Attract, retain and innovate: a workforce policy architecture adapted to modern conditions

Purpose – Proposes the adoption of six strategic objectives around which to build a workforce policy architecture for the future. Design/methodology/approach – Drawing from a review of the literature, this paper investigates a workforce policy response to emerging social and demographic trends, forecast workforce shortages, ongoing and rapid change, the growth in complexity and the changing nature of work. Findings – A workforce model that supports organizational growth and development, characterised by attributes that are associated with knowledge society work is proposed. These include: trends that alter the balance of the social structure; social and human capital growth; lifelong learning; a policy emphasis on the self; workplace flexibility; and the development of an organizational identity as a preferred corporate employer. Practical implications – The outcomes of this paper are significant for large Australian public sector organizations. Originality/value – This paper provides an integrated workforce management framework for dealing with emergent trends. The findings in this paper are of value to Australian public sector human resource executives.