Framework for Developing Agency Staffing Plans

Ensuring accountability, mission delivery, and resilient workforce decisions

Staffing plans aren’t just another annual requirement – they’re a chance for leaders to step back and make thoughtful decisions about the workforce their mission truly needs. In a resource-constrained environment, agencies are being asked to justify vacancies, focus on roles that keep services running, and make hiring decisions that support both immediate demands and long-term goals.

This has become even more important under the Administration’s recent direction, including Executive Order 14356, which calls for clearer prioritization and stronger alignment between hiring decisions and mission outcomes.

To help with that, this framework offers a simple, practical way for leaders to sort through existing vacancies and new needs, elevate the most important roles, and build a staffing plan that’s clear, defensible, and grounded in what matters most.

CORE FRAMEWORK

Start with funded vacancies

Begin by gathering the vacancies and new positions you know you can support with current funding. If your organization is working under a Continuing Resolution, it’s fine to include projected or likely funding – as long as those assumptions make sense in today’s budget environment.

It’s also helpful to factor in actual or expected attrition. Some roles may have seen higher-than-usual turnover, while others remain or are expected to have normal attrition rates. Accounting for those differences up front helps ensure your most critical vacancies aren’t unintentionally overlooked.

Group positions: Mission Enablement vs. Operational Sustainment

Next, consider grouping positions into two simple categories:

• Mission enablement – roles that are either mission-critical or connected to key Administration priorities

• Operational sustainment – positions that keep the organization running smoothly and enable mission success

If you’re planning to streamline or consolidate certain functions, remember to identify what sustainment roles you’ll still need during transitions so day-to-day operations continue without disruption.

Prioritize with an Eisenhower matrix

A straightforward way to set priorities is using an importance-and-urgency matrix:

• Quadrant 1: High Importance, High Urgency – mission-essential and time-sensitive

• Quadrant 2: High Importance, Not Urgent – roles with longer-term strategic impact

• Quadrant 3: High Urgency, Low Importance – urgent because of workload surges or deadlines

• Quadrant 4: Low Urgency, Low Importance – flexible timing and low immediate impact

Most agencies will focus on Quadrants 1 and 3 when building the staffing plan. Select Quadrant 2 roles can also be sequenced strategically to prevent downstream mission impact.

Integrate funding projections into the matrix

Once you have your matrix, layer in rough cost estimates or funding scenarios. This helps test whether your priorities are achievable with available resources. If you have less funding than needed for your top-priority positions, a forced-ranking process can help surface which roles should rise to the top.

Quarterly refinement

Think of the Staffing Plan as a living document. Each quarter, plan to:

• Remove roles that have already been filled

• Reassess priority levels or move positions to new quadrants

• Re-evaluate assumptions as funding becomes clearer

This keeps the plan relevant and responsive rather than static.

Anchor Staffing Plans to Strategic Human Capital Plans (SHCPs)

Your Strategic Human Capital Plan should serve as a north star. It can help ensure your staffing decisions support long-term mission direction, Administration priorities, skill needs, succession planning, and organizational shifts.

If your SHCP is outdated—or missing—use the Annual Staffing Plan discussions as an opportunity to collect the context needed to refresh or build one.

TAKE ANNUAL STAFFING PLAN TO THE NEXT LEVEL

Workforce analytics and data-driven decisions

Where possible, use available HR data to guide decision-making. Predictive indicators like retirement eligibility, hiring velocity, and workload trends can help validate (or challenge) priority assumptions. Simple dashboards can give leaders at-a-glance visibility into costs, quadrants, and hiring timelines.

Technology and automation

Automating vacancy tracking, candidate pipelines, and quarterly updates can save significant time and keep everyone aligned. Digital dashboards also make it easier to share progress with executives and program leaders.

Budget and funding alignment

Align your staffing priorities with the timing of budget formulation and execution. Cost-benefit analyses—such as comparing the impact of filling versus delaying a role—can help leaders see the mission and financial tradeoffs more clearly. It’s also useful to maintain a tiered list of contingent hires that can move depending on funding outcomes.

Risk management and contingency planning

Consider how your Staffing Plan supports continuity and resilience. This may include:

• Preparing for surge hiring needs

• Identifying single points of failure

• Capturing critical institutional knowledge

• Planning for unexpected attrition or regulatory changes

Scenario planning can help leaders rehearse and prepare for “what-if” workforce situations.

Stakeholder engagement and communication

Establishing regular workforce governance – such as quarterly councils with HR, budget, and mission representatives – helps keep the process collaborative and transparent. Clear communication about prioritization criteria, timeline expectations, and impacts builds trust and understanding.

Metrics and evaluation

Tracking a few simple KPIs—time to fill, quality of hire, early attrition, or mission throughput—can help gauge what’s working and where adjustments are needed. After each quarterly review, reflect on what changed and why, and share successes to maintain momentum.

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER: A PRACTICAL SEQUENCE

1. Baseline: Compile funded vacancies and attrition projections.

2. Categorize: Sort positions into mission enablement vs. operational sustainment.

3. Prioritize: Place roles in the matrix and focus on Quadrants 1 and 3, with selective Quadrant 2 sequencing.

4. Cost & scenarios: Add funding considerations and use forced-ranking if needed.

5. Quarterly update: Remove filled roles and update priorities based on evolving needs.

6. Strategic alignment: Ensure decisions stay grounded in your SHCP and long-term workforce objectives.

An Annual Staffing Plan isn’t just a compliance requirement – it can be a practical, nimble tool for aligning workforce decisions with mission needs. By grounding the process in funded vacancies, prioritizing thoughtfully, and revisiting it quarterly, agencies can make staffing choices that are responsive, transparent, and clearly tied to national priorities.

We’d love to hear what’s working in your organization. What approaches or tools have helped you build strong staffing plans? Share your insights to help strengthen this framework for others.