CALL CENTER

ESSENTIALS
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT BEST PRACTICES

PART 1
CALL CENTER BEST PRACTICES
PART 1
This  session  explores  key  performance  indicators,  how  they  differ  from  supporting  metrics,  and  how  to  select  KPIs  
that  meet  the  different  information  needs  of  executives,  management  and  agents  in  order  to  facilitate  good  decision  
making.  Also  learn  how  the  way  in  which  metrics  are  measured  –  the  system  formulas  or  custom  calculations  used  –  
can  impact  how  they  should  be  interpreted.    
 
Strategy  
•  Who  are  we?  Why  are  we  here?  What  do  we  do?  
•  What  is  important  to  us  and  our  customers?  

Metrics
•  Key  Performance  Indicators  versus  secondary  metrics
•  What  to  measure?  
•  Information  Customers:  Who  gets  what?  
•  Is  “industry  standard”  right  for  you?  
 

Measurement  Methods:  
•  How  to  measure  KPIs  and  metrics
•  System-­‐‑available  formulas  versus  custom  calculations
 
CORE COMPONENTS

Strategy

Roles  &   Metrics

Responsibilities

Performance  
Management

Supporting  
Processes Measures

Objectives
BENEFITS OF A PERFORMANCE
MANAGEMENT FRAMEWORK
ü  Removes  the  guesswork  from  your  daily  job.  
ü  Focuses  everyone  on  clear,  common  and  relevant  goals.
ü  Promotes  team  success  rather  than  individual  competition.
ü  Acknowledges  and  accommodates  individual  differences.
ü  A  formal  program  gives  credibility  to  management  
processes.
ü  Creates  consistency  across  the  organization.
ü  Builds  trust  and  ownership.
ü  Upholds  the  rights  of  all  team  members.
ü  Promotes  enthusiasm  in  a  dynamic,  cooperative  work  
environment.
STRATEGY
Your  strategic  plan  should  consider  four  key  view  points
Customers
Agents
Call  Center  Managers
Organization
Mission  Statement
helps  define  and  align  strategies
focuses  discussions
aids  in  decision  making
should  be  short  and  snappy,  easy  to  understand,    
meaningful  and  lasting
 MY STRATEGY
Write  your  vision  statement:  
A  vision  statement  demonstrates  what  you  represent  and  aspire  to  in  the  future.    
Why  are  we  here?  

_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________

Write  your  mission  statement:  
A  mission  statement  succinctly  identifies  the  end  result  of  your  efforts  and  ensures  
that  work  and  planning  support  the  vision.  It’s  a  reminder  to  employees  of  what  
you’re  all  about.  “What  do  we  do?”

_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________

TRANSLATING STRATEGIC GOALS INTO
OPERATIONAL ACTIONS

Key  Metrics
•  What  will  we  measure?  What  metrics  will  directly  link  our  efforts  to  the  overall  
goals?
Measurement  methods  
•  How  will  we  measure  our  performance  against  the  chosen  metrics?
Objectives
•  What  will  our  targets  be  for  each  selected  metric,  both  for  Key  Performance  
Indicators,  and  Secondary  Indicators?
Supporting  Processes  
•  How  will  we  make  sure  that  we  continue  to  contribute  and  succeed?
•  What  do  we  need  to  do  to  measure  performance  and  meet  the  objectives?
Actions:  Specific  Roles  &  Responsibilities
•  Who  does  what?  What  are  the  expectations  of  each  member  of  each  team?
METRICS
What should we measure?
What indicators will directly reflect our efforts for the mission?


