiction on issues of dismissal, redundancy and retirement. Conclusively the unit covers all aspects of resourcing and talent planning as applicable in organisations.

Unit Suitability

The unit is suitable for all persons seeking to develop a career in human resource management. All practitioners in the field of human resource management and development can also enrol for the unit to increase their knowledge and skills. All persons responsible for the implementation of HRs policies in an organisation are also eligible for the unit. Nevertheless, any person who may be interested in the process of resourcing and talent planning is eligible to enrol for the unit.

Expected learning outcome

Upon completion of this unit, learners are expected to

1. Explain the key contemporary labour market trends and their importance in workforce planning.
2. Practically undertake talent planning and recruiting activity
3. Demonstrates an understanding of suitable techniques for employee retention
4. Know how legally manage dismal, retirement and redundancy in both local and international organisations

The unit is covered in 60 hours. The hours are equally divided into guided learning and self-directed learning. Students are expected to attend all the lessons and complete the required assessments t complete the unit.

Summary and Assessment

The unit Resourcing and Talent Planning is essential for all HR practitioners and those pursuing a career in human resource management and development. Students gain an understanding of the resourcing and talent planning activities with practical examples from existing organisations. At the end of the lessons, learners are assessed on their understanding of the unit using a 4000 words assignment. The answers should demonstrate an understanding of the primary concepts that should be illustrated using viable examples. It is important to understand that the assessment seeks to tests the students’ analytical skills and critical thing. Therefore, learners should use their theoretical knowledge as learnt in class, and practical skills to answer the questions. Learners will be expected to relate academic concepts, theories and professional practices to organisational operations. The unit will require the use of various learning and research resources. The resources include books, journals, online resources, articles and websites. the specific learning resources for the guided learning will be provided by the tutors.