Competence-based robust scheduling of cyclic workforce relocation

Abstract

This article presents an analytical model of the performance of multi-skilled employees hired to perform variably repetitive tasks based on the assumption of aging competencies. The aim is to develop an analytical tool that considers the need to refresh the competencies of the team's multi-skilled members and shape the structure of staff's competencies to maximize their mutual substitutability in processes typical for multi-item lot-size production. Suppose incorporating competency-based modeling for employees' assignments and their scheduling results in a more accurate estimate of the actual and future performance of the workforce. The declarative model implementing this approach boils down to seeking an answer to the question of whether a given team of employees with known competencies and their renewal periods can undertake the execution of a given order without reducing their potential while guaranteeing resistance to selected types of employee absenteeism. The proposed approach enables better human resources management, reducing employee absenteeism's impact on the timely completion of orders and constantly maintaining the team's competencies. The presented case study from the automotive industry illustrates the scale of problems that can be solved in reasonable run times.