Jim Simmons on Benchmarking and the Roundtable Model

Jim Simmons recently joined Auriemma Roundtables as a Director, where he leads several peer forums, including the Workforce Management Roundtable. Jim brings firsthand experience to the role, having previously participated in the Roundtable as a member responsible for workforce management strategy within his own organization. That background gives him a practical understanding of the challenges workforce leaders face, and the type of benchmarking, peer dialogue, and operational insight that makes the Roundtable model valuable.

Jim reflects on what he was looking for when he first joined the Workforce Management Roundtable, the insights that stood out early on, and how his experience as a member now shapes the way he guides discussions as a Director.

Q: Before joining the Workforce Management Roundtable, what types of workforce management questions or performance benchmarks were you and your team looking to better understand?

When I first joined the Roundtable, our team was trying to get a clearer picture of how other organizations were approaching workforce management in a rapidly changing environment. We were especially interested in software usage, including what platforms others were using for forecasting, scheduling, and automation. At the time, there were a number of disruptors entering the capacity planning and automation space, and we wanted to understand which tools were actually gaining traction in the industry.

We were also focused on best practices around performance measurement and operational flexibility. Contact volumes were becoming more dynamic, work types were becoming more diverse, and the traditional ways of measuring agent performance didn’t always reflect the reality of the work. We wanted to learn how peers were measuring productivity, how they handled variability in volume, and how they structured their workforce models to deal with a wider range of tasks.

Q: What initially attracted you to the Auriemma Roundtables model — particularly the benchmarking and peer data — compared with traditional conferences or industry groups?

The biggest difference was the ability to deal directly with peers who were facing the same challenges. There wasn’t a lot of guesswork, and there wasn’t a need to interpret what a vendor or presenter thought the industry was doing. You could ask a question and hear directly from people who were actually responsible for the work.

Another thing that stood out was that it wasn’t a sales conference. The purpose of the meeting was to inform and share, not to walk through booths or sit through product pitches. The discussions stayed focused on the process, the metrics, and the decisions we all had to make. That made the time much more useful.

Q: During your first few meetings, what benchmarking insights or performance comparisons stood out to you the most?

One of the biggest takeaways early on was realizing that we were not alone in the problems we were facing. When you’re inside your own organization, it’s easy to think that certain issues are unique to you. Seeing the benchmarking data and hearing from other members made it clear that most companies were dealing with many of the same challenges.

There was also a very practical impact. In one case, we learned that a metric we had been spending a lot of time trying to fix was actually very much in line with industry norms. We had treated it as a major problem, but the benchmarking showed that it really wasn’t the outlier we thought it was. That allowed us to shift our focus to areas where improvement would make a bigger difference.

Q: Can you share an example of a benchmark, metric, or operational practice discussed in the roundtable that prompted a change within your organization?

Attrition was a big one. Like most organizations in the space, we were dealing with ongoing turnover and trying to find ways to reduce it while still maintaining performance. Through the Roundtable discussions, we were able to hear what others were doing and what had actually worked for them.

That gave us both ideas and validation. In some cases, we adopted approaches that peers had already tested. In other cases, the conversations confirmed that the direction we were considering made sense. Either way, having that peer input helped us make more confident decisions and focus on changes that could improve retention and the overall employee experience.

Q: How did having access to peer data and candid benchmarking conversations influence the way you evaluated your team’s performance and priorities internally?

It had a significant impact. When you have real benchmarking data, you’re not relying only on internal history or assumptions. You can see where you stand relative to the market, and that changes how you think about priorities.

In some cases, the data showed that we were performing well within industry ranges, which meant we didn’t need to push as hard in those areas. In other cases, the comparisons showed that we needed to look more closely at our processes to stay competitive. The benchmarking helped us make better decisions about where to spend time and resources.

Q: Now that you’re a Director at Auriemma Roundtables, how does your experience as a member shape the way you use benchmarking data to guide discussions and surface insights for participants?

My experience as a member shapes everything I do as a Director. I’m always thinking about what would have been useful to me when I was sitting on the other side of the table. When we prepare benchmarking, plan agendas, or guide discussions, I try to look at it through that lens — what questions would I have wanted answered, and what information would have helped me make better decisions?

Because I’ve been in that role, I know how valuable it is when the conversation stays practical and grounded in real experience. My goal is to make sure members leave with insights they can actually use, not just ideas that sound good in theory.

Interested in the Workforce Management Roundtable?
To learn more about participation, benchmarking, or upcoming meetings, contact Barry Lynch at Auriemma Roundtables to start the conversation.