Handy pointers to take your scheduling process from chaos to control.
Intro: Our resident podcaster Jack Pidgeon was recently joined by visionary workforce management thought leader Lisa Disselkamp, whose long and distinguished career includes authoring three books on WFM and a White House commission.
The fascinating two-part episode of The WFM Show is a must-listen for anyone looking to deepen their knowledge of workforce management and take their HR strategies to the next level.
Here are our key takeaways:
Schedules show you care
Lisa emphasizes the impact of staff scheduling on employee satisfaction and retention. High absenteeism, turnover, and stress are often blamed on the workforce, but Lisa challenges businesses to reflect on their scheduling practices. “Could it be us?” she asks. “Could it be the schedule? Could it be the way we’re addressing this?”
Lisa urges more companies to measure schedules and better understand employee availability. A more flexible, employee-centric scheduling approach fosters a positive work environment where workers feel valued and earn enough to meet their basic needs. “Scheduling is a form of income, and you can raise or lower a person’s income by affecting their schedule,” says Lisa.
Scheduling as a performance metric
Scheduling en masse often feels like a Sisyphean task – once you’ve finished, it’s time to start all over again. There’s no one enterprise-wide solution that’s going to fit, Lisa says, but what’s important is to be flexible. She highlights the needs for adaptable data-driven solutions, for instance, a mobile tool that provides the manager with everything they need to make a scheduling decision in real time.
Lisa proposes making scheduling quality part of managers’ performance reviews, suggesting they should be evaluated on their ability to create balanced and effective schedules that meet both organizational and employee needs. These reviews should take place often, she says, adding: “It should be monthly, or at least quarterly. Can’t be annually.”
It’s all about balance
Lisa and Jack touch on schedule equilibrium, which involves balancing the needs of the business with the personal preferences and availability of the employees. “Why not ask when people can work? Why not provide them more flexibility?” Lisa questions, referencing successful practices in nursing, where self-scheduling and shift swapping have been successfully integrated into workforce management.
This equilibrium can significantly reduce absenteeism and turnover while increasing productivity and job satisfaction. Lisa stresses the importance of measuring schedule impacts and using data-driven approaches to create optimal schedules. Using a schedule equilibrium score to see if an employee has been treated unfairly can help managers make necessary adjustments to promote equity.
Spot the warning signs
Lisa warns against ‘normalcy bias’, a cognitive bias that leads people to believe life will go on as normal, even in the face of disaster. “It’s actually a brain condition where people see something shocking and interesting, a new piece of information, and they get a little excited, maybe they get a little panicked,” she explains. However, if they don’t quickly get four confirmations – prior knowledge, the actions of others, immediate warnings, and credibility of the data – they move on.
She encourages HR professionals and operational leaders to challenge this bias by taking action on any information that might seem unconventional or challenging. “If you heard something that you knew deep inside was disturbing or something you could do better. Go after it,” she urges.
Takeaways
From encouraging managers to focus on flexibility to championing performance-based metrics and learning to overcome biases, Lisa’s insights can help you get the most from your workforce by building a more employee-centric scheduling strategy. By integrating data-driven solutions into your scheduling practices, you can increase employee satisfaction and retention while supercharging productivity.
Tune into The WFM Show to start rethinking your workforce management strategy and nurturing a happier, more productive workforce.
