Call Center Management Featured Article
What Performance Metrics Should Call Center Management Use?
In the contact center space, the focus is consistently on performance. The challenge is often knowing what to look for and what to measure. For instance, you may be measuring call abandon rates, but what kind of information are you hoping to gather in the process? This rate really only tells you so much about performance overall.
Before you measure one more metric in your contact center, it might be a good idea for call center management to take a step back and define what exactly they need to know. With the information being collected right now, what does it actually tell you? Does it demonstrate where agents are performing well and hitting targets? Does it identify weaknesses in processes and allow you to make changes? Does it point to areas where customers are unsatisfied and opportunities to shore up customer care initiatives?
Monet Software recently explored this topic, pointing to the importance of knowing where to start when it comes to collecting contact center metrics. If you’ve recently implemented an automated system, you’re even more prone to collecting more information that you currently have places to put it. Actionable intelligence is a valued asset – when you know what you’re collecting and why.
To that end, let’s take a look at what Monet Software suggests you collect. First, look at agent adherence. This report allows you to measure whether or not your forecast is accurate and that the schedule is designed according to your needs. If agents deviate too much from the schedule, service levels can suffer and costs can increase. Use this information to understand the accuracy of your processes.
Call center management should also be looking at agent status. Are agent total times being accumulated properly or are you identifying problems with unscheduled breaks, longer lunches or too much time spent doing things outside of the call? Also examined hours worked for each agent to gain insight into assigned activities. This metric allows you to identify whether or not the agent is working at optimal productivity.
Finally, examine overall coverage for staffing purposes. You don’t want spikes in abandoned calls – something you’ll look for in tracking this metric. If you’re seeing this happen, dig deeper into staff coverage. Inaccurate forecasts, adherence issues and shift patterns can all contribute to these spikes and they’re all avoidable.
While there are several other things call center management can look for in performance metrics, examining these specifics can help you identify problems with current staff activities. Once these problems are eliminated, you’ll be better equipped to use additional metrics for improved performance.
Edited by Stefania Viscusi