A skills matrix for manufacturing and warehouse teams is a grid with every task, machine and licence your site depends on down one side, every person along the other, and a score in each cell for how well that person can do the job. Read across and down, it shows who can cover whom and which jobs hang on one person. This guide is for supervisors with a spreadsheet, and the licence rules it cites are WorkSafe Victoria's.
It scores the team you have now, so you can plan training, hiring or agency cover with evidence. You can build it in any spreadsheet; the finished grid is also called a multi-skilling matrix.
What a skills matrix shows that a roster does not
A roster tells you who is on shift. A skills matrix tells you what each of those people can do, so a full roster can still have nobody able to run a changeover or drive the reach truck. The business.gov.au workforce planning guide asks employers to review the current workforce by mapping roles, skills and certifications, and to pay close attention to roles or skills that would be hard to replace.
This guide scores your existing team. Scoring candidates is a different job, and the post on recruiting hybrid technicians shows one way to do it for that role. Training seasonal casuals across several tasks is covered in the post on cross-training seasonal workers.
List the tasks, machines and tickets that matter
Build the rows first. Walk the site with the supervisor from each shift and list everything that stops work if nobody can do it. Start with the jobs that hurt most when uncovered, and add detail later.
- Tasks. Goods receipt, putaway, picking, packing, dispatch, quality checks.
- Machines. Each production line or machine, with changeover as its own row, because it is often the skill only one person holds.
- Tickets and licences. One row per licence class you rely on.
- Site roles. First aid officer, fire warden and similar.
For licences, WorkSafe Victoria's licence rules list classes including forklift truck (LF), order-picking forklift truck (LO), reach stacker (RS) and non-slewing telehandler over 3 tonnes (TV). A licence is valid for five years. Keep licence dates on a second tab: one line for each person and licence class, with an expiry date and a renew-by date. The grid shows who holds each licence and the licence tab shows when it lapses. Leave fees out because they change.
Score each person on a four-level scale
Use the same four levels for every row and write the definitions on the sheet, so every supervisor scores the same way.
- Level 0, not trained. Cannot do the task and is not rostered on it.
- Level 1, learning. Works only with someone at level 2 or 3 alongside.
- Level 2, works alone. Does the task alone, to the site's standard. For licensed work, this also means holding a current licence.
- Level 3, can train others. Signs off other people and handles problems when the task goes wrong.
A score is a supervisor's judgement backed by a sign-off, such as the date and the name of the person who watched the task done. Score what people do now, not what they did two years ago.
Read the grid for single points of failure
Read the grid two ways. Across each row, count the people at level 2 or above. Down each column, count how many one-person rows rest on the same name.
Take an illustrative forklift row for five people: A scores 3, B 2, C 2, D 0, E 1. Three people can work alone, so it is covered. A changeover row reading A 0, B 3, C 0, D 0, E 1 has one person, B, and that is a single point of failure.
- No one at level 2 or above. Nobody can do the job today.
- Only one person. Leave, illness or a resignation stops the task.
- One name on many rows. That person is a key-person risk, and the column shows how much depends on them.
- Cover on one shift only. Group columns by shift, because two skilled people who both work days leave nights uncovered.
business.gov.au lists roles with no backup if the person leaves as a gap question for your workforce plan. When the one-person row is a trade or key operator role, the next step is the post on succession planning for tradespeople and key operators, which starts from this grid.
Turn each gap into training, hiring or agency cover
The same business.gov.au page lists the options for filling a gap: hiring, training or upskilling existing staff, changing roles or hours, using contractors or temporary staff, and planning for someone to take over. It adds that training an existing employee may cost less than hiring someone new, and that contractors can help with short-term or uncertain needs. Sort your gaps by what it costs when the row fails, then pick an option for each.
- Train. Use this when a level 1 or 2 person already works beside the task. The post on upskilling in manufacturing covers building the habit. For trade skills that need a pipeline, Chandler Personnel also offers GTO apprenticeships and traineeships.
- Hire. Use this when the skill is not in the building or the gap is permanent.
- Agency cover. Use this when the gap is short-term or uncertain. Check any agency worker's licence on the issuing register and again in your own site induction, whoever supplies them.
- Change the work. Move hours or split a task so fewer jobs depend on one skill.
Chandler Personnel runs site inductions on behalf of clients and supplies manufacturing and production labour hire and warehousing and logistics staffing. For the market side of a gap you cannot train out of, see the post on the skills gap in blue collar work.
Keep it current: who updates it and when
Give each area supervisor ownership of their rows, and name one person who owns the whole sheet. Update it when someone is signed off, starts or leaves, or when a machine or process changes. Check licence dates on a fixed day each month, and set each renew-by date well ahead of the expiry date.
WorkSafe lets you apply to renew within 12 months of the expiry date, but that is a renewal window, not a grace period. A licence is valid for five years, so treat the operator as unlicensed for that class from the expiry date until the renewed licence is issued. The page also says an application can take up to 45 calendar days to process.
business.gov.au says to review a workforce plan every 6 to 12 months and when the business changes, for example when you win a new contract or someone leaves. Treat the matrix as part of that review. The article on workforce planning for manufacturers and warehouses and the article on staff turnover planning show where it fits.
Related Resources
- business.gov.au workforce planning guide
- WorkSafe Victoria high risk work licences
- Manufacturing and production labour hire
- Warehousing and logistics staffing
- Upskilling in manufacturing
- Cross-training seasonal workers
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a skills matrix?
A skills matrix is a grid that lists the tasks, machines and licences a team needs down one side and the people along the other, with a score in each cell for how well each person can do the job. It shows who can cover whom and where a task depends on one person.
How many skill levels should a skills matrix have?
Four is a practical number: not trained, learning, works alone to standard, and can train others. Fewer levels hide the difference between a learner and someone who can work alone, and more levels invite arguments about the gap between scores. Write the definition of each level on the sheet.
How do I include licences and tickets that expire?
Keep a licence tab with one line for each person and licence class, showing an expiry date and an earlier renew-by date. In Victoria, WorkSafe says a high risk work licence is valid for five years and renewal can be applied for within 12 months of expiry, which is a renewal window and not a grace period. Check the issuing body's current rules for your state.
How often should a skills matrix be updated?
Update it whenever something changes: a sign-off, a new starter, a resignation or a new machine. Check licence dates on a fixed day each month. business.gov.au also says to review a workforce plan every 6 to 12 months and when the business changes, so review the whole matrix at that point.
Can I use a spreadsheet instead of software?
Yes. business.gov.au says a workforce plan can start with a simple spreadsheet, and a skills matrix works the same way. Use one tab for scores and one for licences, add colour for levels 0 to 3, and move to software only when the sheet becomes hard to keep current.
A skills matrix shows who covers whom
A skills matrix turns a roster into a map of cover: which jobs several people can do, and which hang on one name. Score the existing team on four levels, read the rows for single points of failure and put an expiry date and a renew-by date against every licence. This week, list the jobs that would stop your site if one person were away, and score your first shift against them.
