Senior Manager, Workforce Planning

Senior Manager, Workforce Management (Community Support)

About

Airbnb was founded in 2007 and has grown to host millions of guests worldwide. The Community Support organization handles tens of millions of interactions yearly, engaging with customers across various channels to resolve issues related to cancellations, account issues, refunds, payments, reservations, and more. This role is crucial for maximizing efficiency and enhancing customer interaction quality within Community Support.

Responsibilities

• Workforce Scheduling & Capacity Planning: Oversee the creation and management of employee schedules to match forecasted demand, ensuring optimal resource allocation and minimizing under- and over-staffing. Coordinate with operations to adjust schedules based on real-time demand and unforeseen events. Optimize labor costs while maintaining service quality through strategically leveraging staffing levers. Track and control shrinkage categories and ensure tight monitoring over overtime, absenteeism, and other factors that impact labor costs.
• Service Level Management: Partner with the real-time management team to monitor call volumes and agent availability, making on-the-fly adjustments to maintain service levels. Design and implement contingency plans during peak times or unexpected increases in volume. Communicate with operations leaders to address staffing issues and find solutions to mitigate risks.
• Performance Analysis & Reporting: Analyze performance data to identify trends, inefficiencies, and areas for improvement. Report on key workforce metrics such as occupancy, adherence, shrinkage, and service levels. Provide insights and recommendations to senior management based on workforce data analysis.
• Leadership & Team Development: Lead and mentor a workforce operations team, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and accountability. Ensure that the team is trained and utilizing the latest WFM practices and technologies.
• Collaboration & Stakeholder Management: Engage and partner with external vendors and partners to optimize workforce management solutions. Serve as a liaison between the workforce operations team and contact center management to ensure that workforce strategies support operational goals. Collaborate with other departments, such as HR, Operations, and Product, to ensure that workforce operations align with broader business strategies.

Requirements

• 10+ years experience in workforce management, business operations or operations management roles supporting global contact center operations, with proven experience leading and developing a WFM team.
• Deep functional domain expertise and knowledge in contact center operations and best practices with a comprehensive understanding of employee scheduling and process optimization.
• In-depth knowledge and expertise in WFM software and tools (e.g., Aspect, NICE, Verint) is essential with an understanding of industry best practices. Must be committed to learning emerging technologies in contact centers.
• Experience with short-range forecasting, scheduling, interval management, real-time adherence, provisioning, and reporting is required.
• Experience working in or closely with contact center operations with a deep understanding of the dynamics of customer service, contact volume fluctuations, and the impact of workforce management on service levels is key.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with a proven track record for using data to drive key business decisions. Must have the ability to interpret complex data and make informed decisions based on forecasts and real-time data.
• Strong project management skills, including the ability to manage multiple initiatives simultaneously.
• Exceptional leadership skills with the ability to build and lead a high-performing team. Must be able to provide leadership, empowerment, and motivation across teams and peers.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills with the ability to effectively interact with senior management, frontline staff, and various other CS teams.