Sanish Mondkar, founder and CEO of Legion Technologies and Traci Chernoff, Senior Director of Employee Engagement at Legion Technologies, discussed how to maximize labor efficiency and employee engagement simultaneously. They emphasized that the key to doing so is automation. Automating the complex process of workforce management can guarantee consistent results. Additionally, by optimizing schedules for labor costs and compliance, schedules can also be optimized for employee preferences, which can increase labor efficiency and ensure that employees are satisfied. These preferences include flexible hours, communication tools that help employees do a better job, and financial wellness. Sanish and Traci also highlighted that, since Legion's founding seven years ago, they have conducted an hourly workforce survey every year. The survey found that employees consistently want flexible schedules that meet their preferences, which can be a simple but powerful way to improve employee retention.

Sanish outlined five key tenets to consider when thinking about automation: cost management, automated decision making, automated execution, self-learning, and trust through transparency. 

Traci touched upon the importance of human-centrism in technology development, which can drive employee engagement and make hourly jobs more fulfilling. She also discussed the reasons why Legion's tool is vital for increasing productivity, profitability and risk mitigation in the retail industry. She explained that hourly workers, who make up a majority of working Americans, need flexibility and predictability in scheduling to be engaged and meet the demands of their jobs.