4 Pillars of Contact Center Workforce Management

Workforce management (WFM) in the contact center has the goal of achieving and then maintaining efficient operations. Ultimately, WFM means having the right agents working when they’re needed most. Moreover, it’s about properly managing service level and having efficient speed of answer times while using the minimum necessary labor hours and without sacrificing customer service. With quality WFM, you can reduce costs as well as agent turnover and improve the customer experience at the same time. Here are the four pillars of WFM that your contact center needs in order to thrive.

1. Forecasting

Forecasting is when management looks at past data in order to predict future workload. The more data there is to analyze, the more reliable the forecasting will be. In an omnichannel contact center, analysis and patterns have to be collected from all channels, including phone, chat, email and social media. Emerging trends – which aren’t going to be part of past data – also have to be considered. Forecasting software can create a simulated schedule so managers can see how effective it will be before officially implementing it.

2. Scheduling

Once forecasting is complete, the schedule can be made. Forecasting will tell managers what type of workforce they need and when, but scheduling is what combines forecasting with agent availability, preferences and specializations. Average handle time has to be considered as well, including both the time of the communication itself as well as after-call tasks.

3. Flexibility

Though you’ll create a specific schedule, it’s always advisable to be flexible. Allow your agents to trade shifts, take flexible time off and work from home on certain days. Of course, you also have to account for breaks, lunches and local labor laws. In the end, the final schedule should be a mixture of forecasting, your preferred schedule and agent preferences.

4. Performance Management

In order to make sure your contact center is always covered, monitor agents for schedule adherence. Not only will this tell you if your agents are sticking to the schedule that you both decided on, but it will also show you opportunities for non-contact work, like coaching, training sessions and meetings. Also, if the schedule is being adhered to, you may realize that demand is high and overtime is needed.

 

Though advanced software and automation can help streamline WFM, it’s still an incredibly intricate part of running a contact center.