The term workforce optimization is typically brought up in the RPA discussion and refers to a strategy that was made to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of employees. In a workforce optimization strategy, siloed technologies are integrated into a company and some processes become automated. This allows an organization to reduce operational costs and manage employee performance, resulting in greater efficiency and a higher level of satisfaction for customers.

So what are some ways that you can optimize your workforce? Read on to learn more!

The labor market has become very competitive, leading more companies to invest in employee education to increase overall performance. Companies are also investing in employees’ engagement in their work so that customer satisfaction can improve. When employees are engaged, they can deliver upwards of 20% more sales and increase customer satisfaction by 10%.

Employee engagement is also important for retention. Companies providing tuition assistance and training programs make it far more likely for an employee to remain with a company. Today, training and tuition assistance can appeal to millennials and Gen Z young adults because the two groups make up almost half of the American workforce.

Workforce optimization is one of the driving factors for businesses to use artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). These kinds of technologies take over the mundane and repetitive tasks so employees can spend more time on more complex and important tasks.

The best workforce optimization platforms with AI and ML show real-time data from customer interactions so that algorithms improve employee performance management and training. For example, performance management uses real-time data to show every employee interaction with a focus on reducing the time it takes to resolve an issue and improve collaboration. Performance tools take real-time data and offer routing predictions so that the best available contact center gets involved for a specific call. Automated targeted training takes performance data and uses it to optimize a customer support employee’s performance.

Blended AI allows your business to integrate human workers with technologies like RPA bots, cognitive computing, and adaptive learning so that benefits can come from the tech and the human workers at the same time. Both parties achieve seamless collaboration so that objectives like delivering a positive customer experience are completed.

When customers are calling your business, an AI-enabled voice bot can verify a customer’s identity, determine what they need, answer some questions, and handle standard tasks. If the bot can’t help a customer, blended AI sends the call to the most appropriate and available human employee. The voice bot will have already told the employee about the customer which saves time for both the customer and employee, creating a more satisfying experience.

Some issues your business may face with workforce optimization include:

Employees’ fear of losing their job: A common fear that workers have about AI is that it will take their job from them. Although the low-level tasks will become automated, AI isn’t meant to push human workers away. Instead, it allows employees to focus on more important things while they work in conjunction with the AI. With that said, many jobs will simply shift in focus rather than be completely automated.

Legacy workflows: Optimization will change a lot of roles, processes, and responsibilities, and this may result in backlash from your employees. You can help by training your employees to focus on less repetitive tasks and more complex and rewarding work.

Legacy technology: Traditional workforce optimization applications can’t meet the requirements of today’s multichannel customer service operations. Each channel is usually sectioned off from the others, making it hard to manage a multichannel workforce. This is why it might be time to change to a could-based platform. There’s no software to download, update, or maintain. Your data is stored in the cloud and can be accessed securely. Your total cost of ownership will reduce because you won’t have software or hardware on your premises, and you won’t need to manage them.