In the past 30 years, products employed to predict how many agents a call center will need to build optimized schedules that meet desired service levels have evolved into sophisticated software systems. Workforce management software (WFM) today incorporates sophisticated mathematical concepts to predict and define staffing needs. These complex WFM tools encompass agents’ off-phone responsibilities, such as answering emails attending training, researching answers, completing post-call wrap-up, and attending meetings, as well as defined shift rules, work patterns, breaks, agent preferences, agent skills, targeted service levels, and reports. Adding to the complexity of WFM solutions are algorithms that factor in unplanned absences, vacation schedules, and shift swaps.
The PELORUS Group estimates WFM deployment in call centers is well below 50%, with 90% of deployments in call centers with more than 400 agents. Less than 10% of contact centers with fewer than 75 agents are using WFM systems, even though this market segment makes up the biggest portion of the industry.
In some respects, small to mid-sized call centers can benefit as much if not more from WFM products. For call centers with 30-40 agents, service levels deteriorate when manually created schedules are adjusted on-the-fly to accommodate network problems, absences, or poor adherence levels. Call volumes are more dynamic in small to mid-sized call centers, and employee absences or inadequate staffing plans have a bigger impact on service levels. If 3 agents in a 30-person call center take lunch at the same time, call handling capacity drops by 10%.
The main reasons call centers with less than 300 agents have not taken advantage of WFM is that most products are designed for large, multi-faceted environments, and these sophisticated systems can easily run into six and seven figures. Return on a $100,000+ investment takes too long or may never be realized in small to mid-sized call centers.
In addition, this market segment has specific product needs. Because smaller call centers are often short on IT staff, the product must be easy to install and easy to use without extensive training. Call volumes can vary widely, so WFM tools must analyze traffic patterns and staffing to meet peak volumes without leaving agents idle for long periods. Most importantly, the solution must be affordable.
Excel spreadsheets and Erlang calculators have provided basic scheduling tools for static environments that provide service during standard business hours. Their effectiveness diminishes in more dynamic environments with variable call flows, multi-channel query types, agents defined by skill sets, or operations across more than one time zone. And these tools provide no reports for contact center management to use in cost-benefit analysis.
5 WFM Requirements for the small to mid-sized call center market:
1. Solutions must forecast staffing needs based on historical data as well as specified service levels.
2. Information will need to be presented so managers can easily see the effects of adjustments to the schedule.
3. WFM applications must accommodate a large amount of information about agents’ skills and skill levels, pay scales, scheduling preferences as well as customer data.
4. Web features that allow agents to view schedules, bid for shifts, request time off, and swap shifts with other agents must be incorporated.
5. Ideally managers will be able to run reports on different scheduling scenarios for comparative cost analyses before finalizing a schedule.
WFM solutions for the small to mid-sized market will need to provide a reasonable ROI, be easy to install without requiring extensive IT resources for integration, and accommodate call center growth.
Authored by Barbara Cody, Communications Specialist for OnviSource.