Workforce Planning for 2027:
A Year-End Checklist for Employers

As businesses prepare their budgets and operational plans for 2027, one important decision deserves more attention: how many people will they need, and what capabilities will those employees bring?

Too often, headcount planning starts with the previous year’s numbers, with a few adjustments based on expected growth. But this approach can leave businesses with unfilled positions, overstretched teams, and hiring plans that do not reflect actual operational requirements.

Workforce planning helps prevent these challenges by connecting staffing requirements, employee capabilities, and workforce costs to business objectives before the new year begins. It does not have to be a complicated exercise. HR, finance, and operations teams can work through the following six considerations to build a more realistic workforce plan for 2027.

1. Review What Happened to Your Workforce This Year

Before forecasting next year’s requirements, look at how your workforce performed in 2026. Start with existing records covering employee headcount, vacancies, turnover, attendance, overtime, and recruitment performance. Consider these questions:

• • • Which positions took the longest to fill?
    • Which departments consistently relied on overtime?
    • Where did employee resignations occur most frequently?
    • Were there staffing requests that were delayed or not approved?
    • Have employees’ responsibilities changed significantly from their original job descriptions?

Understanding these issues helps businesses determine whether they need additional employees, better workforce allocation, or improvements in their recruitment and retention strategies.

2. Align Headcount Planning With Business Goals

Workforce requirements should reflect what the business intends to accomplish in 2027, rather than simply carrying over existing headcount. Start by reviewing confirmed business priorities, including new client accounts, expansion plans, upcoming projects, new locations, and technology investments. 

The hiring timeline is particularly important. Specialized and managerial positions may require longer recruitment and onboarding periods than entry-level roles. Businesses should also consider how automation and new systems may change existing roles. Some employees may need additional training, while others may be reassigned to different responsibilities as operational requirements evolve.

3. Identify Skills Gaps, Not Just Headcount Gaps

A fully staffed department can still struggle if employees do not have the capabilities required to meet changing business demands.

According to the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report, employers expect 39% of workers’ core skills to change or become outdated by 2030. The report also identifies skills gaps as a major barrier to business transformation, cited by 63% of surveyed employers. These findings highlight the importance of looking beyond immediate recruitment requirements.

Businesses should identify the skills that will become more important in the coming year, such as digital literacy, data analysis, technical expertise, regulatory knowledge, and people management. Once these gaps are identified, consider three approaches:

• • • Build: Develop existing employees through training and upskilling.
    • Buy: Recruit externally when specialized skills or experience are needed.
    • Borrow: Engage temporary or project-based professionals when expertise is required for a limited period.

Not every skills gap requires a new hire. A combination of employee development and targeted recruitment can help businesses strengthen their capabilities while making better use of their existing workforce.

4. Budget for the Full Cost of Your Workforce

Salary is only one part of maintaining a workforce. Businesses should account for the full cost of employment when preparing their 2027 budgets. Depending on the country and employment arrangement, these expenses may include:

• • • Salaries and expected wage adjustments
    • Mandatory employer contributions and statutory benefits
    • Bonuses and overtime payments
    • Recruitment and onboarding expenses
    • Training and employee development
    • Healthcare and insurance benefits
    • Equipment and other operational requirements

For Philippine employers, this includes budgeting for applicable statutory obligations such as 13th-month pay for covered rank-and-file employees and employer contributions to SSS, PhilHealth, and Pag-IBIG. The Department of Labor and Employment’s Workers’ Statutory Monetary Benefits Handbook provides a useful reference for understanding statutory employee benefits.

Businesses should also compare their projected workforce expenses against actual spending in 2026. Recurring overtime may indicate understaffing or scheduling inefficiencies, while consistently high recruitment expenses could point to employee retention challenges.

Gallup estimates that replacing an employee can cost between one-half and two times the employee’s annual salary, based on its U.S. workplace research. Although actual costs vary by role and market, the finding illustrates why employee turnover should be considered in workforce budgeting. 

The objective is not simply to reduce workforce expenses, but to ensure that the budget supports operational requirements without compromising employee welfare and productivity.

5. Determine Where Flexible Staffing Makes Sense

Not every business requirement calls for additional permanent employees. Seasonal demand, short-term projects, temporary staffing gaps, and new accounts with uncertain workloads may require a more flexible approach. Depending on operational needs, businesses may consider:

• • • Temporary staffing for seasonal requirements and short-term workforce needs.
    • Project-based staffing for specific projects or defined assignments.
    • Outsourcing for selected business functions or operational activities that may benefit from external workforce support.

These arrangements can help organizations respond to changing workloads without automatically increasing their permanent headcount. However, flexibility should always be supported by proper employment arrangements and compliance with applicable labor regulations.

In the Philippines, Department Order No. 174, Series of 2017, governs contracting and subcontracting arrangements. It prohibits labor-only contracting and sets requirements for legitimate contracting arrangements.

Before engaging a workforce provider, businesses should review its DOLE registration, operational capabilities, supervision arrangements, and compliance practices. The key is to choose a staffing arrangement that fits the business requirement while protecting workers and meeting legal obligations.

6. Turn Your Findings Into an Actionable Workforce Plan

After reviewing staffing requirements, skills gaps, recruitment priorities, and workforce costs, consolidate the findings into one practical plan for 2027. Your workforce planning checklist should cover the following:

1. Headcount: How many employees will each department need?
2. Recruitment priorities: Which positions need to be filled immediately, and which can be scheduled later?
3. Skills development: Which capabilities can be developed internally, and which require external recruitment?
4. Staffing arrangements: Which requirements call for permanent employees, temporary staffing, project-based support, or outsourcing?
5. Budget: What are the projected employment, recruitment, and workforce management costs?
6. Timeline and accountability: When should each initiative happen, and who will be responsible?

 Business requirements can change throughout the year, so HR, finance, and operations should review progress regularly. A quarterly assessment of headcount, recruitment performance, employee turnover, and business requirements can help organizations identify issues early and make adjustments before they become operational problems.

Planning Your Workforce for 2027

Effective workforce planning is about making informed decisions before staffing challenges affect business operations.

By reviewing current headcount, forecasting future requirements, addressing skills gaps, managing workforce costs, and considering flexible staffing arrangements, businesses can enter 2027 with a clearer understanding of their workforce priorities.

More importantly, workforce planning should be a shared responsibility between HR, finance, and operations. When these teams work together, organizations can build a workforce that is better prepared to support business objectives and adapt to changing demands.

Need a workforce solution for your business?

BusinessTrends works with organizations to address recruitment, staffing, and workforce management requirements through tailored workforce solutions.

If you are reviewing your staffing requirements for 2027, connect with our team to explore options that align with your business needs.

Talk to our team about your 2027 workforce plan →

Sources: 

• • • • https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025/
      • https://www.gallup.com/workplace/247391/future-work.aspx
      • https://nwpc.dole.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Workers-Statutory-Monetary-Benefits-Handbook-2024-Edition.pdf
      • https://www.ble.dole.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/DO-174-17-Rules-Implementing-Articles-106-to-109-of-the-Labor-Code-As-Amended1.pdf
      • https://www.gov.uk/agency-workers-your-rights/your-rights-as-a-temporary-agency-worker

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