Strategic Workforce Analyst

M& S; City of Westminster; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 52,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Colleague discount

Extra holiday

Bonus schemes

Pension scheme

Induction and training

Employee discounts (M&S Choices)

Parental/adoption policies

Wellbeing support

Volunteer day

Job summary

M&S is seeking a skilled Workforce Planner to lead forecasting and planning across retail portfolios in a hybrid work environment. You will analyze trends, collaborate with senior leaders, and drive improvements in planning accuracy and efficiency.

The role requires strong data analysis capabilities, Excel proficiency, and the ability to present clear, data-driven insights to executive stakeholders. You will partner with teams to forecast demand and align hiring with business needs.

Responsibilities

• Lead workforce forecasting and planning across portfolios, identifying capacity gaps and hiring needs.
• Analyse workforce data, trends and demand to deliver insights, recommendations and executive-level reporting.
• Partner with senior stakeholders to influence workforce decisions and improve planning outcomes.
• Improve workforce data quality, governance and planning processes to keep forecasts accurate.
• Champion continuous improvement by identifying opportunities to increase efficiency and adopt planning tools.
• Experience in workforce planning, PMO, finance or similar analytical roles.
• Strong analytical and forecasting skills with large datasets and advanced Excel capability.
• Present insights and data-driven narratives to senior stakeholders.
• Build relationships and influence stakeholders to support planning initiatives.
• Solve problems and navigate ambiguity to deliver robust plans.

Skills

Workforce forecasting

Data analysis

Excel

Stakeholder management

Job description

Job Responsibilities

• Lead workforce forecasting and planning across assigned portfolios, identifying capacity gaps, workforce risks and hiring needs.
• Analyse workforce data, trends and demand to deliver meaningful insights, recommendations and executive-level reporting.
• Partner with senior stakeholders to influence workforce decisions, challenge assumptions constructively and improve planning outcomes.
• Improve workforce data quality, governance and planning processes, ensuring reporting and forecasts remain accurate and aligned.
• Champion continuous improvement by identifying opportunities to increase efficiency, strengthen planning practices and support adoption of workforce planning tools.
• Experience in workforce planning, resource management, PMO, finance or a similar analytical role.
• Strong analytical and forecasting skills, with confidence working with large datasets and advanced Excel capability.
• Comfortable presenting insights, recommendations and data-driven narratives to senior stakeholders.
• Excellent relationship-building and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence and challenge constructively.
• You bring strong problem-solving skills, sound judgement and the ability to work effectively in ambiguity.

Company Culture

Everyone's welcomeWe are ambitious about the future of retail. We're redefining, innovating and leading the industry into a more conscientious, inspiring digital era. We're redefining how we work together and offering our most exciting opportunities yet. M&S strives to be an inclusive organisation, trusted and admired by our colleagues, customers and suppliers. Join us and make change happen. We are committed to building diverse and representative teams, where everyone can bring their whole selves to work and be at their best. We support each other and work together to win together. If you feel you'd benefit from any support or reasonable adjustments during any stage of the recruitment process, please don't hesitate to let us know when completing your application. This information will be picked up by our team, so we can try and put steps in place to help you be at your best through this process. #LI-ZF1#LI-Hybrid#Hybridrole

What's in it for you?

Being a part of M&S is exactly that - playing your part to bring the magic of M&S to our customers every day. We're an inclusive, dynamic, exciting, and ever evolving business built on doing the right thing and bringing outstanding quality, value, service to every customer, whenever, wherever and however they want to shop with us.

Here are some of the benefits we offer that make working for M&S just that little bit more special:

Benefits

• After completing your probationary period, you'll receive 20% colleague discount across all M&S products and many of our third-party brands for you and a member of your household.
• Competitive holiday entitlement with the potential to buy extra holiday days!
• Discretionary bonus schemes awarded based on how you achieve your personal objectives and our performance as a business.
• A generous Defined Contribution Pension Scheme and Life Assurance.
• A dedicated welcome to our teams with a tailored induction and a wide range of training programmes to develop your skills.
• Amazing perks and discounts via our M&S Choices portal to maximise your financial and personal wellbeing.
• Industry-leading parental, adoption and neonatal policies, providing support and flexibility for your family.
• Access to a fantastic range of wellbeing support for all colleagues including access to our 24/7 Virtual GP and PAM Assist to support you and your family.
• A charity volunteer day to support a charity or cause you're passionate about through a dedicated day away from work.