Question:

We’re trying to schedule the right number of agents for our new digital channels through our current workforce management (WFM) application, but the forecasts and schedules are not very accurate. We’ve had our WFM solution about 10 years and it’s provided good results in the past. What’s the issue?

Answer:

Historically, WFM solutions were designed to forecast volumes and schedule contact center agents to handle inbound calls only. Forecasting and scheduling for the inbound call channel was relatively straightforward: agents handled one interaction at a time, answered each phone call in real time, and completed contacts in an uninterrupted flow. Additionally, many months, or frequently years, of historical call volumes and handling times were often available. These data points enabled a mathematical formula, the erlang C algorithm, to generate reasonably accurate forecasting and scheduling results. However, forecasting and scheduling requirements for digital channels – including chat, email, social media, and short message service (SMS)/text – are different.

Digital channels can include deferred activities, backlog, and agents handling multiple interactions simultaneously (sometimes in one channel, e.g., 4 chat sessions, or across channels, e.g., 2 chats, 2 social media posts and an email). Due to these inherent differences, erlang C calculations are not well suited to forecasting digital interactions. Forecasting modules for digital channels, including blended environments where agents seamlessly move between call and non-call channels, require updated WFM solutions that employ specialized mathematical algorithms, simulation methods, modeling techniques, or a combination of all three, to generate volume projections and staffing requirements for omni-channel contact center operations.