We consider a multigrade population with semi-Markov transitions between grades, Poisson arrivals to each grade, and departures from each grade. For this model the joint distribution of the numbers in each grade at any time is found, and the limiting distributions shown to be independently Poisson; this extends a previous result for a multigrade population with Markov transitions and Poisson recruitment.

This model is particularly applicable to manpower planning. The inclusion of semi-Markov transitions allows us to take into account existing knowledge of the distribution of length of service until an individual leaves his firm.

The continuous-time Markov model of a multigrade organization is extended in several ways. Firstly the internal transitions and the leaving process are generalized to a semi-Markov formulation which allows for the inclusion of well-authenticated leaving distributions such as the mixed exponential distribution. The previous assumption of Poisson recruitment is then generalized to allow for a time-dependent Poisson arrival distribution in which the instantaneous probability of an arrival is a mixture of exponential terms. Finally we extend the capital-related manpower model to describe a multigrade organization.

A continuous-time model of a multigrade system is developed, which includes Poisson arrivals, interaction between grades and a leaving process. It therefore constitutes a continuous-time analogue of Pollard's hierarchical population model with Poisson recruitment. An expression is found for the first and second moments of grade size at any time. A general formulation of the joint probability generating function of the numbers in each grade is given, and the limiting distribution of grade size is shown to be Poisson.