Policies and Advanced Directives: A Simple Solution to Solve the Complex Problems of Incorporating Business Rules and Handling Unique Scenarios
Bob Webb, Pipkins, Inc.
How often do you need a strategy for an unusual or unique scenario not found in your normal workforce management solution, only to realize that by the time your “workaround” request is completed by your vendor, your deadline has passed? Are you aware that tools are available that offer dynamic solutions for your unique scenarios that virtually eliminate the “workaround” process? A workforce management feature called Policies and Advanced Directives replaces the “workaround” process by incorporating your business rules easily and quickly, and adapt your company’s unique business rules to forecasts and schedules.
Advanced Directive commands allow you to include custom scripts and policies that ensure your company’s unique, customized needs are included in forecasts and schedules. Policies use Advanced Directive commands to include your company’s forecast and scheduling requirements in adjusted forecasts and schedules. You are able to define and configure Policies that can be included when generating forecasts, schedules, rosters and exception requests.
The benefits of Policies and Advanced Directives are numerous. Adapting companies’ unique business rules alleviates back-end processes (workarounds) and saves manual time. One of the biggest benefits of Policies and Advanced Directives is speed of delivery (typically, one week to one month) as opposed to workarounds that can take up to one-three years, or never. Policies and Advanced Directives handle business critical enhancements quickly and changes can be made easily and accommodate an unlimited amount of policies.
Policies and Advanced Directives handle situations such as:
- Making minor or major adjustments to any part of the workforce process
- Meeting new goals that need to be implemented immediately
- Including custom scripts or policies when generating a forecast or schedule that ensures your company’s unique, customized needs are included
- Simplifying the re-optimization process that enables decision makers to decide which components to re-optimize.
- Allowing exceptions or intraday events to be prioritized and the protocol to be applied “on the fly” or as a layout for a client-specific behavior that can be easily applied to scenarios or finals with a simple drop down
- Handling the unique “what if” scenarios that can occur in hundreds of contact types
- Evaluating variable skill combinations or re-assigning a hybrid agent to maximize client service levels and maintain your profit status
Policies and Advanced Directives also address the complex exception prioritizations that occur during peak seasons. Balancing time-off planning while meeting client service levels give analysts a myriad of options and scenarios based on priority. Weekly exceptions and possible conflicts are easily addressed based on ranking of importance over partial or full day. For example, selecting a department-organized policy that would take a non-work event, such as the vacation exception, over the planned work exception of the all day training session, can be accomplished without manual manipulation of a schedule, or having to clear, remove and re-run schedules.
The options are infinite with Policies and Advanced Directives. They are especially effective for:
- short or long-term forecasting
- intraday forecasting
- enhanced special event and holiday planning
- unique scheduling rules
- staffing requirements
- multi-skilled with aggregate queue sensitivity
- vacation planning rules
- ability to prioritize exceptions
- re-optimization policies
- individual staff availability
- preferences
- schedule trade and change request rules
- short term exception initiatives
- any rule specific to your organization.
Don’t let your “workaround” give you the runaround! Policies and Advanced Directives are invaluable when addressing “unique RFP scenarios” or “long term staff planning” that require schedules that will retain employees, satisfy clients, and maintain profitability.
About Pipkins
Pipkins, Inc. is a leading supplier of workforce management software and services to the call center industry. Pipkins incorporates Policies and Advanced Directives in forecasts and schedules, as well as vacation planning modules, to ensure customer’s unique, customized needs are included. For the past twenty-eight years, Pipkins has created and delivered superior workforce management products for call centers of all sizes with thirteen industry-first applications. Vantage Point, Pipkins’ premier product, is the most accurate forecasting and scheduling tool on the market. Pipkins’ systems forecast and schedule more than 300,000 agents in over 500 locations across all industries worldwide. For more information, visit www.Pipkins.com.