As the need for remote teaming and virtual service delivery continues as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, frontline staff in the public workforce system continue to explore the ways in which technology can assist them with their essential job duties on a day-to-day basis. At this unique moment, technology may be able to assist with customer-facing job duties in ways that workforce professionals have not considered or needed prior to the pandemic, which forced extensive operational changes at the local level.

One area where frontline staff may want to seek alternatives is using online scheduling services to more efficiently arrange customer appointments. Online scheduling services can eliminate much of the time-consuming back and forth via phone or email when trying to make and/or change customer appointments. This frees up staff time to focus on more customer-facing, value-added tasks.

Online appointment scheduling services are technology tools that allow customers to schedule, reschedule, and cancel appointments through a web interface, without the need for staff assistance or involvement. If applied in the public workforce system, scheduling services could allow customers to schedule appointments with their career counselors in real time, with most of these technologies offering 24/7 web access via a computer or mobile device. Scheduling services instantly update a calendar when changes are made, thereby reflecting an up-to-date calendar at all times and eliminating any confusion or hassle in scheduling appointments.

A new blog post by Heldrich Center staff members Heather Allen, Amanda Bombino, and Liana Volpe reviews the benefits of online scheduling tools and previews three potential tools that public workforce offices might want to consider. Readers should note that the Heldrich Center is not endorsing any of these proprietary products.