SELECTING METRICS
Service  Level Employee  Retention

Customer  Satisfaction
Handle  Time

Forecast  accuracy

Variance

Calls  per  hour

Conversion  Rate

Speed  of  Answer

Quality  Score

Schedule  Adherence
Abandon  Rate

First  Call  Resolution

Cost  per  Contact
Occupancy

Error  Rate  or  Rework
Blockage

METRICS IN CONTEXT
Stakeholder
Performance  Area

Customer

Business   Productivity  
Business Performance &  Efficiency

Team

CSAT/ESAT Quality

Agent

Choose  KPIs  and  metrics  for  each  Performance  Area  that  

reflect  or  respect  the  needs  of  all  Stakeholders.  
METRICS IN CONTEXT
Business  Performance Staffing  Performance
Customer  Satisfaction Occupancy
Efficiency  Measures
Employee  Retention/Sat WFM  Accuracy
Service  Level  
Cost/Revenue Group  roll-­‐‑up  of  agent  
Speed  of  Answer measures
First  Call  Resolution
Technical  Performance Agent  Performance
Call  blockage Quality  score
Transaction  Measures
System/network   Calls  per  hour
response  and  latency Conversion/Sales  Rate
Schedule  Adherence
Interface  ease  of  use Customer  Retention/
Save  Rate   Availability
Record  Keeping
 MY METRICS
Productivity Quality

calls  per  hour quality  score

abandon  rate service  level

handle  time first  call  resolution

CSAT/ESAT Business  Performance

Customer  Satisfaction  Score conversion  rate

Employee  Satisfaction  Score revenue/cost  per  contact

Net  Promoter  Score forecast  accuracy

 Complete  for  metrics  you  currently  use.

MY METRICS
Metric What  does  it  tell  us? Why  is  it  right  for  us?  
How  does  it  support  the  
mission  &  strategic  goals?
e.g.  Service   Proportion  of  calls  we  are  treating   Consistent  and  timely  response  
Level within  our  target  time.   to  customer  calls    =  improved  
Quality  of  service  in  speed  of   customer  satisfaction.
response.  Accuracy  of  WFM  plans.
HOW TO VALIDATE KPIS
Go  back  to  the  top.
Consult  the  mission  and  vision  statements….often
Consult  with  upper  management  and  executive  suite  on  
strategic  goals  and  direction.  
Most  strategic  goals  boil  down  to  specific,  measurable  actions.
Is  it  truly  a  Key  Performance  Indicator  or  a  secondary  indicator  
or  supporting  metric?  

Ask the questions:

Why should we measure this?

What does it mean to us?

What does it mean to our customers?

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR OR
SUPPORTING METRIC?
E.g.  Agent  Productivity

KPI True  calls  

per  hour

Tier  2  metrics Handle  Time

Schedule  
Adherence Availability

Tier  3  metrics Talk  Time

Post-­‐‑call  
work
Non-­‐‑contact  
work
Sign-­‐‑on  
hours
 Complete  for  metrics  you  currently  use.

MY METRICS
Metric What  performance  area   Is  it  a  KPI  or  
does  it  reflect? supporting  metric?
e.g.  True  calls   Agent  productivity/efficiency KPI,  influenced  by  Handle  Time,  
per  hour Schedule  Adherence  and  
Availability  
INFORMATION CUSTOMERS:
“WHAT DOES THIS MEAN TO ME?”
Whose What  are  they  concerned  about? Key  Performance  Indicator  
Perspective? or  Secondary

Agent 1.  Am  I  providing  quality  service  according  to  our  team’s    1.    Quality  scores
documented  quality  definitions?  
2.  %  of  my  shift  I  am  expected  to  be  logged  on  and  available  for    2.    %Availability
or  performing  work.  3.    KPI:  True  Calls/Hour
3.  Length  of  time  I  spend  on  each  call.            2nd:  Average  Handle  Time
4.  Am  I  following  procedures  for  classifying  work?  4.    Use  of  Activity/NR  Codes

Supervisor/   1.  %  of  time  agents  are  logged  in  and  available  for  or  performing   1.      %Availability  
Shift  Leader work.
2.  Real-­‐‑time:  do  we  have  enough  staff  on  to  answer  the  call   2.      %Service  Level
volumes?            %Forecast  Accuracy
3.  Overall  productivity  or  use  of  resources  (too  high  risks   3.        Schedule  Adherence  
turnover,  too  low  is  inefficient)            %Occupancy

