Navigating rising retail costs with Workforce Engagement Management: A strategic approach for the festive season

Retailers across the UK are gearing up for the busiest shopping season of the year while simultaneously contending with rising costs and regulatory changes that will take effect in April 2025. In response to the recent Budget, Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the British Retail Consortium (BRC), highlighted the sector’s growing financial pressures [1], including “over £2.3bn in increases to employer National Insurance contributions” and a “£367m hike to the National Living Wage.” With business rates and other regulatory expenses also on the rise, retailers need innovative strategies to balance these increased costs and drive growth. Workforce Engagement Management (WEM) solutions and advanced analytics tools, like Calabrio Analytics, offer practical ways to adapt and thrive in this new landscape.

The recent budget’s projected financial impact on retail emphasises the need for cost-saving measures without compromising customer experience. As Dickinson points out, retailers operate on low margins, and the “upcoming regulatory costs” could drive up prices for consumers while pressuring investments in growth and staffing. By leveraging WEM solutions, retailers can maximise the efficiency of their both the contact centre and in store workforce, strategically scheduling staff to meet demand without excessive overtime, and enhancing employee engagement to reduce turnover.

Additionally, WEM’s real-time adherence, adaptive scheduling, and training resources help retailers optimise their contact centre productivity, a critical advantage as they face “over £2.5bn in new costs in 2025.” With the rising expenses tied to National Insurance and wages, effective WEM practices can also improve labour forecasting and optimise staffing, reducing unnecessary costs while maintaining high service standards.

Speech analytics can further alleviate the financial burden of rising costs by providing actionable insights from customer conversations. By identifying recurring issues, sentiment, and friction points, retailers can address these proactively, reducing call volume and improving overall efficiency. This is particularly crucial as business rates continue to weigh disproportionately on the retail sector, which, as Dickinson noted, “as 5% of the economy, pays 21% of the total business rates bill.”

Additionally, speech analytics can help manage customer patience and detect abusive behaviour toward contact centre staff. As incidents of verbal abuse rise, speech analytics can identify keywords, change in sentiment shifts, and phrases associated with aggressive or threatening behaviour. By alerting supervisors in real-time, this tool enables faster response times and proactive support, fostering a safer environment for agents and helping to maintain morale in high-stress situations.

The festive season presents a valuable opportunity for retailers to offset some of these financial strains. However, to truly maximise festive sales, retailers must be well-prepared to handle increased demand while still delivering exceptional service. Calabrio Analytics equips retailers with the data insights they need to make real-time, customer-centric decisions.

By analysing customer interactions across calls, email, chat, and social media, Calabrio Analytics can reveal trending products, frequently asked questions, and potential pain points, enabling retailers to respond more effectively to customer needs. For example, if numerous customers enquire about specific products or express concerns over delivery times, retailers can proactively address these areas, enhancing customer satisfaction and driving more sales.

By categorising interactions, within Calabrio it helps support smarter scheduling as Planners can understand the key contact drivers during peak periods analytics within Calabrio’s platform also supports smarter scheduling during peak periods, helping retailers allocate resources more effectively and meet seasonal demand without overstretching their workforce. As retailers face the dual challenge of increased costs and high customer expectations, Calabrio Analytics provides a powerful tool to optimise operations and ensure a seamless customer experience.

The coming year will undoubtedly be challenging for retailers, with regulatory changes and cost increases set to impact margins and profitability. However, with tools like Calabrio ONE, retailers can make data-informed decisions that reduce inefficiencies, improve security, and enhance customer service.

By balancing the pressures of rising costs with smarter operations, retailers can use this festive season not only as an opportunity for immediate growth but also as a test bed for strategies that will serve them well into 2025 and beyond. Embracing these technologies allows retailers to stay resilient, drive loyalty, and turn challenges into a roadmap for success in the coming year. To find out how Calabrio can help you navigate and prepare your contact centre amid economic pressure, book a Calabrio ONE demo for Retail today.