The Queuing Theory [LU]

This was a response to a classmates post regarding the queuing theory...

I am a very analytical person and any mathematical/analytical theory is interesting to me. The queuing theory is no exception. On top of that, I have worked in a couple of call center environments where this is of vital importance. You make a great point about understanding more than just the foundation of the theory. For instance, to make it an effective learning tool – one needs to know more than if customers have to wait for a certain amount of time they will hang up, which leads to reduction in productivity and sales, which leads to loss of business, which leads to ex-employees!

I was never a manager at either of these two jobs, so I am not sure how much the management really understood or utilized the theory. However, being an employee in those situations I know that 99% of the employees do not fully understand the why’s and how’s surrounding it. What I mean is that as an employee it was always drilled into our heads that we needed to provide great customer service but in a shorter amount of time. Most of the employees resented this part of their jobs. “How was this possible,” we thought. How are we supposed to provide excellent customer service, make a connection with the customer, and then have them off the phone within 1 minute and 15 seconds? While I was always fast on the phone this seemed an unattainable goal in most circumstances.

Additionally, most companies have key performance indicators and if you didn’t consistently meet these often lofty goals, your job was in jeopardy. So, in many cases the workers viewed the time goals as the most important, most often at the expense of customer service and connection. I believe the reason for this is because the queue goal was much more immediate and personal to the individual, whereas the loss of customers due to poor customer service was a community affect. Many employees in this situation will look out for themselves first and the company second. This is an unfortunate reality.

I think managers should use the queuing theory to not only map a plan of action for what is best for the business and the customers, but to also find a pathway to achieve such goals while keeping the employees attitude healthy as well. There is a lot of turn-over at any call center really and I personally believe that this is due, in part, to perceived impossibility on the part of the employees.

So that being said, while I believe the queuing theory is vital and necessary, I often question if it even gets used correctly. I say that in many cases it is not being used to its full potential and this in-turn makes it somewhat counter-productive.