Articles - Shift Patterns

Choosing the right shift patterns can make all the difference in balancing customer service levels with employee wellbeing. This section features expert guidance, real examples, and scheduling strategies to help you plan shift patterns that work for both your operation and your people. Explore approaches like rotating rosters, flexible hours, and part-time structures, along with tips for managing fairness, fatigue, and work-life balance. With insights from experienced planners and contact centre leaders, these resources will help you build smarter, more sustainable schedules that keep performance and morale high.

Illustration of a computer with person on laptop and calendar and checklists
Top Tips for Digital Channels – Forecasting and Scheduling
Video Image: Why You Shouldn’t Make Assumptions About Unsociable Hours
Why You Shouldn’t Make Assumptions About Unsociable Hours
Video Image: The Benefits of Switching Up Your Agents’ Day
The Benefits of Switching Up Your Agents’ Day
Video Image: The Hidden Cost of Poor Scheduling
The Hidden Cost of Poor Scheduling
The words flexible working being shown as paper ripped away
Is Flexible Working a Dying Perk in the Contact Centre?
Shaping the Future: 2026 Priorities for WFM Professionals
Shaping the Future: 2026 Priorities for WFM Professionals
Scheduling concept with calendar
6 Proven Ways to Refine Your Scheduling
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Are Non-Scheduled Agents the Answer to Seasonal Peaks?
A colourful month of calendar dates with a few red pins stuck in various dates
How to Keep Agents on Side When You Change Their Shift Patterns
Video Image: The Evolution of WFM From Spreadsheets to Self-Service
The Evolution of WFM From Spreadsheets to Self-Service
Building Flexibility into the Schedule using Banked Hours
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Shift Planning – What You Need to Know to Best Engage Your Team
4 or 5 day work week blocks
Productivity Hack – A 4-Day Working Week
9 Lessons From the Connect Assist Contact Centre
Six Steps to Implement Annualised Hours in the Contact Centre
12 Ways to Become a Contact Centre Employer of Choice
Build a Parent-Friendly Contact Centre
Three Hour glass showing different levels of sand
How to optimise part time working in the call centre
2022 What Contact Centres Are Doing Right Now Shift Patterns Graph Cover
Which Shifts Are Contact Centres Using?
Calendar and alarm clock on yellow background - schedules concept
9 Clever Ways to Improve Agent Schedules
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12 PAWesome Ideas From the ManyPets Contact Centre
The Contact Centre Hierarchy of Needs
Call and Contact Centre Questions: Sample Schedule for 24×5 Help Desk
Sample Schedule for 24×5 Help Desk
How Far in Advance Should You Publish Your Contact Centre Shifts?