INSIDE VIEW
TO HAVE THE RIGHT AGENTS AT THE RIGHT TIMES, WHAT DO WFM PROFESSIONALS NEED TO KNOW ABOUT BOTH CUSTOMERS AND AGENTS?
A: To have the right agents at the right times, you have to know both your customers and your employees.
The old-school WFM approach focused only on the customer: mostly through volume and average handle time. But WFM has matured. Now we have to account for far more nuance on both sides of the equation.
For customers, we’ re looking at first call resolution, callback assist, channel preferences, and response time expectations: things that add complexity to forecasting and staffing. Layer that on top of seasonality, marketing campaigns, and macro trends, and forecasting demand gets a whole lot more dynamic.
"... THERE’ S EXCITING POTENTIAL IF WE STOP THINKING ABOUT AI AS JUST A FASTER WAY TO CALCULATE VOLUME AND AHT."
On the employee side, it can start with simple things: like allowing agents to input their schedule preferences into the WFM platform.
But it gets better when you go deeper. When you understand why someone prefers evenings, for example, you open the door for meaningful compromise. That’ s how you meet business needs while helping employees feel seen and supported.
WFM is in a unique position to be an engagement tool. Schedule flexibility, automation, and autonomy can all drive employee satisfaction: but the best WFM teams still bring empathy to the table.
When someone requests a schedule change because they’ re sick, the answer shouldn’ t just be“ Completed.” It should come with a note that says,“ Hope you feel better soon.” That’ s how you build trust and belonging, and that’ s what keeps people around.
When we talk about getting the right agent at the right time, it’ s not just a puzzle to solve. It’ s a relationship to build: with your customers and your employees.
Brendan Read is Editor of Contact Center Pipeline. He has been covering and working in customer service and sales and for contact center companies for most of his career. Brendan has edited and written for leading industry publications and has been an industry analyst. He also has authored and co-authored books on contact center design, customer support, and working from home. Brendan can be reached at brendan @ contactcenterpipeline. com.
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