Getting started with Zendesk WFM: Manager guide

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<p id="docs-hc-snippet" style="display: none;">This guide is recommended for anyone who is responsible for workforce management (WFM) planning and scheduling, managing agent time and activity, and day-to-day monitoring. Common roles include manager, scheduler, analyst, and team lead.</p>
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<strong>Add-on</strong>
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<td>Workforce Management (WFM) or Workforce Engagement Management (WEM)</td>
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<p id="docs-ai-summary-content">This guide helps you manage workforce planning and scheduling, handle short-term schedule changes, and monitor daily team performance. Use forecasting tools for long-term planning and adjust schedules as needed. Monitor agent attendance and activity in real time, and access historical reports to identify trends and improve staffing decisions. Customize dashboards to track key metrics like handle time and adherence rate.</p>
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<p class="p">This guide is recommended for anyone who is responsible for workforce management (WFM)
planning and scheduling, managing agent time and activity, and day-to-day monitoring. Common
roles include manager, scheduler, analyst, and team lead.</p>
<p class="p">Managers work with data in Zendesk WFM to plan, schedule, and monitor agent work. Zendesk
WFM's capabilities support a range of planning and management needs, such as long-term
planning, forecasting, and scheduling, short-term schedule management, day-to-day monitoring,
and historical reporting.</p>
<div class="p">This article contains the following sections:<ul class="ul" id="topic-1__ul_hsv_2zh_hzb">
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_jwm_qkf_d1c">Planning, forecasting, and
scheduling</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_xjl_drf_d1c">Managing short-term schedule
changes</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_mnh_4yk_d1c">Monitoring daily team
performance</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_ohq_33l_d1c">Accessing historical trends with
reports</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_vdb_fnl_d1c">More resources and next steps</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
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<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title2" class="topic nested1" id="topic_jwm_qkf_d1c">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title2">Planning, forecasting, and scheduling</h2>
<div class="body">
<div class="p">Zendesk WFM’s tools are built for long-term forecasting and scheduling that assist you with
the WFM planning you perform as a manager. You can plan your resourcing needs based on
different scenarios and data sets. Additionally, you can revisit your staffing throughout
your fiscal cycle and adjust plans based on the trends you observe.<div class="note attention">
<span class="attentiontitle"></span> You must have admin permission in Zendesk WFM to access the features described in this
article.</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title3" class="topic nested2" id="topic_hnb_zlf_d1c">
<h3 class="title topictitle3" id="ariaid-title3">Forecast</h3>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">Zendesk WFM's forecast takes your historical ticket data and your workstreams to create
inbound volume estimates for up to a year in the future.</p>
<p class="p"><img class="image" id="topic_hnb_zlf_d1c__image_zwf_zhh_g3c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/wfm_forecast_historical_volume.png.png" width="800"></p>
<p class="p">At installation, the past six months of your Zendesk ticket data is brought over to build
an initial forecast. </p>
<div class="p">
<div class="note note">
<span class="notetitle">Note:</span> When capturing ticket volume, Zendesk WFM also includes spam tickets, which may be
different from how you capture ticket volume in Zendesk Explore. See <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408889141146" target="_blank">Understanding and managing suspended tickets and
spam</a>.</div>
When a ticket is created, it's automatically assigned to a workstream
to create a forecast. Your forecast includes a full-time equivalent (FTE) calculation,
which shows how many staff members are required to handle the estimated workload.</div>
<p class="p"> If you're responsible for long-term forecasts, your planning will likely begin several
months out. Otherwise, it's recommended that you review the Forecast page regularly to
help plan your schedule. See <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/9940054229402" target="_blank">Viewing your active forecasts</a>.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title4" class="topic nested2" id="topic_uvf_mpf_d1c">
<h3 class="title topictitle3" id="ariaid-title4">Schedules</h3>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">Your forecast serves as the basis for your schedule. When you generate a schedule in
Zendesk WFM, select the time frame the schedule should cover. </p>
<p class="p"><img class="image" id="topic_uvf_mpf_d1c__image_djp_tpf_d1c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ts_schedule_date_view.png" width="400"></p>
<p class="p">You have two options for creating your team’s schedule:</p>
<ul class="ul" id="topic_uvf_mpf_d1c__ul_u1q_wpf_d1c">
<li class="li">Generate a schedule for your team’s workstreams. Zendesk WFM builds a schedule based
on the hours and shift parameters established by an admin in your organization
structure.</li>
<li class="li">Import your own schedule. You may need to change shifts to reconcile differences
between forecasted staffing needs and available staffing.</li>
</ul>
<p class="p">After you have a schedule, you‘ll see a heat map that shows whether you’re adequately
