5 Things AI Will Change About Workforce Planning in 2025
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AI disruption in Workforce planning is coming, and we’ll get our first major taste in 2025 as companies adopt AI tooling to increase productivity. Workforce planners are on the front lines of changes, and we expect the following things to happen:
1) Headcount ratios will increase
AI-driven tools will significantly increase the scope of work & the size of teams managable by one person. The ability of AI to learn & summarize department activity for executive consumption, not only improves management precision, but reduces the number of hours it takes to produce the same information without AI. As pioneers in the space for leaders and headcount data, headcount365 is already proven to give 30% of time back to leaders. Similar tools across sales, support, and other production jobs will do the same.
Workforce planners should expect to have this conversation with their financial & executive counterparts. Tightening budgets & post-pandemic efficiency hunting will only encourage this trend.
2) Production per employee will increase (Talent Density)
Automation of non-production tasks will increase the capacity of production. Automated note taking, faster content creation, easier research give production employees real time back that they can use to deliver more results. For headcount365 customers, we’re tracking this data about recruiters & revenue producers models workforce planners can use to modify their plan.
As Workforce planners, we can expect the business to demand more production without additional headcount being added to the roster. It’s important in these situations to understand from each producer the common denominator that triggers headcount. This may be a complexity of work, the location, or an action that is uniquely laborious that AI can not handle.
3) Enablement roles will fundamentally change
As AI automates more routine tasks, companies will need to reassess their approach to operational and enablement roles. Junior roles may require higher qualifications to operate AI tools, leading to shifts in job levels and salary increases. Additionally, the management landscape for these roles will shrink, as AI reduces the need for extensive oversight. This will increase talent density, where each employee contributes more due to AI-driven enablement.
As workforce planners, it’s important to frame enablement roles with production, efficiency or revenue ROI. Spending dollars on sales enablement is an easier pill to swallow if it’s framed as an investment to add 20% revenue to every seller.
4) ROI will be a deciding factor in headcount approvals, including backfills
As AI boosts productivity, headcount requests will be scrutinized based on their clear return on investment (ROI). Leaders will need to justify why current teams cannot absorb the workload of a vacated role and articulate the consequences of leaving the role unfilled. Additionally, companies may explore lower-cost regions to fill these roles, adding another layer of scrutiny to backfill decisions.
Here's what executives will need to show to get new headcount approved:
Management Ratios: Demonstrate how the new hire impacts the manager-to-employee ratio, showing whether additional managerial oversight is needed or if existing managers can handle more direct reports.
Enablement Benefit: Prove how an enablement hire will increase team efficiency or production, using data to show how the hire boosts overall team productivity.
Revenue Opportunity: Clearly articulate how this hire will contribute to revenue generation, whether directly (sales roles) or indirectly (support roles that increase team capacity).
Long-Term Opportunity Cost: Present the potential cost of not hiring the role, demonstrating how failing to make the hire could result in missed revenue opportunities or decreased team performance.
Leaders will need to justify why current teams cannot absorb the workload of a vacated role and articulate the consequences of leaving the role unfilled. Additionally, companies may explore lower-cost regions to fill these roles, adding another layer of scrutiny to backfill decisions.
5) Offshoring Bias
With AI leveling the global talent field, offshoring will become a more prominent strategy for cost savings. As AI automates routine tasks, the location of employees becomes less relevant, making offshoring an attractive option for maintaining profitability. This shift will be key in workforce planning, allowing companies to reduce costs while maintaining productivity.
As workforce planners, we should be assessing the offshoring risk of productivity, attrition & expense to properly inform the business to the true cost. This will help businesses make decisions that are best for the long term while maximizing the value of offshore resources.
Conclusion
AI is no doubt the biggest shift in years for workforce planning, but the biggest change, will be managing stakeholders with high expectations about AI influence. 2025 will be all about balancing the demand for increased productivity with sustainable headcount growth. Workforce planning is one of the few roles that is can analyze cross functional data without a biased lens, and will become an increasingly important voice in the conversation about the impact of AI.
