2020-2021 Workforce Optimization Product and Market Report

Contact centers are changing at a dramatic rate, driven by the pandemic as well as the ongoing digital transformation. Some of the most significant changes that have occurred in 2020 include migration of employees from offices to work-at-home (WAH), use of video as a primary channel of communication, adoption of a digital-first mindset, a growing consumer preference for self-service, and transition of contact center technology to the cloud.

A Year of Extraordinary Change

At the beginning of the pandemic, as lockdowns and quarantines were implemented around the world, contact centers demonstrated their flexibility and agility as they moved employees into home offices, sometimes within a matter of days. The companies that had the easiest time with this transition were those that had already migrated to contact-center-as-a-service (CCaaS) solutions. Customers are increasingly looking to their CCaaS vendors as the single source for all of their technology needs, including WFO, and this is on its way to becoming the predominant acquisition model for WFO solutions in the future.

The WFO market is evolving and adapting to the needs of digitally transformed organizations. Vendors have invested in enhancing many of the components of their solutions with artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML) and automation. Automation and AI are being used to improve contact center efficiency, quality and accuracy while reducing costs and enhancing agent engagement. These technologies are also enhancing self-service activities, which help improve the customer experience (CX), a primary goal for all service organizations, by meeting the needs of customers, who increasingly prefer to help themselves.

No one knows what the future will bring once the pandemic is past, but companies must be prepared to have at least some of their employees working from home and continue with their enterprise’s digital transformation. Although many segments of the contact center WFO suite market are mature, the publisher expects the vendors to continue to execute well in the future. Contact center and enterprise managers need these solutions to provide insight into what is happening in their departments, throughout the company, as well as with customers.

Timely and Insightful Resource for Navigating the “New Normal”

The 2020 - 2021 edition of the Workforce Optimization Product and Market Report features 8 leading and contending vendors: Aspect, Calabrio, DVSAnalytics, Eleveo, Five9, NICE, OnviSource, and Verint. Authority Software is covered at a high level. The Report presents an in-depth analysis of the contact center WFO market, trends, competitive landscape, product suites, technology and innovation. This edition of the Report includes insightful discussions about the short- and long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, and analyzes how WFO solutions are helping contact centers and enterprises navigate in the “new normal.” The Report is intended to help contact center, IT and enterprise leaders and managers in companies of all sizes select the right solution, technology, functionality and partner to meet their organization’s current and future WFO needs.

The Report Includes

WFO suites defined: an overview of the functional components of a WFO solution, including core and optional modules offered in the 8 featured WFO suites
Market and business trends and challenges that are driving enterprise investments and influencing product development
WFO market innovation, including a review of recently introduced functionality and what is planned for the next 12 - 18 months
Timely discussion of the critical role of artificial intelligence (AI), automation and analytics in keeping contact centers and service organizations up and running during the COVID-19 pandemic, including their ability to support a work-at-home (WAH) model
The publisher’s predictions for the future of WFO
A look at the relationship and changing dynamics between the WFO and cloud-based contact center infrastructure (CBCCI) market and how and from whom end-users want to acquire their technology
In-depth examination of the 12 key WFO suite components, including a comparative analysis of the functional capabilities in the 8 featured solutions for each application
Detailed revenue and market share analyses featuring first-half 2020 vs. first-half 2019 revenue comparisons, by vendor, based on GAAP revenue for total company, the contact center WFO segment, the recording (WFO) sector and QM
Review of the WFO competitive landscape and vendor competitive positioning, including company snapshots of the 8 featured WFO competitors
Comprehensive customer satisfaction survey results that measure and rank ratings across 13 WFO components, 7 product features, 7 product effectiveness categories and capabilities, and 10 vendor categories
Detailed pricing analysis for a 250-seat on-premise and cloud-based QM/recording/coaching implementation, including incremental costs for analytics-enabled quality management (AQM), WFM, gamification, surveying, KM, and interaction analytics
Detailed company reports for the 9 WFO vendors covered in detail or at a high level, analyzing their products, functionality and future product development plans
Comprehensive WFO Vendor Directory

Please note: A customer license letter agreement needs to be signed prior to delivery of this product. This letter will be sent to you via email after your order is placed.