staffed to support the volume of inbound work forecasted, including general tasks
(non-ticket work) and approved time-off. </p>
<p class="p">Regularly review your forecast and schedule to see how many
agents are scheduled compared to those forecasted. This will help ensure that you have an
appropriate amount of agents to handle the workload.</p>
<p class="p">WFM schedules aren't automatically synced with Zendesk schedules or business hours. You
should work with your admin to plan for and correct any scheduling conflicts that may
arise.</p>
<p class="p">For more information about scheduling, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6443348279194" target="_blank">Generating and publishing your workforce management schedule</a> and
<a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6443377641754" target="_blank">Importing schedules</a>.</p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title5" class="topic nested1" id="topic_xjl_drf_d1c">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title5">Managing short-term schedule changes</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">Zendesk WFM provides a number of features that assist you in managing your short-term
schedule changes. You can make adjustments to your team's schedule as needed, allow your
agents to trade shifts with each other, and manage their time off requests.</p>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title6" class="topic nested2" id="topic_zb4_rrk_d1c">
<h3 class="title topictitle3" id="ariaid-title6">Schedules</h3>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">Schedules serve as a helpful starting point for assessing short-term staffing needs or
making weekly or daily adjustments. This is known as intraday management. From the
Schedule page, click an agent's name to view their shifts.</p>
<p class="p"><img class="image" id="topic_zb4_rrk_d1c__image_afq_xrk_d1c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/wfm_gs_edit_agent_schedule_daily.png" width="400"></p>
<p class="p">You can then edit an agent's schedule or edit schedules in bulk by shortening,
lengthening, or splitting shifts.</p>
<p class="p">For more information about managing schedule changes, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6443365957274" target="_blank">Editing your schedule</a>.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title7" class="topic nested2" id="topic_mkm_cyk_d1c">
<h3 class="title topictitle3" id="ariaid-title7">Shift trade management</h3>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">Shift trades allow agents to request to trade shifts with each other. An admin must turn
on shift trades and can make a manager's approval required or not. Agents can request
shift trades from their <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6443374353434" target="_blank">Agent Schedule</a> in Zendesk Support. If a manager's approval is
required, you’ll want to view and act on these requests quickly as they may impact your
overall staffing.</p>
<p class="p">For more information, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6443354721178" target="_blank">Activating shift trades for agents</a>.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title8" class="topic nested2" id="topic_fc3_btk_d1c">
<h3 class="title topictitle3" id="ariaid-title8">Time off management</h3>
<div class="body">
<div class="p">Agents can request time off from their <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6443374353434" target="_blank">Agent Schedule</a> in Zendesk Support. You'll receive an email
notification for each request and can view the request details from the Time off
management page. The page displays a summary of all your agents’ requests, including the
date, time, and reason. It’s up to you to approve, deny, or comment on the request.<div class="note tip">
<span class="tiptitle">Tip:</span> You may want to view the Schedule page and your heat map as you assess your
agents’ time off requests to ensure that you have adequate coverage.</div>
</div>
<p class="p">For more information about managing time off requests, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/7274514867866" target="_blank">About the Time off management page</a>.</p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title9" class="topic nested1" id="topic_mnh_4yk_d1c">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title9">Monitoring daily team performance</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">While Zendesk WFM’s scheduling tools help you manage your staffing, its agent-centered
tools give you real time insight into agents’ work and allow your involvement when
necessary.</p>
<p class="p"><img class="image" id="topic_mnh_4yk_d1c__image_gvg_nzk_d1c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ts_agent_status_access.png" width="400"></p>
<p class="p">Additionally, you can customize dashboards for a quick visual overview of performance in
real time.</p>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title10" class="topic nested2" id="topic_mts_pzk_d1c">
<h3 class="title topictitle3" id="ariaid-title10">Agent attendance</h3>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">The Agent attendance page gives you a quick view of your team's daily attendance. Details
include who's scheduled for the day, how long they are scheduled for, how much time they
have logged, if they were late, planned and unplanned time off, and their <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6443331680538#Occupancy%20Rate" target="_blank">occupancy rate</a>.</p>
<p class="p">For more information about how to filter and drill down on this data, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6443347522074" target="_blank">About the Agent attendance page</a>.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title11" class="topic nested2" id="topic_vzy_41l_d1c">
<h3 class="title topictitle3" id="ariaid-title11">Agent status</h3>
