Why your contact center needs workforce engagement management (WEM) tools

A call center agent works on a laptop with floating icons symbolizing software features.Imagine you’re having problems with a product and need to contact the manufacturer for assistance. Which customer service representative would you choose: one who listens attentively and seems eager to solve your issue or a bored, disengaged agent who seems like they couldn’t care less about your request or their job in general?

Most (if not all) people would prefer to work with a rep who cares about their work. An engaged professional is more likely to deliver high-quality service. Just over half (53 percent) of customers identify “polite and friendly employees” as one of the top 3 qualities they want to encounter when reaching out to a business, according to The US Customer Experience Decision-Makers’ Guide 2020-21 from ContactBabel.

As a result, companies concerned with improving the customer experience (CX) should start by searching for ways to improve the employee experience. However, keeping call and contact center agents engaged and retaining talent in this area has historically proven incredibly difficult: In the fourth quarter of 2020, the mean annual call center attrition rate in the U.S. was 30 percent, according to The US Contact Center Decision-Makers’ Guide 2021 from ContactBabel.

Many Contact Center as a Service (CCaaS) suppliers have included workforce engagement management (WEM) tools in their solutions to address the challenge of retaining contact center agents and increasing their job satisfaction. If you’re a business leader wondering how to deliver the best possible CX, here’s why you should leverage a contact center platform with WEM capabilities.

A cartoon of a contact center agent on a laptop chatting to a customer with text saying that 53 percent of customers identify “polite and friendly employees” as one of the top 3 qualities they want to encounter when reaching out to a business, according to ContactBabel research.

What is workforce engagement management?

WEM encompasses features and software that boost contact center agent engagement, according to NICE. It’s an evolution of the workforce optimization (WFO) tools companies previously utilized to contain labor-related costs and boost productivity. WEM capabilities typically relate to the following:

  • Call recording
  • Performance management
  • Workforce management
  • Quality management

Business leaders switched their focus from WFO to WEM partly because “evidence clearly indicates that agent engagement has a direct and powerful impact on the customer experience, driving an industry consensus that improving agent work experiences will benefit both the agent and the customer,” the NICE glossary states.

How WEM features can affect contact center agent engagement and CX

WEM capabilities such as interaction analysis, gamification (e.g., badges and awards for high performance), intelligent schedule management, and call recording for performance evaluation purposes can improve the agent experience and overall contact center performance.

WEM contact center technologies come with the following potential benefits, according to NICE.

  • Improved agent performance
  • Lower turnover
  • Shorter waiting times and lower abandon rates
  • Higher customer satisfaction scores and better CX

Find a CCaaS platform with WEM tools

Numerous providers offer cloud contact center platforms with WEM features. Our trusted technology advisors can leverage their experience in the CCaaS space, our extensive partner network, and advanced tools to identify a contact center solution with WEM tools that aligns with your pain points, requirements and objectives.

Take the first step toward more engaged agents and an exceptional CX today by connecting with our advisors: Give us a call at 877-599-3999 or email sales@stratospherenetworks.com.

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