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Workforce Management (WFM) is one of the most critical—and misunderstood—functions in Customer Experience.

In the first episode of the CX Roundtable Workforce Management Series, host Sarah Caminiti sits down with Arlyne Pardo, a seasoned WFM professional, and Dan Smitley, founder of a workforce management consulting practice, to break down what WFM actually is, why it matters, and how it quietly shapes customer experience, employee wellbeing, and leadership decisions.

This conversation strips workforce management back to its foundation: understanding demand, matching it to real human capacity, and responding when things inevitably change. From forecasting and scheduling to real-time adherence and cross-functional collaboration, this episode explains how WFM works in practice—and why so many CX problems are actually capacity problems in disguise.

You’ll hear why workforce management isn’t just an operations function, how it impacts agent burnout and attrition, and why leaders must stop treating “do more” as a strategy. The discussion also explores the human ripple effects of WFM decisions, including how schedules, staffing gaps, and response plans affect frontline teams and the communities they belong to.

If you lead customer support, contact centers, CX operations, or people-driven teams—or if you’ve ever struggled with staffing, wait times, SLAs, or burnout—this episode will change how you think about capacity, planning, and leadership.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

• What workforce management (WFM) actually is—and what it isn’t
• The difference between forecasting, scheduling, and real-time management
• Why capacity planning is a leadership responsibility, not an admin task
• How poor workforce management drives burnout, attrition, and poor CX
• The role of WFM in supporting supervisors, agents, and cross-functional teams
• Why “balance” isn’t the goal—and response is
• How data, communication, and psychological safety intersect in WFM

Who This Episode Is For

• CX leaders and customer support leaders
• Contact center managers and operations leaders
• Workforce management professionals
• Founders and executives scaling service teams
• Anyone responsible for staffing, capacity, or service delivery

About the Series

This four-part CX Roundtable WFM Series explores:

1. What workforce management is
2. Why it matters for cost, consistency, and people
3. What “good” actually looks like in WFM
4. How WFM becomes a strategic partner to the business

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction to the CX Roundtable

01:22 Meet the Experts: Arlyne and Dan

04:14 Understanding Workforce Management (WFM)

12:18 The Role of Real-Time Adherence (RTA)

17:19 Balancing Historical Data and Real-Time Variables

21:51 WFM and Operations: A Collaborative Effort

26:53 Tools and Technology in WFM

28:00 Exploring Workforce Management Tools

29:19 Transitioning from Excel to WFM Systems

30:54 Scaling Workforce Management Teams

33:11 Handling Staffing Challenges and Forecasting

42:02 Personal Journeys into Workforce Management

48:34 The Future of Workforce Management

51:50 Final Thoughts and Next Steps

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