Chris Woodward

FCIPD qualified fractional CPO, strategic HR and workforce transformation consultant. As founder of Cello, I specialise in Strategic Workforce Planning enablement, workforce and talent transformation, Organisational Design and Development and the delivery of complex transformations. A high-trust partner, leaving HR functions more capable in the delivery of insights and value to business leaders.

Support to aviation sector client: Capability workstream lead as part of delivery model implementation, new job architecture and skills framework design enabling more granular workforce insights for capability planning and outsourcing decision making. This work created clarity for outsourcing of capability vs inhouse retention and investment, enhanced governance practices and enabled quicker/better implementation of technologies into Air traffic management operations.

Support to UK Government client. Establishment, alignment and integration of strategic workforce planning and management alongside new service lifecycle op model implementation for a digital Directorate. Definition workshop to align SLT on the core purpose for SWP, creating buy-in and agreeing accountabilities. Role and skill architecture redesign and alignment with ERP. Data structures and governance matured. Criticality exercise designed and implemented to inform resourcing prioritisation. Tooling requirements established and procured in an agnostic way, creating the right balance of security, integration ease, user experience and insight creation. Organisation design recommendations implemented. Workforce development team supported with a playbook and development sessions. This work identifies and secures critical digital and cyber talent mitigating the organisation's top risk.

Recognised strategic HR and SWP thought leader and speaker. Member of the Talent Intelligence Collective and Workforce Planning Institute with routine engagement with the 5% club, FS Skills Commission and Skills England.

Head of SWP function for 35k FTE regulated organisation.

SWP strategy, Op Model design and roadmap implementation to scale SWP across Babcock globally. SWP insights established into governance BAU practice supporting business, commercial and HR strategy designs, and matured integrated business planning.

Collaboration with people analytics function to establish and enable quarterly reporting of workforce insights, strategic workforce plan updates and risk vs opportunity decisions for EXCO, programme and capability leads.

Matured capability and resource planning across time horizon-aligned integrated business planning governance events to increase quality and trust in demand forecasts, reducing silos and enhancing collaboration, trebling appetite from leadership for SWP within 12 months.

Created the evidence-case for doubling early careers graduates and apprentices that were required for 2028-29 attracting £30M investment into Babcock.

Created an integrated approach to resource strategy enablement, establishing a weekly SWP forum with HRBPs, early careers teams, recruiters and L&D. This created early awareness, and better execution, of quality of workforce plans.

Concurrently enabled insights and expert SWP advice into AUKUS multinational programme, enabling the creation of a safe nuclear workforce with the right skills and competencies at the right time (in a region with no legacy nuclear sector).

HR Leadership team role trusted to hold the relationship with the Exec for a complex nuclear, science and engineering Defence Organisation.

Leadership of business partnering function, managing the delivery of value from HR for business teams during a period of organisational transformation.

HR function maturity agenda delivered alongside fierce BaU commitments. Development focussed on reinforcing accountabilities, development of expertise and increasing collaboration across HR and business teams. This focussed on Organisation Design delivery, the enablement of matrixed capability planning forums and structures, developing people analytics capabilities and integrating strategic workforce planning insight.

Lead for Industrial Relations negotiations, engaging with two trade union bodies at organisation and national levels. Through a coaching approach, I secured buy-in from Trade Unions for transformation goals.