Demand for efficiency drives WFM adoption in stores and bank branches
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Workforce optimization technologies (WOTs) are being applied throughout the enterprise in order to drive efficiency and improve customer service. Contact centers have used workforce management (WFM) for many years to schedule agents to handle peak call volumes without overstaffing. Outside the contact center, enterprises can use WFM for numerous applications, including scheduling branch staff or retail store employees. There are a number of similarities between employees in stores, branches, and contact centers; the primary focus of each role is handling customer inquiries. This report discusses the use of WFM in retail and branch locations, describing the market opportunity, industry drivers and challenges, and the competitor landscape. Ovum recommends that enterprises use employee performance and skills metrics to schedule staff and ensure that they are able to respond effectively to customer queries. Retailers and banks should deploy WFM to improve customer and employee satisfaction in addition to improving efficiency.
Workforce optimization technologies (WOTs) are being applied throughout the enterprise in order to drive efficiency and improve customer service. Contact centers have used workforce management (WFM) for many years to schedule agents to handle peak call volumes without overstaffing. Outside the contact center, enterprises can use WFM for numerous applications, including scheduling branch staff or retail store employees. There are a number of similarities between employees in stores, branches, and contact centers; the primary focus of each role is handling customer inquiries. This report discusses the use of WFM in retail and branch locations, describing the market opportunity, industry drivers and challenges, and the competitor landscape. Ovum recommends that enterprises use employee performance and skills metrics to schedule staff and ensure that they are able to respond effectively to customer queries. Retailers and banks should deploy WFM to improve customer and employee satisfaction in addition to improving efficiency.
Executive summary
In a nutshell
Ovum view
WFM overview
Enterprises use WFM to match staff scheduling with forecasted customer traffic
Retail stores, bank branches, and contact centers share many similarities
The most obvious distinction is the presence of customers
Trends
Web and mobile tools empower the customer
Mobile WFM allows managers and employees to update and view schedules from any location
Additional WOTs in customer facing locations
There is minimal sharing of WFM information between departments
There are many opportunities within retail and banking for WFM deployments
Customers
Retailers and banking organizations need to match employee skills to customer demand
Retailers must manage staffing cuts and provide a differentiated experience to online
Banks must manage staff in both rural and metropolitan areas
Scheduling can be complex and requires change management
WFM in practice: case studies
Banking WFM: SunTrust Bank
Retail WFM: Somerfield
The competitor landscape
Vendors provide similar WFM capabilities but have different industry focuses
CyberShift
GMT
Infor
Kronos
NICE Systems
RedPrairie
Verint
Consulting and systems integration opportunities
Recommendations
Integrate performance and skills data with WFM
Connect resources across store, back-office, and contact center
Measure employee and customer satisfaction
Vendors should simplify WFM and partner to reach mid-market customers
Go mobile
Share workloads between departments
Appendix
Methodology
In a nutshell
Ovum view
WFM overview
Enterprises use WFM to match staff scheduling with forecasted customer traffic
Retail stores, bank branches, and contact centers share many similarities
The most obvious distinction is the presence of customers
Trends
Web and mobile tools empower the customer
Mobile WFM allows managers and employees to update and view schedules from any location
Additional WOTs in customer facing locations
There is minimal sharing of WFM information between departments
There are many opportunities within retail and banking for WFM deployments
Customers
Retailers and banking organizations need to match employee skills to customer demand
Retailers must manage staffing cuts and provide a differentiated experience to online
Banks must manage staff in both rural and metropolitan areas
Scheduling can be complex and requires change management
WFM in practice: case studies
Banking WFM: SunTrust Bank
Retail WFM: Somerfield
The competitor landscape
Vendors provide similar WFM capabilities but have different industry focuses
CyberShift
GMT
Infor
Kronos
NICE Systems
RedPrairie
Verint
Consulting and systems integration opportunities
Recommendations
Integrate performance and skills data with WFM
Connect resources across store, back-office, and contact center
Measure employee and customer satisfaction
Vendors should simplify WFM and partner to reach mid-market customers
Go mobile
Share workloads between departments
Appendix
Methodology
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: The leading WFM vendors in retail and banking
Table 1: The leading WFM vendors in retail and banking
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1: The stages involved in implementing and updating a WFM solution
Figure 2: Employees respond to shift requests via SMS through Kronos MobileScheduler
Figure 3: WFM helps managers to justify budgets and view scheduling at any level in the organization
Figure 4: WFM complexity leads to long implementations
Figure 1: The stages involved in implementing and updating a WFM solution
Figure 2: Employees respond to shift requests via SMS through Kronos MobileScheduler
Figure 3: WFM helps managers to justify budgets and view scheduling at any level in the organization
Figure 4: WFM complexity leads to long implementations
