WFM Definitions

Contact Center Workforce Management Definitions 

Sat Apr 6, 2024

Following are some of the WFM Process definitions:

Workforce Management:

Workforce Management is a set of processes that ensure right number of staff is hired, scheduled & available at the right times to meet transaction volume forecast. WFM is both an art and science as good judgement is needed along with a scientific approach.

Forecasting:

Forecasting is the process of generating long-term & short-term transaction forecast from historical trends after considering anomalies and future events.

Planning:
Planning is the process of translating long-term transaction forecast to weekly staffing requirements which help to determine new hire demand while considering appropriate assumptions.

Scheduling:

The process of scheduling the staff optimally to meet transaction forecast at interval levels while considering appropriate assumptions.

Real time Management:

RTM ensures that service goals are met by monitoring staff availability, productivity, adherence and by taking appropriate actions to mitigate real time staffing gaps.

Reporting:

Reporting helps to close the loop in the WFM process by comparing plan and actual performance and by keeping internal/external stakeholders updated about results & reasons of success/failure.

Following are some WFM ACD/KPI definitions

ACD:

An automatic call distributor (ACD) in telephony is a system that distributes incoming calls to a specific group of terminals used by agents. It is usually a part of a computer telephony integration (CTI) system. ACDs recognize, answer and route incoming calls. They range from small systems maintaining a few lines up to systems maintaining a large number of lines for large applications.

IVR:

Interactive voice response (IVR) is a technology that allows humans to interact with computers using voice or a dual-tone multifrequency (DTMF) signaling keypad. IVR allows customers to find answers to their own inquiries by speaking (using the company’s speech recognition software) or giving inputs via a telephone keypad.

IVR uses prerecorded and dynamically generated audio to interact with customers. The key benefit to IVR systems is that they can handle large volumes of calls, where only simple interactions are required.

IVR is also known as a telephone menu or voice response unit

Queue:

Queue in general terms is a line or sequence of people awaiting their turn to be attended to . A queue in Contact centers usually refers to a system which lines up customers in a sequential manner before routing the transaction to an available agent. Telephony/ACD systems usually display the queue status via a software to keep the center informed about the number of customers waiting, time waiting, Service level etc.

Service Level or Grade of Service:

The percentage of incoming calls answered within a specified threshold: “X” % of calls answered in “Y” seconds. (%/Secs.). These are standards created by the organization outlining levels of service expected. Typical service level agreements include the number of calls answered within a specified time frame.

Calculation: Acceptable calls/ Calls offered

ASA:

Average Speed of Answer is the average amount of time it takes for calls to be answered in a contact center during a specific time period. This includes the amount of time callers wait in a waiting queue and while the agent’s phone rings however does not include the time it takes for callers to navigate through the IVR.

Calculation: Answer time (wait time) / Total calls answered

Calls offered:

Total number of calls offered to a queue. Calls offered can vary at the IVR, ACD & agent level due to calls getting abandoned at each step. Some systems support direct agent calls where agents receive calls directly instead of going through IVR & ACD.

Abandoned calls:

A call or other type of contact that has been offered into a communications network or telephone system, but is terminated by the person originating the contact before any conversation happens.

Calculation: Abandoned Rate = {total calls abandoned / ( total calls answered + total calls abandoned)} * 100%

Calls Handled:

The number of inbound calls handled by agents, including calls transferred to agents by the IVR as well as calls routed directly to agents not via the IVR.

ACD Time:

This is the time spent by and agent speaking with a customer on a ACD call.

Hold Time:

Amount of time customer was on hold throughout the call.

ACW:

The time required by an ACD agent after a conversation is ended, to complete work that is directly associated with the calls just completed. Does not include time for any other activities such as meetings, breaks, correspondence, etc.

AHT:

The average time it takes to handle a call. The sum of Average Talk Time and Average After-Call Work for a specified time period.

Calculation: AHT = ( ACD Time + Hold Time + ACW Time ) / ACD Calls

ATT:

Average Talk Time, The average amount of time the agent spends communicating with the customer.

Calculation: ATT = ACD Time / ACD Calls

Concurrency
Measurement of how many contacts a certain agent can handle at the same time. Concurrency is typically applicable for chat streams only.

Calculation: Concurrency = Total Elapsed time chatting / Total time chatting

Occupancy:

The amount of time agents were occupied on calls (on call, hold or in an after call state), compared to the total amount of time agents spend in occupied & available state. Off phone time (AUX) is not included in this calculation. Sometimes also referred to as agent utilization. The percentages of time agents handle calls versus wait for calls to arrive.

Calculation: Occupancy (%) = Total Handle Time (ACD, Hold & ACW) / Total Handle Time + Available Time

Shrinkage: (This is a generic definition there could be some variations for each organization)

Shrinkage is paid time when an agent is unavailable. It is a common practice for many centers to classify the shrinkage into Out of Office (Leaves, Absences, Tardy etc) and In Office Shrinkage (Breaks, Meeting , Training). Absenteeism % is also tracked separately to give an idea of the no of absences in a team/program.

Calculations:

• Absenteeism %: No of absences / Headcount Scheduled
• Out of Office Shrinkage : Total time (Leaves + Absences + Tardy) / Paid scheduled time
• In office Shrinkage: Total time (Off Phone states + Lost time) / Paid scheduled time

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