Manager 1.  Set  team  goals  and  assist  staff  in  seging  personal  goals 1.  Continuous
2.  What  proportion  of  staff  time  is  spent  on  non-­‐‑productive   2.  Not  Ready  %  
activities?  What  are  the  impacts  on  productivity  &  staffing? KPI  %SL  &  ASA
3.  Why  are  people  calling?  Do  we  have  the  right  skills? 3.  Activity  Code  %

Senior 1.  Set  dept.  goals  and  assist  staff  in  seging  personal  goals 1.         Quality
Management 2.  Meeting  overall  operational  requirements  based  on   2.         Cost
Team organizational  mission  and  goals. 3.         Productivity
BEWARE THE BUZZ ABOUT
“INDUSTRY STANDARD” METRICS
E.g.  First  Call  Resolution  (FCR)  does  not  work  for  everyone:  
•  Hospital  bed/transfer  booking
•  Field  technicians/Dispatch
•  Sales  support
•  Travel  agent
•  Advanced  tech  support

Ask the questions:

Why should we measure this?

What is it really telling us?

Do we know it’s important to our customers,

or are we making an assumption?
COMMON PRACTICE
VERSUS BEST PRACTICE
•  Take  advice  with  a  grain  of  salt.
•  Do  your  homework,  but  be  prepared  to  reject  industry  
standards.
•  Make  sure  metrics  represent  actions  that  support  strategic  
goals  in  your  organization.

MEASUREMENTS
How should we measure?
What data sources and calculations will most accurately measure
our key performance indicators and supporting metrics?

•  Data  sources
•  ACD,  IVR,  WFM,  QM,  CRM,  manual/spreadsheets
•  Calculations  (system  and  custom)
•  E.g.  how  is  Service  Level  calculated  in  your  system?
•  Does  the  standard  formula  make  sense  for  us?
•  Available  tools  and  technology
•  Reporting  options:  
•  standard  reports  from  various  systems  
•  export  and  manipulate  in  Excel
•  custom  reports
•  integrated  data  management  
CUSTOM FORMULA
1.  Service Level = {(Total calls answered within threshold +calls
abandoned within threshold)/(total calls answered + total calls
abandoned)} * 100%
2.  Service Level = (Total calls answered within threshold) / (Total calls
answered)*100%
3.  Service Level = (Total calls answered within threshold) / (Total calls
answered + Total calls abandoned)*100%
4.  Service Level = (Total calls answered within threshold) / (Total calls
answered + Total calls abandoned after threshold)*100%
5.  Service Level = Total calls answered/(total calls offered - calls
abandoned within 6 seconds)
6.  Service Level = Calls answered within 20 seconds/(total calls
answered + calls abandoned after 20 seconds)
MORE THAN A NUMBER

Variance       Percentage         Average         Trend

These  are  all  modifications  to  the  raw  data  that  apply  some  context  
and  can  bring  the  picture  into  beder  focus.
 

Which  is  more  meaningful:

Metric Raw  number With  context  

Handle  Time 00:03:45  per  call Variance:  8%  below  target

Not  Ready 02:04:50  per  day Percentage:  26%  of  login  time
Calls  handled 125  per  day Average:  25  per  busy  hour
Abandon  rate 4.2%  for  the  day Trend:  down  1.2%  month-­‐‑to-­‐‑date
KPI MEASUREMENTS
TEAM & MANAGEMENT PERFORMANCE
Cost  per  Call
Service  Level
Efficiency  Measure

Formula:  
%Service  Level  =
Quality   [{(CallsAnswered  +  CallsAbandoned)  –
Scores
(CallsAnsweredAftThreshold  +
CallsAbandonedAftThreshold)}  /  (CallsAnswered
+  CallsAbandoned)]  *  100

