Call Center Scheduling Featured Article
More Flexible Call Center Scheduling: Good for Agents and Customers
Rigid contact center schedules may work well for businesses that have highly predictable call traffic, but most for most call centers, this isn’t the case. A lack of flexibility can lead to missed KPIs and reduced service levels, particularly during busy times. As it turns out, call center agents aren’t big fans of rigid call center scheduling, either.
It’s no secret that turnover is high in contact centers. The work is often stressful, not very well paid and workers tend to be transient. This works against customer excellence programs that rely on skilled and experienced workers. The problem of lack of flexibility is particularly underscored with younger workers, according to a recent article by Susan Hash for Contact Center Pipeline.
“More recently, the need for better work-life balance is being heard in call centers where business requirements often call for agents to adhere to rigid work hours and regimented break schedules,” she wrote. “To be clear, it’s not just the millennials that value flexibility. A Gallup study found that over half of employees would switch to a job that allows them flextime, and that benefits like flexible scheduling and the ability to work from home play a major role in an employee’s decision to take a job or quit one.”
A study conducted in 2016 by WorkFlex Solutions and the SWPP of contact center management found that 33 percent of participants said that their agents would accept an average pay cut of 2.5 percent in return for schedule-change empowerment. Essentially, one third of agents would accept a pay cut in exchange for more flexible schedules. With a little coordination, the type of flexibility that workers prefer can be melded with the kind of flexible scheduling that leads to better KPIs.
Some ways to improve flexibility include:
Four-day work weeks. Some agents might appreciate the ability to work four 10-hour shifts per week, giving them more time off to spend with family.
Shift swapping. By using a workforce management solution that allows agents to swap shifts, managers can offload this tedious task, and give workers more flexibility.
Time-off makeup time. Give agents the option to take time off during slow periods and make up the time during busier times.
This type of flexibility can be managed with a good workforce management and call center scheduling solution that can allow managers to set rules and exceptions, and allow employees more flexibility within that framework.
Edited by Maurice Nagle