Deadly Habits Threatening Workforce Management Strategies in Companies
The call center industry has undergone a major transformation in recent years. Workforce Management (WFM) is no longer just about creating traditional work schedules.
It has evolved into a comprehensive system that balances complex factors, including customer expectations, employee well-being, reduced operational costs, and regulatory compliance.
With increasing demand fluctuations, there’s a greater need than ever for flexible and smart strategies to manage teams.
However, despite significant investments in advanced forecasting tools and AI-powered scheduling platforms, many call centers still suffer from operational gaps and old habits that undermine the effectiveness of these strategies, according to the website callcentrehelper.
Habits that Threaten Strategies
1. Using Modern Systems with Outdated Settings Many centers invest in sophisticated forecasting and scheduling systems but continue to operate with the same old rules and traditional standards.
The result? They fail to leverage new capabilities like dynamic scheduling or real-time demand forecasting.
The solution is to re-evaluate processes before implementing a new system and retrain teams to think more innovatively.
2. Poor Shrinkage Management Shrinkage (the time employees are paid but not available to take calls, such as for training, meetings, or leave) is a crucial planning element.
Yet, it’s often managed with a “set it and forget it” mentality. Ignoring the different patterns of absence, training, or meetings leads to inaccurate plans.
What’s needed is to build precise performance indicators and continuously update percentages to reflect actual conditions.
3. Over-reliance on Historical Data While past numbers are important for forecasting, ignoring external factors like marketing campaigns, competition, or even economic conditions creates gaps in predictions.
Therefore, insights from other departments like marketing and sales should be integrated into the forecasting process.
4. Neglecting to Develop Planning Teams One of the most common mistakes is treating workforce management as a purely technical function.
In reality, its success depends on both analytical and human skills. Investing in training planners and encouraging them to obtain professional certifications is essential to maintaining strategy efficiency.
5. Lack of Effective Intraday Management Even the best plans can fall apart without flexible mechanisms to handle surprises.
The absence of immediate response protocols or real-time performance monitoring tools puts centers in a bind when unexpected demand fluctuations occur.