E.g.  Objective:  at  least  80%  (on  threshold  of  20  seconds)
SL  &  ASA
Example:
Time CallsAnsw Ans>20sec CallsAban Aban>20sec
9:00-­‐‑930  100    12 25 10

Target  
Forecast  &   %SL  =  [{(100+25)  –  (12+10)  }/  (100+25)]  *  100  =  82.4% Achieved!
Staffing  
Accuracy
THINK ABOUT THIS…


In  the  calculation  for  %Service  Level:  

%Service  Level  =  
   [{(CallsAnswered  +  CallsAbandoned)  -­‐‑(CallsAnsweredAftThreshold  
+CallsAbandonedAftThreshold)}  /  (CallsAnswered  +  CallsAbandoned)]  
*  100
   
should  it  include  call  results  other  than  Answered  or  Abandoned  
(i.e.  opted  out  to  voicemail  or  otherwise  terminated,  with  
Calls  Offered  as  the  denominator)?  
KPI MEASUREMENTS
TEAM & MANAGEMENT PERFORMANCE
Cost  per  Call

Forecasting  Accuracy
Effectiveness  Measure  (WFM)

Formula:  
Quality  
Scores
%  Offered  of  Forecast  =  
Calls  Offered/Calls  Forecasted  *  100

E.g.  Objective:  +/-­‐‑  10%  or  90%  -­‐‑  110%

SL  &  ASA Example:
Time Forecasted        Offered
9:00-­‐‑9:30  125            118

Target  
Forecast  &   %  Offered  of  Forecast  =  118/125  *  100  =  94.4% Achieved!
Staffing  
Accuracy
SUPPORTING METRICS
TEAM & MANAGEMENT
Abandon   Average  Handle  Time
Rate Team  Efficiency/Productivity  Measure

Formula:  
Transfers  &   Average  Handle  Time  (AHT)  =    
Other  Call  
Results (Skillset  Talk  Time  +  DN  Talk  Time  +  Pre-­‐‑Post  
Time)  /  (Skillset  CallsAnswered  +  DNInAns  +  
DNOut)  
%  Calls  by  
Activity E.g.  Objective:  18  min  +/-­‐‑  10%  or  ~16  –  20  min

Example:
(Totals  for  all  agents  in  LoB)
%  Occupancy CallsHandled    Talk  Time    DN  Talk Pre-­‐‑PostTime
   204          2457  min      546  min 577  min

AHT  =  (2457  +  546  +  577)  /  204    =    17.5  min Target  

Achieved!
Average  
Handle  Time
WHAT IS TRUE CALLS PER HOUR?
True  or  Adjusted  Calls  per  Hour  is  a  performance  measure  of  
agent  productivity
More  fair  and  representative  than  a  straight  count  of  Calls  
Answered  
•  eliminates  elements  that  are  not  in  agent’s  control,  such  as  shift  
lengths  and  time  spent  waiting  for  calls
More  informative  than  Average  Handle  Time  (AHT)
•  is  impacted  by  availability  or  login  time,  rather  than  just  talk  
time  and  not  ready  or  aux  time  
 

True  Calls  per  Hour  =  
Calls  Answered  /  (Login  Time  –  Idle  or  Waiting  Time)
KPI MEASUREMENTS
INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE

True  Calls   True  Calls  per  Hour

per  Hour Agent  Productivity  Measure

Formula:  
True  Calls  per  Hour  =  
Quality   Calls  Answered  /  (Login  Time  –  Idle  Time)
Scores

E.g.  Objective:  at  least  5  

%   Example:
Availability Time CallsAnsw            Login  Time              Idle  Time
9:00-­‐‑1:00    20        3.75hr                  0.5hr                  

True  Calls  per  Hour  =  20  /  (3.75  –  0.5)  =  6   Target  

Achieved!
TRUE CALLS PER HOUR EXAMPLE
Agent  1000   Agent  1001
AHT  =  10min AHT  =  10min
Answered  35  calls  during     Answered  16  calls  during  their  shift
their  shift
Login  time  3.6  hours
Login  time  6.75  hours
1  hour  spent  waiting  for  calls
1  hour  spent  waiting  for  calls