1. Executive Summary

2. Introduction

3. Research Methodology
3.1 Report Participation Criteria

4. Workforce Optimization Defined
4.1 WFO Vendor Suite Overview

5. WFO Market Trends and Challenges
5.1 WFO 2021 Market Trends
5.1 WFO 2021 Market Challenges

6. WFO Market Innovation
6.1 New Product Features
6.2 Future Enhancements

7. Essential Components of the “New Normal” Contact Center
7.1 AI and Automaton
7.2 Work-at-Home Agents

8. WFO Future Outlook Predictions

9. Merger of CCaaS and WFO

10. WFO Suites: Twelve Essential Modules, One Complete Solution
10.1 Recording
10.2 Quality Management/Analytics-Enabled Quality Management
10.3 Workforce Management
10.4 Interaction Analytics
10.5 Surveying/VoC
10.6 Contact Center Performance Management
10.7 Gamification
10.8 Knowledge Management
10.9 Desktop Analytics
10.10 Robotic Process Automation
10.11 Customer Journey Analytics

11. Back-Office WFO

12. WFO Market Activity Analysis
12.1. Financial Information Sources
12.2 Debates about Methodology
12.3 Methodology
12.4. Total GAAP Revenue and Market Share, First-Half 2020 vs. First-Half 2019 (all WFO-related vendors)
12.5 Total Contact Center WFO Revenue and Market Share, First-Half 2020 vs. First-Half 2019

13. WFO Competitive Landscape
13.1 WFO Suite Competitive Positioning
13.2 Company Snapshots

14. High-Level Functional Summary
14.1 High-Level Functional Summary
14.2 Security and Compliance
14.3 Integration
14.4 Dashboards, Reporting and KPIs

15. WFO Customer Satisfaction Survey
15.1 Summary of Survey Findings and Analysis: Vendor Categories
15.1.1 Vendor Satisfaction by Category and Customer
15.2 Summary of Survey Findings and Analysis: WFO Suite Modules
15.2.1 WFO Suite Modules Satisfaction Ratings, by Category and Customer
15.3 Summary of Survey Findings and Analysis: WFO Product Features
15.3.1 WFO Product Features Satisfaction Ratings, by Category and Customer
15.4 Summary of Survey Findings and Analysis: Product Effectiveness
15.4.1 Product Effectiveness Satisfaction, by Category and Customer
15.5 Customer Background and Insights
15.5.1 Channels Supported
15.5.2 Digital Transformation
15.5.3 Additional Comments

16. Pricing
16.1 Pricing for a 250-Seat Premise-Based WFO Solution
16.2 Pricing for a 250-Seat Cloud-Based WFO Solution

17. Company Reports
17.1 Aspect Software, Inc.
17.2 Authority Software
17.3 Calabrio
17.4 DVSAnalytics
17.5 Eleveo
17.6 Five9
17.7 NICE
17.8 OnviSource
17.9 Verint Systems

