Starting SWP Without Overwhelm: Scalable, Winnable Pilots

Strategic workforce planning often begins as a vague demand with too many interpretations. Paul Batten explains how his team at Takeda cut through 80+ requests, defined what SWP should mean, and started with modular pilots that leaders valued immediately. Hear how finance data was brought back into HR planning, how redeploy-vs-hire decisions gave visible impact, and why building in small, standalone steps builds trust and momentum for scaling.

• Cutting through 80+ competing requests to set a shared SWP definition.
• Piloting finance data integration to bring cost signals into HR planning.
• Redeploying sales teams between shrinking and growing products with clear lead times.
• Applying agile ‘skateboard–bike–car’ thinking to modular capability building.
• Creating artefacts like assumptions registers and trigger lists leaders will reuse.

• Define SWP in terms leaders understand and support.
• Choose small pilot cases that prove value immediately.
• Connect finance and HR data for earlier, smarter planning decisions.
• Apply modular thinking to avoid overwhelm and wasted effort.
• Use pilot successes to build credibility and momentum for scaling.

Paul Batten

Head of Global People Analytics · Takeda

Pharma leaders face fast-changing product cycles, regulatory shocks, and scarce specialist skills. Calls for workforce planning often turn into competing demands with no shared definition. Without usable pilots, trust erodes and momentum is lost. A modular, stepwise approach provides immediate impact while laying foundations for a scalable, enterprise-wide SWP capability.