Handling scheduling errors: An easy guide for workforce managers

Every workforce manager has been there. Maybe the forecast was wrong or something unexpected happened, but you’re now face-to-face with WFM scheduling errors. The staffing numbers don’t match reality, and the panic sets in.

Instead of throwing your hands up, get creative with handling the issue. Whether you have more people on staff than you need or you’re desperate for a few more CX agents to lessen the pressure, there are ways to make this problem less awful.

Here are six tips to entice agents to take a break or volunteer to help out—whichever you need at the time.

When your scheduling errors mean you’re overstaffed

• Take a quick break
  Are things a bit slow? Don’t let your agents stare blankly at their screens waiting for the next contact. Instead, you can offer an hour off. Whether it’s playing a game, reading a book, or stopping by a local museum for a quick tour, that break might be just what someone needs today.
• Offer early leave
  The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and no tickets are coming into the queue. Who wants to go home? Look for volunteers who want a shorter day. Of course, you’ll need to be mindful of their contracted hours. But if they can make up that time on another day or don’t need those hours, give them the freedom to choose.
• Encourage a special project
  If time off isn’t possible (or advisable) for your team, then switch to finding more valuable uses for an agent’s time. Ask them if there’s something job-related they’ve been curious about and want to research or a gap they see within current practices/documentation they’d like to start fixing. This is the kind of thing where so many of our CX heroes found their true calling.

If your scheduling errors mean you’re understaffed

• Provide free lunch
  Sometimes, the marketing team may forget to inform you of a campaign or there could be a software bug, resulting in more inquiries. If you need more people and it’s going to be a rough day, why not sweeten the deal? Order the team lunch if it’s within your budget and entice a few more agents to come in. This will boost morale and be highly appreciated by the team.
• Offer priority time off
  If someone saves you today, make a promise to return the favor later. Follow through on this promise by approving priority time-off requests the next time they make one. You can even create an email template for such situations, with defined parameters like how far in advance the request should be made to avoid any inconvenience.
• Relax the rules
  Maybe it’s a casual dress code or the ability to take an extra break. You know your team best—what would make their day easier? Much like a free lunch, this would need to apply to the whole team. But it’ll make it easier to get volunteers to come in when you need them.