February 20, 2024

Many organizations aspire to optimize cost structures, maximize productivity, implement process automation, and improve employee engagement. Many companies have been searching for this elusive goal, and many have achieved it by implementing workforce management (WFM) solutions. But what is workforce management? 

WFM encompasses techniques to strategically align labor resources, drive operating efficiencies, forecast work volumes, and manage staff scheduling. This guide summarizes the key concepts and best practices around workforce management (WFM) that business leaders should comprehend to leverage these capabilities successfully.

What is Workforce Management?

Workforce management (WFM) refers to the strategies and systems employers use to organize their human resources, track attendance, and stay compliant with workplace regulations. The overarching goal of WFM is to identify priorities and potential problems within a company so that preventative measures can be taken. Effective WFM enhances productivity and mitigates risk.

Modern workforce management software assists companies in better engaging employees, delivering superior customer service, and positively impacting their bottom line. By incorporating WFM capabilities into advanced platforms, businesses can more effectively distribute staff, monitor attendance, and adapt to evolving laws. This allows them to pinpoint pressure points before they become issues, leading to more efficient operations overall.

What are the Key Benefits of Robust Workforce Management?

An optimized workforce management system offers myriad advantages for businesses and employees alike. At their core, these solutions empower organizations to:

• Align staffing with demand, ensuring the right people with the right skills fill critical roles at key times. This enhances productivity and drives profitability.
• Understand historical trends and current requirements. This allows for smarter resource planning and lower labor costs without sacrificing quality.
• Maintain compliance with the complex patchwork of laws and regulations, promoting diversity and inclusion in the workforce. This keeps operations legal and running smoothly.
• Equip staff to perform their best work quickly and efficiently. This translates to superior customer experiences.

In summary, leading workforce management technology gives companies data-driven insight to boost efficiency, control costs, avoid penalties, and satisfy patrons. The collective impact is a healthier bottom line and a more agile, competitive organization. Moreover, business process outsourcing plays a crucial role in enabling organizations to leverage the capabilities of modern workforce management solutions effectively.

What are the Processes Involved in Workforce Management?

The key processes of a comprehensive workforce management system include:

• Forecasting and Planning: Predicting necessary staffing levels during different project timelines or seasons using historical data. Budgeting optimal labor resources based on projected demand and financial considerations. This allows for strategic staff deployment as needs fluctuate.
• Staff Scheduling: Automating employee shifts and assignments accounting for workload, vacations, availabilities, and absences. This is far superior to inefficient manual methods that often yield understaffing issues.
• Time/Attendance Tracking: Monitoring when and how long employees work to uncover attendance patterns and gaps. This data supports better demand planning, payroll accuracy, and absence management.
• Performance Management: Gaining visibility into employee engagement and productivity drivers to incentivize and align with top performers. Employee empowerment plays a crucial role in enabling organizations to build a highly engaged and productive workforce.
• Compliance Management: Ensuring adherence to intricate legal/regulatory obligations related to compensation, labor standards, certifications, and more to avoid fines and lawsuits.
• Payroll/Benefits Administration: Streamlining payments, reporting, and processing using workforce data. Can enable instant payout options.
• Leave Management: Digitally handling and overseeing time-off requests, approvals, and balances (sick, vacation). Optimizing schedules around planned/unplanned absences.

A Real-world Example of Successful Workforce Management

Adventist Health Implemented Kronos Workforce Management System

Adventist Health, a faith-based, not-for-profit integrated health system, implemented Kronos Workforce Central across its system. By leveraging the platform for forecasting, scheduling, time, and attendance, Adventist Health was able to:

• Decrease labor costs by 3-12% across different facilities
• Improve productivity and staff utilization
• Increase patient satisfaction scores

As quoted in the case study:

“With Kronos, we’re able to capture lost time, identify trends, and develop solutions to recapture that time into productive patient care rather than administrative duties.”

This demonstrates a real-world example of a major healthcare system leveraging advanced workforce management technology to optimize staffing, reduce labor costs, improve productivity, and enhance the patient experience.

The Future of Workforce Management

To summarize, understanding “what is workforce management” is essential for organizations aiming to optimize their human resources efficiently. By effectively leveraging workforce management strategies, businesses can align their workforce with their goals, enhance productivity, improve employee satisfaction, and ultimately achieve sustainable growth. 

However, with changing markets, tighter regulations, and a diverse workforce, managing your HR operations and employees has become quite challenging, hasn’t it? But don’t worry, we’ve got your back. At Procloz, we offer modern workforce management solutions that bring all your workforce functions together in one automated system. And the best part? You’ll have an engaged, productive team that’s truly contributing to your company’s success. Contact us to explore how our solutions can help your business thrive amidst any challenges you may face.