Critical Role Analysis

Page updated: 04/09/2026

To take a longer-term strategic approach identify the critical roles that are important for the success of your division in the future. This includes a thorough analysis of such roles and what makes people successful in them – including required qualifications, knowledge, skills, attributes, and experience.

You can identify critical roles by analysing their impact and ability to deliver your strategic goals by asking three key questions:

  • Which roles are critical to delivering your divisional and departmental strategy?
  • Which roles are critical for delivering your current service objectives?
  • Which roles will be critical for delivering your future service objectives, including new roles?

Consider?

Which roles have a clear impact on your service delivery? Look at roles that would immediately and severely affect your service if the role were made vacant today.

Which roles have a unique skillset or knowledge base? Analyse the roles that help deliver divisional strategy. What is it about a particular skillset or knowledge base that makes them critical or unique to your division or department? Consider current and future roles.

Which roles have poor internal succession potential? Gauge how long it would take for an internal succession candidate to become ready to fill the role.

Which roles have low external candidate availability? Evaluate how difficult it would be to fill this critical role with an external candidate.

Which roles need to be filled urgently? Based on past conversations with all your team members and eligibility to retire, indicate how soon you anticipate needing to fill a role.

A simple critical roles analysis can be started looking at distinct roles and why they are critical, consider any additional demographic challenges, e.g., age, and external scarcity of resource.

Stage 1 of the workforce planning critical role analysis spreadsheet will guide you with this analysis.

Downloads

Critical Role Analysis Template (Excel)

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