Revolutionising workforce planning with data-driven solutions to build a resilient and future-ready NHS
University Hospitals of Liverpool Group (UHLG) faced increasing workforce challenges, including rising demand, productivity decline, and staff turnover. Traditional planning methods were limited in addressing the needs of its diverse, shifting workforce.
Strasys introduced a data-driven approach to strategic workforce planning. WDI enabled the organisation to use its operational and staff data, including surveys, to understand better its employees’ needs, behaviours, and motivations. Understanding the human stories behind the numbers.
This enabled it to identify unseen opportunities and create more effective interventions and support for staff, securing investment for growth.
The solution transformed workforce planning by helping UHLG better understand staff needs, develop more precise interventions, and make better use of data. Reimagining the workforce and building skills to use data for everyday decisions identified millions of savings, and better engagement across the organisation was created.
”
I don’t know any CFO who wouldn't be interested in this work, which has a potential 9% recurrent savings. An unbelievable return on investment. It's a no-brainer.”
James DawsonDeputy Director of People
Challenge: Breaking free from siloed and data-poor approaches
Workforce planning in healthcare is often dictated by historical data, functions, and a focus on roles and metrics rather than people. For the organisation, this traditional approach led to:
- Siloed Planning: Teams operated based on professions, isolated from each other, with plans largely influenced by subjective experiences.
- Lack of Transparency: Little understanding of the effectiveness of past initiatives on quality, productivity, and wellbeing.
- Narrow Focus: Interventions that are too abstract and lack a holistic view of the workforce and support to enable new models of care.
The organisation sought a new strategy that would balance data-driven objectivity with a human-centric focus to improve workforce wellbeing and the quality of care.
Solution: Connecting the human stories behind the data
Using WDI, the trust segmented its workforce based on needs, behaviours, and motivations. Using existing data and staff feedback, the segmentation integrated performance metrics, providing a full spectrum of insights.
- Data-Driven: Objective, comprehensive analytics formed the backbone of the People Plan.
- Human-Centric: By focusing on individual motivations and needs, the plan moved beyond metrics to uncover the human stories behind the data.
- Integrated Planning: The process successfully aligned clinical, performance, workforce, and finance agendas.
The result was a data-backed, people-focused plan, tested and refined with real staff input.
”
We are empowering colleagues with interconnected insights to grasp the changing workforce dynamics and plan more precise interventions, ensuring happier staff, better patient care, and an adaptable and ready-for-the-future healthcare system.
Pip GaskellDirector of People, UHLG
Outcome: Workforce driving improved care and organisation goals
“This is the first time in my 20+ years at the Trust that we are really getting to understand our staff. This is so much more effective than the typical soulless top down management by numbers.”
StaffUHLG
“I am staff and a patient. This approach helps our staff think of each other as individuals, and by addressing our human needs, we can deliver better care for our patients. Often, we are just seen as numbers, bands and groups. This completely changes this.”
StaffUHLG
