The Intelligence Layer Above WFM

Your workforce management (WFM) platform is doing its job. The problem often sits one layer above it.

At many retailers, the labor plan approved by Finance and the demand forecasts that inform it live in spreadsheets, financial planning and analysis (FP&A) tools, or planning modules that were never designed for retail labor. When planning is disconnected from the platform running store operations, labor variance quietly accumulates through everyday decisions and often remains invisible until period close.

This white paper explains why this gap exists, what it costs, and how retailers are closing it by adding two connected capabilities alongside their existing WFM:

• Forecasting: Tailored models for each demand driver at every location, continuously refreshed as conditions change.
• Labor planning: A bottom-up labor operating plan in hours and dollars, built using real productivity standards and translated into guardrails for scheduling.

Inside, you'll learn:

• Where labor decisions are made and how disconnected planning and execution create variance
• Why forecasting and labor planning deliver their full value only when they work together
• What this connected approach means for Finance, Operations, and store teams
• How a major European grocery retailer with more than 100,000 employees uses this model alongside its existing scheduling and time and attendance systems

Keep the tools and contracts you already have without replacing your current WFM platform.