In contact centers, every customer interaction is a moment of truth. Success hinges on more than just meeting service levels—it depends on creating a seamless alignment between employee satisfaction and customer loyalty. The Service-Profit Chain (SPC) provides a proven roadmap to profitability, yet many organizations fail to capitalize on its potential. Too often, they prioritize short-term operational metrics at the expense of long-term gains. This oversight costs far more than they realize.
SPC in Action: The HBR Connection
As outlined in Harvard Business Review’s seminal article Putting the Service-Profit Chain to Work, profitability stems from satisfied, loyal customers. Achieving this requires satisfied, empowered employees. The logic is compelling: high internal service quality drives employee satisfaction, which fuels loyalty and productivity, creating external service value. The result? A significant boost in customer satisfaction, loyalty, and profitability.
Several years ago, I saw an opportunity to extend the Service-Profit Chain in ways that addressed two glaring gaps:
First, I introduced a Positivity Model as a precursor to the traditional SPC. Before considering internal service quality, I proposed that organizations need to foster positivity at the core of their operations. This involves creating environments where optimism and collaboration flourish. Practices such as infusing conscious acts of kindness, incorporating mindfulness exercises, and designing spaces that encourage creativity and well-being set the stage for high-quality internal service.
Second, I questioned why we measure customer satisfaction (CX) with relentless precision after nearly every transaction, yet we measure employee satisfaction (E-Sat) only once or twice a year—if that. Employees are the backbone of the SPC, yet our tools for understanding their satisfaction lag far behind the granular methods we use for customers. Continuous measurement of employee satisfaction, akin to customer feedback loops, provides actionable insights that can directly inform and improve operations.
These enhancements ensure that the SPC doesn’t just start strong but remains dynamic and responsive throughout its lifecycle.
Yet, traditional workforce management (WFM) practices often undermine this chain. Planned activities like coaching and training—critical to employee satisfaction—are sacrificed when variability and volatility in call volumes arise. This cycle of missed opportunities diminishes employee engagement and erodes the customer experience.
The WFM Dilemma: From Legacy to Modern
Traditional WFM models, rooted in static pre-scheduling and rigid capacity planning, falter under real-world conditions. The WFM Maturity Curve illustrates this challenge: legacy approaches at lower maturity levels focus on pre-planned schedules that fail to adapt to real-time conditions. This represents Level 2 on the WFM Maturity model:
When unexpected spikes occur, off-phone activities like coaching are canceled to maintain service levels, leaving employees without the support they need. This misalignment erodes the SPC’s foundation. Instead of treating employees as the primary driver of customer satisfaction, organizations treat them as secondary to operational efficiency. What if there was a way to turn variability and volatility into assets rather than threats?
Erlang-O: Redefining Staffing Models
Erlang-O represents a paradigm shift in workforce planning. Unlike traditional models like Erlang-C or Erlang-A that attempt to precisely balance supply and demand at the interval level, Erlang-O incorporates overhead, variability, and volatility directly into the staffing line. It recognizes that productive off-phone activities—such as training and coaching—are not disruptions to be minimized but integral components of a successful operation.
This approach moves beyond the unrealistic goal of achieving a “net-zero” staffing balance. By building overhead into the staffing line, Erlang-O creates a resilient model that anticipates and adapts to real-world challenges. However, the algorithm alone is only part of the solution.
Intradiem: Unlocking Erlang-O’s Potential
Enter Intradiem, a real-time automation platform that operationalizes Erlang-O’s potential. By integrating with both Workforce Management systems (WFM) and Automatic Call Distributors (ACD), Intradiem dynamically allocates productive off-phone activities during periods of excess capacity. This integration ensures that every minute of agent availability is utilized efficiently, without compromising service levels.
Here’s how it works:
Maximized Training and Coaching: Intradiem enables contact centers to deliver two to three times (or more) the amount of training and coaching compared to traditional pre-scheduling approaches.
Enhanced Service Levels: During high-variance intervals, Intradiem redirects agents to handle calls, maintaining service levels without sacrificing employee development.
Optimized Staffing Lines: Erlang-O and Intradiem work together to ensure staffing levels are calibrated to account for both operational demands and developmental needs.
Operational Benefits of the Erlang-O and Automation Synergy
This synergy delivers transformative benefits:
Dynamic Resilience: Variance and volatility become opportunities rather than threats. By anticipating fluctuations, the combined solution creates a flexible staffing model that adapts in real time.
Employee Satisfaction: When coaching and development commitments are honored, employees feel valued and supported, reinforcing their engagement and loyalty.
Customer Loyalty: Satisfied employees deliver better service, fostering customer trust and long-term loyalty.
Profitability: Loyal customers spend more, refer others, and stay longer, driving exponential financial returns.
Why This Matters for the Service-Profit Chain
At its core, the SPC is about creating virtuous cycles of employee and customer satisfaction. The integration of Erlang-O with real-time automation makes this cycle achievable:
Employee Development: Dynamic scheduling ensures that coaching and training are delivered consistently, even during peak periods.
Customer Experience: Service levels are maintained without sacrificing quality, creating loyal, satisfied customers.
Operational Excellence: Variance is treated as an asset, optimizing both resources and outcomes.
A Vision for the Future
The combination of algorithmic innovation and real-time automation represents the future of workforce management. By embracing tools like Erlang-O and Intradiem, contact centers can transform variability into value, aligning their operations with the principles of the SPC.
The question is no longer whether you can afford to invest in employees and customers—it’s whether you can afford not to.