True  Calls  per  Hour  =  Calls  Answered/(Login  –  Waiting  Time)  

TCH  =  35  /  (6.75  -­‐‑  1)  =     TCH  =  16  /  (3.6  -­‐‑  1)  =    
6.1  True  Calls  per  Hour 6.1  True  Calls  per  Hour

The  Moral  of  the  Story:    
Even  though  these  two  agents  worked  different  shift  lengths  and  answered  a  very  different  absolute  
number  of  calls,  their  productivity  result  was  the  same  because  their  effort  (AHT)  was  the  same,  
proving  TCH  as  a  valid  comparator.
% AVAILABILITY EXAMPLE
Agent  1000   Agent  1001
Shift  length  8  hours  (480  min) Shift  length  4  hours  (240  min)
Scheduled  breaks:  60  min Scheduled  breaks:  15  min
Soft  time:  15  min Soft  time:  10  min
Target  Availability:  405  min Target  Availability:  215
Actual  Login  Time:  398  min Actual  Login  Time:  220


 %  Availability  =  Actual  Login  /  Target  *  100

%  Availability  =     %  Availability  =    
(398  /  405)  *  100  =  98%     (220  /  215)  *  100  =  102%  

MEASURING QUALITY
Scorecard
 Score Points  &  Weighting
¢ ¤ ¢ ¢ 5  points    x    0.20
Poor Fair Good Excellent
þ  ☐ ☐ 5  poinds    x    0.10
yes no   n/a

Comments:
 These  comments  can  be  subjective,  since  the  caller’s  assessment  of  the  call  will  also      be  
subjective.  The  comments  allow  the  certified  quality  listener  to  give  an  overall              “feel”  of  
the  call.  Comments  should  focus  on  what  the  agent  DID  or  DIDN’T  do,                directly  related  
to  contents  of  an  established  quality  call  document  or  guide.  or  what  the  customer  did  or  
said,  and  avoid  using  “should  have”  language                                                                
Overall  Score  for  call Total:  __  /  10

Quality  Score  for  agents  is  an  average  of  all  the  call  results  for  the  period.  
When  coaching,  identify  where  the  agent  may  be  losing  points,  and  note  any  trends  that  
come  up  in  the  comments.  Talk  about  these  things  in  the  coaching  session.

 MY MEASURES
How  are  your  KPIs  and  metrics  calculated?

KPI/Metric Calculation

SL  % (Calls  Answered<=threshold)  /  (Calls  

Offered)*100
STRATEGIC à TACTICAL
Strategic  Goals Supporting  Operational  
Performance  Metrics Reports
Processes
Key  Indicators
(Team  &  Mgmt)
Improved
Affordability Management  
 and  Sustainability Quality
Abandoned   Reports
Cost  Management %

Continuous  Improvement
Service  Level Cost  per  Call Operational  Key  
Improved Performance  
Customer Forecast  &   Indicators  per  Line  
Average  Speed
Experience Quality  Assurance Staffing  
Accuracy
 of  Answer of  Business

Efficient  Service  Delivery

Key  Indicators  (Individual) Agent  Performance  
Improved    
&  Login/Logout  
Business Schedule  
Training  and  Development %  Login Reports
Outcomes Adherence

True  Calls  per  

Workforce  Management Hour
Quality  Scores

Call  Log  Detail  

Average  
Optimized  use  of   %  Availability
Handle  Time Reports
Human  Resources
CORE COMPONENTS

Strategy

Roles  &   Metrics

Responsibilities

Performance  
Management

Supporting  
Processes Measures

Objectives
THANK YOU!

Questions
?

Symmetrics  Contact  Center  Performance  Management

Sources:  mindtools.com      prosci.com      Centerserve:  call-­‐‑center.net      harrisonwebster    Advanced  Performance  Management  Program      Management  By  Objectives  principles