Military Manpower Planning Using a Career Path Approach Applied to the Belgian Defense

Abstract

In order to accomplish the missions of the organization, military manpower planning aims to provide the required workforce with the adequate competences and ranks. The military organization specificity is the hierarchical structure which restricts personnel movements and recruitments. Military manpower planning involves two logics: statutory logic and competence logic. We combine both logics into one integrated model, which allows the simultaneous optimization of the two logics. We model the military manpower using a career path approach where each soldier is assigned to one of the possible career paths. The model was applied to the Belgian military manpower. The model helps the human resources managers study the impact of different policies on the statutory and the competence levels. Furthermore, the model contributes to planning the future policies regarding job transfers and annual recruitment.