The new guide, Optimize the Workforce Mix for Strategic Impact, challenges the tendency to prioritize immediate role fulfillment over long-term organizational health. By evaluating workforce decisions through a structured lens, HR departments can better balance cost, agility, and risk management against their core business objectives.

Lexi Hambides, director of HR Research & Advisory Services at McLean & Company, warns that a sustainable workforce mix requires deliberate design rather than opportunistic hiring. The firm’s recommended methodology follows a three-step cycle: identifying specific talent gaps, evaluating the viability of build-buy-borrow-automate options, and executing a cross-departmental implementation roadmap. This framework forces leaders to consider how individual staffing decisions ripple through existing HR systems, including internal mobility, job redesign, and digital upskilling. Rather than relying on a single default strategy, the firm encourages a hybrid model that adapts to role-specific requirements and fluctuating labor market conditions.