Measuring the success of call center goals begins with establishing key performance indicators (KPIs). Call center KPIs should be measurable values that managers and directors can look at periodically to see how well the contact center is meeting various operational goals and whether their agents are meeting customer needs and expectations for high quality customer service. The value of a KPI, of course, will only be as valuable as the action it drives from the company and individuals. When used correctly, KPIs can serve as a form of communication and can be used to improve customer experience (CX).
How to communicate the value of call center KPIs
A common mistake call centers make is adopting standard KPIs without adapting them to meet the unique needs of their businesses. Each KPI should be clearly explained to the team they are addressing, just as each individual user’s job description is clearly explained during the onboarding process. When information is disseminated clearly and concisely, it is much more likely that it will not only be absorbed by the employee, but also acted upon. This ensures that agents follow practices and policies that improve brand image and CX.
Call center KPIs: list
Here’s a list of 18 key call center KPIs that reflect the unique needs and goals of your contact center. While these are standard KPIs that are once set up and tracked on an ongoing basis, they can lead to changes that impact employee and customer satisfaction, higher productivity levels, overall efficiency, and a great customer experience.
1. Average Handling Time (AHT)
Average Handling Time (AHT) is a call center KPI for the average time it takes a customer service representative to complete a single transaction. AHT typically starts from the moment a customer initiates a call and includes any hold time and tasks that follow the call or interaction until the agent is able to start the next call or chat. AHT is a major factor in deciding how much call center staffing to have. Knowing how long each call can last helps managers schedule their agents. The goal is to ensure that workloads are not excessive. Individual average handling times can be measured for each call agent to determine which agents need additional training. Utilizing tools that simplify complex conversations can reduce your AHT rate and lead to significant cost savings and increased efficiency.
2. Percentage of blocked calls
One of the most frustrating aspects of dialing into a call center is getting a busy signal. A customer calls because they need an answer to a question or to take care of an important matter, and the last thing they want to do is receive a busy signal. Receiving a busy signal is usually the result of a lack of available agents (each agent’s call queue is full) or the software used by the call center cannot handle the current number of incoming calls. When measuring the KPI of the percentage of blocked calls, you must determine whether this is a department-wide problem or a problem with an individual employee. Training can be provided to employees who struggle with huge call queues. If it’s a department-wide issue, you’ll want to upgrade your call center software to handle higher call volumes. Investing in better call center software can significantly improve CX.
3. Business drivers
Your business drivers are the core components of a call center, and they are typically combined with the information from the Automatic Call Distributor (ACD). These drivers will include everything from sales conversion rates, price per call, cross-sell data, revenue per call, and more. Combining ACD data with analytics and data from your customer relationship management software is a great way to measure business drivers with other call center KPIs.
4. Workforce management
If you have a workforce management (WFM) solution deployed in your call center, you can compare historical data with real-time data to assess your forecast and actual call volume, agent adherence to their schedules, and more. Workforce management KPIs are essential to accurately identify your top performers.
5. First response time (FRT)
77% of consumers say that the most important thing they look for in a business is whether the company values their time. The first response time of a KPI is usually seen as the most important. No one wants to be delayed. If you ensure that your call center representatives process requests quickly, it will leave a lasting impression on your customers. You can calculate this KPI according to hours of days, number of days per week, and on an annual basis. According to the data, approximately 35% of callers will leave the call within the first minute of waiting. After three minutes, an amazing 66% of them will leave the conversation.
6. Quality metrics
Managers can use quality monitoring to measure call quality KPIs. Agent performance is key to measuring call quality, including how quickly they resolve customer issues, how accurately they record call information, and how efficiently they transition from one call to the next. Newer agents tend to demonstrate lower levels of call quality. These employees can be trained to improve call quality. A quality scorecard can significantly improve call quality for each agent, and when used correctly, it will improve CX.
7. Sales per agent
You will measure sales and total calls to evaluate the KPI for each agent. Managers can use this metric to set goals and improve overall sales performance.
8. Revenue per successful call
This KPI allows you to measure how much revenue is generated by each successful call. Managers find this KPI particularly valuable when creating revenue expectation reports. It also allows them to adjust goals according to current progress data.
9. After-call work time (ACW)
After-call work should be measured to determine how much time should be allocated to this part of the call center agent’s job. Ideally, post-call work should be minimized to ensure that the agent spends as much time as possible handling customer calls rather than performing post-call tasks. Improving the ACW call center should be a priority to increase efficiency.