Analytics and Workforce Optimization Can Combine to Create Customer Support-Boosting Synergy

In recent years, analytics technology has shaken up the business world, and today provide insight into everything from sales trends to back-office efficiency to shipping and warehousing. Manufacturers are using analytics to streamline production and maintenance procedures, field service organizations use analytics to better schedule in-home appointments and even executive suites are using analytics to automate their decision-making processes. 

One area where analytics can make a huge difference is the contact center. The customer support function succeeds or fails based on metrics, and analytics can offer real-time metrics and actionable insight that contact center managers can use today to both improve operations and make a difference in the quality of customer service being offered.

Workforce optimization technology helps contact centers automate a variety of functions, including workforce management, call recording, quality management, screen capture, performance management and tracking key metrics. By applying analytics to workforce optimization, companies can gain a more customer-centric view, with insight into the customer types and the nature of each inquiry so calls can be routed to the agent best suited to deal with them, according to a recent blog post by Monet Software CEO Chuck Ciarlo.

“As both tools [analytics and workforce optimization] work toward the same goal, doesn’t it make sense to acquire them in a way that assures they will efficiently work together?” asked Ciarlo.

For companies hoping to leverage both technologies for better customer outcomes, it makes sense to look for a solution that incorporates analytics right into the WFO technology. Solutions such as Monet’s WFO Live solution incorporate speech analytics and desktop analytics to help maximize agent productivity and performance.

“For basic call centers or contact centers that offer omnichannel interactions between agents and customers, this powerful alliance of WFO and analytics can better meet your customer needs, help you to better utilize your resources, and improve service levels,” wrote Ciarlo.

After all, the goals of contact center analytics and workforce optimization are very similar: to provide customers with a more positive experience. As customer interactions become more complex and are conducted over a wider variety of communications media, the need for metrics to keep a close eye on workforce optimization, agent utilization, performance and more escalates even higher.

“At a time when customer experience has become a greater differentiating factor in what separates one company from another, both WFO and analytics can play a vital role in maintaining customer loyalty, and attracting more customers from positive posts and responses viewed on social media,” wrote Ciarlo. 

Edited by Stefania Viscusi