The work force management (WFM)is a strategy that companies use to maximize the use of human resources and improve the efficiency of business processes. WFM involves the management of all workforce-related activities, such as resource planning, work hour management, shift management and skills management.

WFM is a complex activity that requires the collaboration of several business functions, including personnel, the human resources department, the IT department, and the operations department.

How does work force management work?

WFM is based on a set of processes and activities that enable companies to manage the workforce efficiently. These processes include:

  • Resource planning: resource planning involvesidentifying the resources needed to carry out an activity or project and scheduling the allocation of these resources. In the context of WFM, resource planning refers to human resource planning, such as the number of employees needed to carry out a given activity or project.
  • Working-hour management: working-hour management consists of monitoring the working hours of employees and ensuring that statutory limits are adhered to. In the case of WFM it also includes shift scheduling and vacation and absence management.
  • Shift management: shift management consists of scheduling employee shifts to ensure that there are always enough staff available to carry out the planned activities. When we talk about WFM, we also mean the management of last-minute changes and the handling of leave requests, thus avoiding problems of employee overload or understaffing, and improving the quality of service provided.
  • Skills management: the WFM enables companies to identify employees' skills and assign them to appropriate activities. This means that companies can make better use of their employees' skills, improving the quality of work performed and reducing training costs.

The importance of work force management

Workforce management is important because it makes the best use of the company's human resources. This means that resources can be allocated efficiently, avoiding waste and ensuring that every employee is employed productively. In addition, work force management allows productivity trends to be monitored and workers' performance to be evaluated, enabling timely intervention in case of problems or inefficiencies.

Work force management is also critical to the satisfaction of the employees themselves. Efficient workforce management means that workers are employed profitably and their skills are valued. This leads to greater employee engagement and a more positive work climate, resulting in increased motivation and productivity.

How to implement work force management in a company?

To implement WFM in a company, some basic steps will need to be followed:

  • Analyze existing processes to identify points of inefficiency and areas for improvement.
  • Define goals: such as improving productivity, reducing costs, or improving service quality.
  • Identify the resources needed: personnel, software and monitoring tools.
  • Select the WFM solutions best suited to the company's needs, taking into account cost, complexity and functionality offered.
  • Train staff on WFM management and selected solutions.
  • Monitor the results to evaluate the effectiveness of the solutions adopted and make any changes.

Implementing WFM at the enterprise level can be complex, but the benefits of doing so are numerous and allow for more efficient workforce management, reducing costs and improving the quality of service provided.

XPLANY and the WFM made in Italy

With XPLANY, the WFM management software created by the XCALLY team, it will be easy to plan, manage and monitor employees' work.

The solutions offered by this product developed on the AWS Cloud, allow companies to organize employee shifts in an automated and optimized manner, thanks to, among other things, scalability, automatic updates, the ability to integrate with the suite XCALLY and SLA compliance.

With XPLANY it becomes easy:

  • Make a workload forecast based on historical data and current activities.
  • Plan resources according to required skills.
  • Monitor working hours and a very volatile volume of incoming calls.
  • Optimize shifts and modify them when necessary.