Peopleware's State of WFM Report 2026, developed in partnership with Call Centre Helper, is packed with key trends, challenges, and insights that every contact center workforce planner needs to know in 2026. An in-depth survey of Call Centre Helper’s large, global readership has revealed how WFM is actually being done today. Some of the results confirmed our expectations. Others came as a surprise.
Among the many insights revealed in the report, these seven stand out:
- One scheduling problem still dominates
- There are 2 main intraday challenges; marketing isn’t one of them
- Full-time shifts have declined slightly; other shift types are gaining popularity
- ‘Staircase’ shifts are now a thing
- Multiple scheduling tools are used to improve employee experience
- The majority of contact centers still aren’t using AI in WFM. Or are they?
- There are unexpected patterns in WFM software adoption
One scheduling problem still dominates
The top 3 scheduling problems cited by survey respondents were
- Dealing with absence & lateness
- Volatility in contact volume
- Meeting service levels efficiently
Absence & lateness were a problem for 40% of respondents, making them the biggest challenge by a clear margin.
The good news is that the percentage of respondents naming absence and lateness as the biggest scheduling problem has declined from 47% in 2024, so contact centers appear to be rising to the challenge, possibly using techniques explained in this blog post. And in the report, Dan explains how the entry-level nature of some contact center jobs can be a positive for the organization.
There are 2 main intraday challenges; marketing isn’t one of them
When you think about intraday management challenges, the classic case is unexpected increases in contact volume or average handling time (AHT) caused by campaigns that the marketing department ‘forgot’ to inform the contact center about. Avoiding this scenario is just one of the reasons why it’s vital to break down the barriers between the contact center and operations. That’s a topic we explore in this popular blog post.
The good news is that the survey revealed unplanned marketing events to be the biggest intraday management problem for less than 2% of respondents. It seems that contact center planners may finally have a seat at the operations table that they deserve.
Dealing with absence and lateness was cited as the biggest problem in scheduling, so it should be no surprise that unplanned lateness is the biggest intraday management problem. Coping with volatile workloads and unexpected spikes was nearly as big a problem as lateness, closely followed by poor schedule adherence.
Full-time shifts have declined slightly; other shift types are gaining popularity
A critical success factor in contact center planning is having the right mix of shift types: full-time, part-time, rotating shift patterns, etc. Many employees prefer full-time shifts because of their inherent predictability, stability of income, and the perception that full-time workers have better promotion prospects. On the other hand, full-time shifts make it more difficult for the business to flex the number of on-duty employees around the peaks and valleys in customer demand.
Not surprisingly, the survey revealed that the vast majority of respondents have at least some full-time workers on the payroll. What’s interesting is that this number appears to be declining compared to previous years, while the use of other shift types is growing.
The top 5 shift types cited in the survey are:
- Full-time shifts
- Part-time shifts
- Rotational shifts
- Split shifts
- Banked/annualized hours
‘Staircase’ shifts are now a thing
Many contact centers and customer support organizations will recognize two common patterns in contact volume:
- The ‘M curve’, whereby there is a peak of contact volume in the morning and another in the afternoon each day
- The downward slant in contact volume during each week, with a peak on Monday that gradually declines as the week progresses
Staircase shifts, sometimes called slant schedules, are designed to address the second pattern.
Multiple scheduling tools are used to improve employee experience
Workforce management practices and WFM technology have a tremendous impact on employee experience. At its core, WFM is about having the right number of people in the right places at the right times, doing the right things. If your forecast is inaccurate or if your schedules don’t efficiently match staffing levels with customer demand at all times, you won’t consistently deliver against your customer service goals. Just as importantly, your agents will flip-flop between feast and famine, experiencing periods of excessive workload that lead to burnout, stress, and staff turnover. Getting the basics right is the most important way that WFM can positively impact the employee experience.
Beyond that, good WFM tools offer a comprehensive set of functions to improve employee experience.
For example:
- Ability to view and manage schedules in real time
- Access to schedules via mobile app or web portal
- Notification of schedule changes
- Shift swap functionality
- Shift bidding functionality
- Self-service time off management
Of these, nearly 40% of survey respondents declare shift swap functionality as a tool they use to improve employee experience. Three other tools are nearly as popular, but shift swapping comes out on top.
The majority of contact centers still aren’t using AI in WFM. Or are they?
The survey revealed that nearly 60% of all respondents are not currently using AI in WFM. Given all the hype about AI in the last couple of years, that figure is surprisingly low.
On closer inspection, three further insights emerge:
- 61% of respondents who actually use WFM software are benefiting from AI - or expect to.
- A significant number of respondents report using AI for tasks such as forecasting, scheduling, and time-off management.
- Since generative AI tools like ChatGPT came into common use in 2024, the term “AI” has been widely taken to mean “generative AI”. In reality, AI encompasses a broad range of functionalities relevant to WFM. Predictive AI has been applied to forecasting for many years, and the vendors continue to innovate. Optimization AI (self-learning algorithms that maximize positive outcomes through continuous feedback and optimization) is doing the same for scheduling. And the automation of manual tasks by agentic AI is freeing planners from tedious administrative work.
There are unexpected patterns in WFM software adoption
Today, there is a greater choice of WFM software than ever, appealing to contact centers of all sizes and all levels of complexity. Cloud deployment reduces total cost of ownership, while AI and automation mean that the best systems are more functional than ever, yet are easier to use and quicker to learn.
It comes as no surprise to find that the survey reveals the highest-ever level of adoption of WFM systems and specialized forecasting tools. Altogether, 66% of respondents use some kind of system.
There are, however, some surprising details hiding in the results. For example, uptake of specialized forecasting tools has increased dramatically, perhaps indicating that some of the traditional WFM tools are falling short when it comes to forecasting today’s diverse mix of channels. This could also indicate that traditional WFM tools are struggling to handle the greater volatility in contact volume and AHT that arises once the interactions handled by chatbots and AI customer service are excluded.
It’s also fascinating to see that spreadsheets refuse to disappear from the planning process. Over 60% of respondents still use them as part of their forecasting and scheduling activities.
What's happening in your contact center?
Are your teams also struggling with the same problems?
If your current WFM software doesn’t handle these problems well, it’s time to challenge your vendor or consider an upgrade. If you’re in the process of selecting new WFM software, it’s a good idea to check how well each system meets these requirements.
Get the checklist of WFM software must-haves to tackle the biggest scheduling challenges of your contact center.
