Team Workload
Part of Sustainable productivity
Planning workload around realistic capacity
Build a workload plan from usable time, skills and service cover, then resolve commitments that do not fit.
Plan a near-term period by calculating the hours each role can actually give to planned work after leave, public holidays, service cover, meetings, reviews, checks and handovers. Compare that capacity with work already promised; if the work does not fit, take a change in scope, timing, qualified cover or accepted work to the authorised decision-maker before accepting more.
Planning cycle: from usable capacity to an updated promise
- Establish usable capacityRecords the working days in the period and each role's realistic daily availability for planned work, after deductions for leave, public holidays, service cover, meetings, approvals, reviews, checks and handovers, then compares hours required with hours available.
- Check the constraint for each commitmentFor every promised result, identify the next step, the role it needs and the time or decision it depends on.
- Resolve a mismatchTake options to the authorised decision-maker: move a date, narrow a deliverable, provide qualified cover or reduce accepted work; recheck the revised commitment against available hours.
- Update the promiseAt the next planning point, check which assumptions held, what unplanned work arrived and where work waited, then revise the commitment while there is still a choice about scope or timing.
Establish usable capacity
Choose a near-term planning period and record its working days and each role’s realistic daily availability for planned work—not total working time. Adjust for leave, public holidays and other non-working periods, then account for recurring service cover, meetings, approvals, reviews, checks and handovers.
Calculate available hours for each role across the period, then combine hours only where the roles can support the same work. Keep the deductions visible so time is not counted twice; a nominally free afternoon is not available for a report if its owner is covering customer enquiries.
Compare the hours required by existing commitments with available hours. Capacity utilisation = total task hours ÷ available hours × 100%; above 100% usually signals overload or an unrealistic commitment. A useful guide is to keep utilisation under 80–85% where possible to leave room for unexpected work and a buffer, while still checking each role’s actual constraints.
Ask the people doing the work to test the assumptions. For unfamiliar work or variable demand, record the uncertainty and when the plan will be reviewed; do not assume regular extra hours are available capacity.
Check applicable workplace rules and agreements before treating extra hours as available capacity. The Fair Work Ombudsman’s Maximum weekly hours fact sheet provides guidance on this issue.
Deduct these before planning any work into the period
- Leave and approved absences
- Public holidays and other non-working periods
- Recurring service cover and customer enquiries
- Meetings
- Approvals and sign-offs
- Reviews and quality checks
- Handovers
- Confirm applicable workplace rules and agreements before treating extra hours as available capacity
Check the constraint for each commitment
For each promised result, identify its next step, the role it needs and the time or decision it depends on. General help cannot remove a bottleneck that requires a particular qualification or approval.
| Commitment | Capacity assumption to check | Decision if it does not fit |
|---|---|---|
| Checked client response | Can the qualified reviewer cover the service queue and review the answer? | Arrange qualified cover or revise the response promise. |
| Approved monthly report | Will the data owner have the source extract and review time? | Resolve the input or change the approval date. |
Use the rows as prompts, then substitute current commitments and confirm actual constraints with the people affected. Decide whether the promised work fits the available hours and required roles, rather than ranking people by task count.
Commitment check: does the required role and time actually fit?
- Checked client responseCheck whether the qualified reviewer can cover the service queue and review the answer. If it does not fit: arrange qualified cover, or revise the response promise.
- Approved monthly reportCheck whether the data owner will have the source extract and review time. If it does not fit: resolve the input, or change the approval date.
Resolve a mismatch
Separate duties that must happen in the period from work that can move. Check who relies on each promise and whether a smaller result would still be useful.
Take the options to the person authorised to approve a change: move a date, narrow a deliverable, provide qualified cover or reduce accepted work. Recheck the revised commitment against available hours, record the decision and tell affected recipients what changes.
If essential duties repeatedly exceed available time and skills, raise the resourcing or work-design decision with the authorised decision-maker. Do not balance the plan by assuming missed breaks or persistent overtime.
Update the promise
At the next planning point, check which assumptions held, what unplanned work arrived and where work waited. Revise an affected commitment while there is still a choice about its scope or timing.
