Anyone who's ever worked in a contact center knows what real workplace stress feels like. Frustrated customers, endless call queues, rigid schedules, etc. It all rolls downhill. And when the hill gets too steep, stress quickly accelerates into burnout and attrition.
We usually focus on potential burnout among front-line workers, and for obviously good reasons. But stress can also trickle down from supervisors, whose job it is to keep all those front-line workers focused and productive. And if customer-facing employees are being squeezed from both sides, how can they deliver positive customer experiences?
Earlier in my career, I worked in contact centers as a customer-facing agent and later as a front-line supervisor. Being an agent was demanding, but being a supervisor was the hardest job I've ever had. I'd say it was harder than my current executive role, which comes with more stress, but at least I have some control over my work and my schedule.
Be an Emotional Anchor.
Supervisors are the emotional anchor of customer service teams. They carry their own workloads, and they also manage the stress of all the agents under them. Supervisors coach, triage, motivate, de-escalate, all in real time and with very little control over how the day or the workload unfolds.
I remember days when half my team had their hands raised for help at any given moment, while customers waited on hold. Pre-established plans don't matter in those moments. Responsiveness does.
The pressure to keep my own cool was immense. Because when pressure trickles down from above, agents struggle to maintain empathy and composure during tough customer interactions. Over time, service quality slips, morale falls, and customer loyalty erodes.
Create Space for Empathy.
During my time as a supervisor, I developed a habit of throwing Clear the Queue Parties. When incoming volume got overwhelming, I'd walk the floor with snacks, refill water, and high-five agents as they closed calls. It wasn't about solving the queue. It was about managing the energy. My team finished those days tired, but still smiling. Why? Because I absorbed some of their stress rather than passing them mine. I didn't have the technology we now have to help me. I just had snacks and stamina.
Today, we can give team leaders better tools that anticipate stress, take non-critical tasks off their plates, and free up space for human leadership. That space is where empathy lives. And empathy is what sets resilient operations apart.
Use Responsive Technology.
Even the strongest leaders can't sustain consistency and empathy when they're forced to work under reactive, manual conditions. The right technology can make all the difference, not by replacing workers but by helping them.
Most technologies commonly used in contact centers gather data. But truly impactful technologies also interpret it. And more important, they act on data automatically and in the moment. Because when queues are spiking and your team is underwater, there's no time to dig through dashboards. They need support NOW.
At Intradiem, we call this dynamic workforce orchestration. Unlike traditional workforce optimization tools that stop at analysis, our solutions connect real-time insights with real-time action. They monitor variables like incoming call volume, staffing gaps, and schedule adherence, then automatically make decisions and take action to maintain high performance levels and prevent employees from becoming overwhelmed.
This approach doesn't just indicate that something is wrong; it acts immediately to fix what's wrong. Depending on the circumstances, that might mean reassigning tasks to other team members, delaying non-urgent work, or offering fatigued employees an unscheduled break or a quick one-on-one with a supervisor to regain focus.
Critically, this approach avoids piling on more alerts or instructions for how to deal with the problem at hand. Too often, organizations deploy tools to solve theoretical problems without considering the people who use them. A real-time solution that floods a supervisor with alerts but offers no capacity to act doesn't solve burnout. It accelerates it.
Orchestrate.
Orchestration involves people and automation working in harmony, moment by moment; taking on unique challenges as they arise; analyzing and addressing them without adding to the burden or stress of doing so; recognizing the critical role of technology, but using it in a people-first context. We're talking about customer service, after all. Automation can accelerate and sharpen our responses; but only a human being can say, "Are you OK?"
When managers are equipped with real-time tools and trained to recognize emotional cues, they can lead proactively instead of firefighting. And that changes everything. Agents feel seen, supported, and safe. Customers feel the difference, too.
Effective workforce orchestration means designing with empathy. Technology must simplify, not add complexity. It must relieve pressure, not transfer it. Burnout sometimes starts at the top, but so does resilience. When leaders model calm, empathy, and adaptability, their teams mirror it. When they react with panic, their teams inherit that stress. The emotional tone of the contact center is set upstream. And it flows all the way to the customer.
Customer experience doesn't start with a product or a script. It starts with the people who serve your customers. And if those people are burnt out, your CX strategy is already broken. Dynamic workforce orchestration gives leaders the space and clarity to show up for their teams, even during the most challenging shifts.
To protect your customer-facing employees, remember the importance of supporting their supervisors. Remember that burnout doesn't always bubble up from below. With the right leadership and the right technology, we can stop burnout no matter where it begins.
Jennifer Lee is president and co-CEO of Intradiem.