18. WFO Vendor Directory

List of Figures
Figure 1: Contact Center Workforce Optimization Suite
Figure 2: WFO Vendor Suite Components
Figure 3: WFO 2021 Market Trends
Figure 4: WFO 2021 Market Challenges
Figure 5: New Product Features, by Vendor
Figure 6: Future Enhancements, by Category
Figure 7: How AI and Automation is Being Leveraged in WFO Suites
Figure 8.1: AI, Machine Learning and Automation
Figure 8.2: AI, Machine Learning and Automation
Figure 9.1: Remote Staff/WAH
Figure 9.2: Remote Staff/WAH
Figure 10.1: Recording
Figure 10.2: Recording
Figure 11: The Shift to AQM
Figure 12: How AQM Works
Figure 13.1: QM/AQM
Figure 13.2: QM/AQM
Figure 14: Enterprise WFM Suite Components
Figure 15.1: WFM
Figure 15.2: WFM
Figure 16: How Interaction Analytics Works
Figure 17: Enterprise Uses of Interaction Analytics
Figure 18.1: Interaction Analytics
Figure 18.2: Interaction Analytics
Figure 19.1: Surveying/Voice of the Customer/CX
Figure 19.2: Surveying/Voice of the Customer/CX
Figure 20.1: CCPM
Figure 20.2: CCPM
Figure 21.1: Gamification
Figure 21.2: Gamification
Figure 22.1: Knowledge Management
Figure 22.2: Knowledge Management
Figure 23.1: Desktop Analytics
Figure 23.2: Desktop Analytics
Figure 24.1: RPA
Figure 24.2: RPA
Figure 25.1: CJA
Figure 25.2: CJA
Figure 26: Benefits of Front- and Back-Office Consolidation
Figure 27: Breaking Down the Walls Between Front and Back Office
Figure 28.1: Back-Office WFO
Figure 28.2: Back-Office WFO
Figure 29: Total Company GAAP Revenue and Market Share, First-Half 2020 vs. First-Half 2019 Comparison
Figure 30: Contact Center WFO Revenue and Market Share, First-Half 2020 vs. First-Half 2019 Comparison
Figure 31: Total Voice Recording, First-Half 2020 vs. First-Half 2019 Comparison
Figure 32: QM Applications Revenue and Market Share, First-Half 2020 vs. First-Half 2019 Comparison
Figure 33: 2021 Contact Center Suite Competitive Positioning
Figure 34.1: Company Information
Figure 34.2: Company Information
Figure 35.1: High-Level Functional Summary
Figure 35.2: High-Level Functional Summary
Figure 36.1: Security and Compliance
Figure 36.2: Security and Compliance
Figure 37.1: Integration
Figure 37.2: Integration
Figure 38.1: Dashboards, Reporting and KPIs
Figure 38.2: Dashboards, Reporting and KPIs
Figure 39: Customer Survey Rating Categories
Figure 40: Average Vendor Satisfaction Ratings, by Category
Figure 41: WFO Product Suite Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 42: Implementation Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 43: Training Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 44: Professional Services Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 45: Ongoing Service and Support Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 46: Planned Product Innovation Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 47: Responsiveness to Product Enhancement Requests Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 48: Communication Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 49: Pricing Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 50: Overall Vendor Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 51: Average WFO Suite Modules Satisfaction Ratings, by Category
Figure 52: Recording Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 53: Quality Management (QM)/Analytics-Enabled QM Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 54: WFM Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 55: Interaction (speech and text) Analytics Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 56: Surveying/VoC Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 57: Performance Management Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 58: Gamification Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 59: Desktop Analytics Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 60: Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 61: Knowledge Management Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 62: Predictive Analytics Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 63: Customer Journey Analytics Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 64: Back-Office WFO Capabilities Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 65: WFO Product Features Satisfaction Ratings, by Category
Figure 66: Digital Channel Support Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 67: Supervisor Interface and User Experience Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 68: Agent Features Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 69: Artificial intelligence Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 70: Ease of integration with Third-Party Applications Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 71: Regulatory and Compliance Features Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 72: System Security Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 73: Product Effectiveness Satisfaction Ratings, by Category
Figure 74: Omni-Channel Recording and QM Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 75: Ability to Provide Real-Time Agent Guidance Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 76: Ability to Support At-home Agents and Remote Supervisors Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 77: Level of Integration and Data Sharing Between Modules, Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 78: Flexibility to Customize Reports, Dashboards and KPIs Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 79: Ability to Administer the Entire Suite from a Centralized Environment Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 80: Ability to Support a Hybrid Workforce of Human and Virtual Agents Satisfaction Ratings, by Customer
Figure 81: What channels do you use your WFO suite to support?
Figure 82: What are the top 3 - 5 ways your WFO solution and/or vendor is helping your organization with your digital transformation?
Figure 83: Additional comments about your experience with the vendor and/or solution.
Figure 84: Enterprise Pricing for a Single-Site, 250-Seat Premise-Based Solution
Figure 85: Enterprise Pricing for a Single-Site, 250-Seat Cloud-Based WFO Solution