Workforce Management is the cornerstone of modern workplace and call center management that
provides executives and managers with the information they need to boost efficiency and employee
satisfaction. Workforce management is a set of techniques that help allocate resources where they
are needed, increase productivity and boost worker morale.
Workforce management includes all the procedures required to oversee and sustain a productive
workforce, including planning for the future and recording employee time and legal requirements.
WFM software first appeared in contact centers, which used it to predict call volumes and allocate
agents appropriately. It has developed today to facilitate flexible personnel management in a range
of enterprises.
Why is Workforce Management important?
Workforce management establishes an organized structure for all the operations required to
operate effectively and in accordance with the most important objectives and priorities of a
business. Procedures and guidelines that are inconsistent have consequences, including high
turnover, damage to reputation and compliance challenges. Workforce management needs to be
adaptive and elaborate since the nature of work is changing at a rate that many businesses are
unable to keep up with.
Features of a WFM solution
A typical WFM solution will provide tools for reducing absenteeism, scheduling personnel and
tracking time. Workforce health and safety may be added to workforce management solutions in
addition to these essential procedures.
- Time and labor – The most expensive and valuable resource, the people, are more visible
and under control because of a time management system. Additionally, it makes sure that
labor union contracts and rules are followed. - Absence Management – A program that helps control staff absences and adhere to
worldwide leave guidelines. The use of an absence management program may help lessen
the negative effects of absenteeism, like increased expenses and risk and decreased
productivity. - Workplace safety and health – With WFM tools, organizations will be able to manage
environmental health and safety events quickly and efficiently. By streamlining and
automating the entire process, including reporting, gathering crucial data, and identifying
the underlying causes of events, it enhances the overall safety of businesses. - Management of employee performance and satisfaction – Goal-setting and regular
performance evaluations that include employee participation in the feedback process help
to maintain employee engagement. The managers and staff can view reports on the time
worked, training programs finished and goals achieved by combing data from various
sources into a single location. - Forecasting and budgeting: The system can recommend ideal schedules and staffing levels
and enable scenario planning to adapt budgets owing to its powerful analytics and AI
capabilities.
Important factors to consider when selecting the best workforce management solution
Companies should be able to use the following best practices for the successful deployment of
workforce management solutions:
1. Make things simple for staff members
WFM solutions enable employees to utilize self-service time entry and management on all of their
devices. By allowing workers to submit their own time and attendance information through
timecards or other self-service user methods, HR staff will be freed up and errors will be reduced.
Employee time entry is made quick and easy with the use of simple, mobile-friendly time entry
software or an automated system for time and absence input. The ability to define the rules and
regulations that regulate absenteeism inside enterprises is fully controlled by an effective leave
management solution.
2. Facilitate HR and managers’ tasks
Managers can mitigate the impact of unforeseen absences and manage time by configuring
contemporary and adaptable time, labor and absence management tools to meet the demands of
their organization and staff. Potential infractions are stopped by sending out compliance alerts
before they happen. Text messaging can be used to send them to recipients faster. Managers may
tailor timecards to each employee’s needs without contacting IT because of a regulations system
that can be configured and customized.
3. Make connecting business employee data simple.
A time and labor system has several advantages on its own, but the advantages are greatly increased when the system is connected with the time management, payroll, accounting, project
administration, and fundamental HR systems. In fact, firms that combine employee time and
attendance with payroll experience a reduction in both time-tracking and payroll processing errors.
Employees have the option of scheduling absences directly through a timecard and the payroll can
be calculated accordingly without manual intervention.
Conclusion
The task of labor management has become more difficult—and more crucial—due to shifting
markets, an increasingly restrictive regulatory environment, and a workforce that is more diverse
and scattered than ever. Without comprehensive workforce management systems, businesses’
bottom lines will be impacted because they won’t have access to the strategic information needed
to identify where change is required and link HR initiatives to corporate objectives.
A once-difficult task can now be done with reliability, simplicity and accuracy due to effective
workforce management. The outcome is a motivated workforce ready to contribute to the success
of the organization.
