The holiday season may be jolly and bright for customers, but not for call centers. With higher call volumes, longer hours, and urgent service needs, many employers struggle to balance meeting customer expectations while protecting contact center agents’ well-being.
Effective holiday contact center staffing requires more than just filling seats. It’s about hiring the right people, onboarding them fast, and ensuring seasonal demands don’t burn the team out in the process.
Why Call Centers Struggle During the Holidays
Holiday hiring can be more challenging than usual. Aside from the elevated customer support requirement, contact centers also need to compete for hiring top professionals.
Job seekers are no exception. Customer inquiries usually skyrocket during holidays in terms of sales, shipping cutoffs, or item returns. According to Brightmetrics, the average call volume increases by 41 percent during Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday.¹ Without proper staffing, companies could easily drown in the increased demand.
This leaves existing employees vulnerable to pressure and burnout. When employees are stretched thin, they commit more mistakes and become more impatient. Customer satisfaction can drop, and some employees might even leave, creating a toxic cycle of rehiring new employees and improving engagement. That’s why companies need strategies to meet the demand during peak seasons.
The Staffing Equation: Service Quality vs. Burnout
Striking the right balance between keeping service levels and employee morale is crucial. Companies can’t excel if they choose between speed and accuracy. According to Toister Solutions’ report, 59 percent of call center employees are facing burnout risks.² This highlights how widespread agent fatigue is in the industry.
Unfortunately, companies often hire unqualified candidates just to fill positions quickly. While this can solve the immediate problem, unprepared agents may take longer to train. They also rely heavily on their supervisors or might quit mid-season, which affects customer experience and increases the workload for the remaining staff.
On the other hand, when you prioritize well-being—through fair scheduling, recognition, and manageable workloads—you support employee growth and increase the chance of getting the same individuals when you hire seasonal workers in the future, reducing future recruiting costs. In fact, the American Psychological Association reports that 92 percent of workers look for organizations that value their emotional and psychological health.³
5 Smart Strategies for Holiday Call Center Staffing
Seasonal agents often form lasting opinions of the companies they work for. If their experience is negative, they are unlikely to return or recommend the company to others. On the other hand, a positive seasonal experience can strengthen your employer brand.
By combining early planning, efficient recruitment, and employee engagement, call centers can turn holiday chaos into an opportunity to strengthen both customer relationships and workforce loyalty.
1. Plan Early and Forecast Demand
The best holiday staffing plans start months in advance. Reviewing call data from previous years allows you to anticipate spikes and how many agents you’ll need. To strengthen your forecast, consider marketing campaigns, product launches, or shipping cutoffs that may drive higher customer inquiries. Starting early allows you to build a larger candidate pool and avoid last-minute hires.
2. Use High-Volume Hiring Solutions
Recruiting dozens—or even hundreds—of seasonal agents requires a streamlined process. Traditional hiring solutions may be too slow to accommodate this demand. Instead, automate your process.
- Posting jobs
- Pre-screening candidates
- Scheduling interviews
This helps reduce administrative tasks and allows your teams to focus on identifying the best candidate. Efficient hiring means filling positions quickly without sacrificing quality.
3. Speed Up Onboarding
Onboarding must be quick yet thorough. You can use a combination of digital training modules and shadowing to reduce ramp-up time. This allows employees to review at their own pace while learning through observing their peers. As a result, your new hires can avoid errors. It also helps seasoned employees feel supported, as they share the workload together.
4. Focus on Employee Engagement
Don’t just focus on the numbers during peak seasons. Treat seasonal workers fairly, the same way you would treat permanent workers. This doesn’t have to be grand. Through simple ways, you show appreciation and increase commitment.
- Recognize workers during team meetings, in collaboration channels, or by approaching them personally.
- Offer flexible and fair schedules. Avoid showing favoritism toward other employees, especially permanent ones.
- Create small incentives like gift cards or lunch treats.
When employees feel valued, they become more motivated to excel in their work, even during stressful peak periods.
5. Offer Long-Term Development Opportunities
Offering professional development, mentorship from senior agents, or permanent offers to top seasonal workers can transform a short-term role into a lasting relationship. Companies that value both seasonal and permanent staff gain an edge in future hiring cycles, making it easier to attract talent when demand spikes again.
The Role of Technology in Seasonal Staffing
Technology makes a huge difference in helping call centers scale for the holidays without overwhelming managers.
- Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) – An ATS screens and ranks resumes by skills and experience, helping recruiters focus on top candidates instead of sorting through hundreds manually.
- Scheduling Tools – Scheduling tools balance workloads by considering availability, shift preferences, and call volumes, helping prevent overtime and reduce burnout.
- Digital Onboarding Platforms – Digital onboarding lets new hires complete forms online and access interactive training, helping agents become productive faster when time is tight.
Meet the holiday demand with Masis Staffing.
Masis delivers more than just workers. We provide ready-to-perform customer service professionals who are trained, reliable, and motivated. With expertise in seasonal customer service staffing, we can help your business scale quickly without affecting quality.
We understand how call centers work and the kind of individuals that excel in the industry, allowing us to ensure service quality even during peak seasons. Give us a call, and we’ll gladly answer your questions!
References
- “Managing High Call Volumes During the Holidays.” Brightmetrics, 4 Nov. 2022, https://brightmetrics.com/blog/call-volumes-during-the-holidays/
- “Contact Center Agent Burnout.” Toister Solutions, https://www.toistersolutions.com/burnout. 21 Aug. 2025.
- “2023 Work in America™ Survey.” American Psychological Association, 2023, https://www.apa.org/pubs/reports/work-in-america/2023-workplace-health-well-being
