What actually IS Intraday Automation?

You know what really annoys me?? (I can almost hear those of you who know me saying, ‘Everything, mate’.)

No, but seriously - it’s how some products can play a little fast-and-loose with the truth in how they describe themselves.? You know the ones I mean - the ones that label themselves as health products even though they’ve got enough sugar in them to stop a rhinoceros in its tracks; the bog-standard car in front with the obviously after-market ‘GTI’ decal; every single hair care product with their brand of pseudoscience.? It’s frustrating when things make spurious claims to try to mislead buyers, isn’t it?

And that’s why I work for QStory, the UK’s first, and premier, provider of Intraday Automation software.

Intraday Automation is the most recent (and biggest) technological leap forward in Contact Centre planning.? It’s possibly the first one since the introduction of WFM software back in the dark and hazy days of Coolio and Hootie and the Blowfish (ask your parents, kids).? But the term ‘Intraday Automation’ is more than a little vague, and only hints at the incredible breadth and depth of benefits that the software can bring to your business.? That vagueness has allowed other bandwagoning software to label itself as ‘IDA’ when it definitely - really definitely - isn’t.? And that means that everyone’s understanding of what Intraday Automation actually is has become a little skewed, with people labouring under the misapprehension that they already have this functionality in their midst.

"Intraday automation is much more than some WFM vendors suggest ..."

For me, that is very frustrating.

Because the truth is this - if you don’t have QStory, you don’t have Intraday Automation. No matter what the label says. It really is as black-and-white as that.

So, in an attempt to map out the borders of the ‘Intraday Automation Nation’ and to deter those who wish to stake a claim to our land, here are some definitions of the functionality your software MUST have if it can consider itself an Intraday Automation tool.

Automation

OK, let’s start with the obvious one.? First and foremost, the software needs to offer actual automation before it can correctly be badged as ‘IDA’.? Intraday automation is much more than some WFM vendors suggest - it’s more than a Real Time Adherence Monitoring platform and some graphical Intraday Profile information.? It’s also much more than simply machine-automating simple, repeatable tasks.

IDA should go much further than this - using in-built AI, acting on Supply vs Demand information to make changes to schedules, activities and channels to get the best result for the Contact Centre.? This can be in the form of recommended redeployments for your skilled team members to consider or fully automated management of those same redeployments.

Dynamic View of Supply & Demand

Intraday Automation software MUST provide you with an absolutely-bang-up-to-date, dynamic view of demand and supply in your Centre.? Not a recent view.? If an agent has said they are running late, or have notified you of their absence or need to be marked as AWOL, your software needs to be able to show you the impact that this change to the plan is going to have on your performance.? Through doing this, your IDA software can give you 100% confidence that its decisions - and yours - are based on accurate and relevant information.

A Distant Event Horizon

It is vitally important that your IDA software presents you with a proactive view, and makes decisions based on future events.? That way, you can use your software to make some strategic, not just extremely short-sighted tactical, decisions. ? You can already see and experience what is happening right now so having software present you with that same information has little value.? True Intraday Automation allows you to focus on the whole day rather than just the here and now.

Automated Schedule Updates

The software must offer fully automated updates to agent schedules.? Whether that update comes as a result of the system’s recommendations, a Team Leader booking in off-line activity, or through their own input - like a late notification, a shift swap or a break move - the process of making the change to the agent’s schedules, and communicating that change to all relevant parties, must be fully handled by the system.? No human hands need to be involved in this process.

Automated Attendance Management

The software must be able to identify agents who have not started their schedule as planned and have not communicated with the business to give any reasons.? It must handle communications to all relevant parties - team leaders, Resource Planning, the agent themselves - updating schedules along the way.

Automated RTA Monitoring

You should be able to use your IDA software to automatically monitor Real Time Adherence, across multiple channels and departments.? To remove the need for a valuable human resource to do this brain-fogging, demoralising task, the system should be able to identify agents who are out of adherence for a wide variety of reasons, or engaged in long calls or after call work, and communicate with them, offering help and guidance, and encouraging them to get back into schedule adherence.

'...if (the system) cannot process those requests automatically and timeously, the result is a series of manual workarounds and blockers.'

Post-Operational Analysis

Your Intraday Automation tool should have an influence beyond the moment when the plan and reality collide.? It should be able to provide you with reporting that delivers never-before-seen levels of operational insight, helping you to discover - and communicate - the real drivers behind wait times and low SLA’s.? And it should be able to achieve this automatically, eliminating the need for complex data-mining and the maintenance and synchronisation of multiple data sources.

And now for some wider, strategic considerations.

Scope

IDA software must have a fully rounded, 360-degree view of your centre’s demand for time, and the supply of time.? It must not be restricted to simply phone-related, or possibly chat, workload.? It must show demand and supply for back office work, asynchronous messaging or social media work.? It must show demand for training and coaching.? It must understand the skills, abilities and competencies of the workforce.? It must be able to support the varied and subtle responses to demand and supply changes that are needed in your centre.

Speed

And it must do all of the above at scale - and at tremendous speed.? It is all very well if your system has a screen to allow agents or team leaders to log change requests - but if it cannot process those requests automatically and timeously, the result is a series of manual workarounds and blockers.? AI-powered automation needs to deliver real-time self-service for senior managers, team leaders and agents.?

QStory is the ONLY software that can truly be said to be offering Intraday Automation because it is the only one to fulfill all of these parameters.? And you won’t find us making spurious claims - we tell you our customer’s achievements and work closely with you to work out how we can make your Contact Centre’s own success story.

So, the next time you are speaking with a company about a piece of IDA functionality, run it through this test to see if it truly meets the mark.? And then come and talk to us at QStory and see how it’s REALLY done.