<div class="body">
<p class="p" dir="ltr">After you've checked agent attendance, use the Agent status page to view what
each agent is working on in real time and their adherence to what's scheduled. Prior
inputs, such as workstreams and agents’ time entries, inform these views. </p>
<p class="p" dir="ltr">Adherence is important for long-term planning, but focusing on it too much can
suggest to agents that WFM tools are mainly for monitoring their time. Instead, emphasize
that Zendesk WFM helps build a predictable and accurate staffing model. Coordinate with
other stakeholders on how to talk to your agents about this. It'll help ensure successful
change management and product adoption.</p>
<p class="p">For more information, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6443331637018" target="_blank">About the Agent status page</a>.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title12" class="topic nested2" id="topic_fjg_gdl_d1c">
<h3 class="title topictitle3" id="ariaid-title12">Agent activity</h3>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">If you need a more detailed view of agents' activity, schedule adherence, and
productivity, use the Agent activity page. This page gives you a real time view of each
agent’s activity compared to their planned schedule. </p>
<p class="p">For example, if you see that an agent is stuck on a ticket, you can access the ticket
they’re working on and offer help, assess its complexity, and so on.</p>
<p class="p">For more information, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6443347506970" target="_blank">About the Agent activity page</a>.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title13" class="topic nested2" id="topic_mss_wfl_d1c">
<h3 class="title topictitle3" id="ariaid-title13">Dashboards</h3>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">Dashboards provide a quick visual overview of how your team is performing in real time.
In contrast to Zendesk Explore dashboards, which show real-time ticket and
channel-specific data, Zendesk WFM’s dashboards show you how your team is handling their
workload at the moment. </p>
<p class="p"><img class="image" id="topic_mss_wfl_d1c__image_x2w_53l_d1c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/wfm_gs_dashboards_overview.png" width="800"></p>
<div class="p">Customize dashboards by selecting metrics to measure your team's performance against.
Common metrics managers seek out include:<ul class="ul" id="topic_mss_wfl_d1c__ul_okj_wgl_d1c">
<li class="li">Average handle time</li>
<li class="li">Adherence rate</li>
<li class="li">Occupancy rate</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p class="p">Your dashboards update throughout the day, with Zendesk data refreshing every 30
seconds.</p>
<p class="p">Your organization can create up to three dashboards. It's recommended that you align with
other stakeholders on the metrics and performance indicators that should be included on
your dashboards. You may want to consider that a number of different users will be using
dashboards for views that are relevant to their roles.</p>
<p class="p">For more information, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6443376866074" target="_blank">About dashboards</a>.</p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title14" class="topic nested1" id="topic_ohq_33l_d1c">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title14">Accessing historical trends with reports</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">WFM reports gives managers insight into historical staffing trends and agent activity. </p>
<p class="p">With WFM reports, you can monitor agent performance, attendance, and time-off requests with
pre-defined system report templates. These reports help you identify patterns and gain
insight into agent activity and attendance.</p>
<div class="p">The system report templates include:<ul class="ul" id="topic_ohq_33l_d1c__ul_m5c_yjl_d1c">
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Agent activity</strong>: Displays agents' adherence rate and a breakdown of the points
that make up their productivity.</li>
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Agent attendance</strong>: Shows categories such as attendance and attendance rate,
occupancy rate, and so on.</li>
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Time-off</strong>: Provides a historical view of agents’ approved time-off
requests.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p class="p">System report templates can't be edited. However, you can copy the system templates and use
them to create custom reports. Custom reports can be modified to suit your needs. You can
select productivity metrics and general tasks, such as paid, unpaid, productive,
unproductive, and more. </p>
<p class="p">For example, create or customize a report to view how many tickets one agent worked,
solved, or re-opened.</p>
<p class="p">As a manager, you can export reports as well as schedule and send recurring reports.</p>
<div class="p">For more information, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6443363334810" target="_blank">About system report templates</a> and <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6443331692698" target="_blank">About custom report templates</a>.<div class="note tip">
<span class="tiptitle">Tip:</span> Reviewing reports
and noting patterns can help you recommend automations for your admin to set up. For more
information, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6443314435610" target="_blank">About Zendesk WFM automations</a>.</div>
</div>
<p class="p">See our <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6514645504282" target="_blank">Getting started with Zendesk WFM: Agent guide</a> to
learn about the agent experience in Zendesk WFM and understand how your agents interact with
it.</p>
</div>
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