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Call Centre KPIs

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for call centers are essential metrics used to measure the effectiveness, efficiency, and overall performance of call center operations.

What is call centre KPIs?

Call centre key performance indicators (KPIs) are quantifiable metrics used to evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of a call centre's operations. These indicators help monitor various aspects of call centre performance, such as customer satisfaction, agent productivity, and operational efficiency. KPIs are essential for identifying areas for improvement and ensuring that the call centre meets its strategic goals.

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What are the best practices of call centre KPIs?

The best practices of call centre KPIs:

  • Align KPIs with business objectives: Ensure that the selected KPIs align with the overall business goals and objectives. This alignment ensures that call centre performance contributes to the company's strategic aims.
  • Select relevant kpis: Choose KPIs that are relevant to your specific call centre operations and customer service goals. Avoid overwhelming the team with too many metrics.
  • Set realistic and clear targets: Establish clear, achievable targets for each KPI. These targets should be challenging yet attainable, encouraging continuous improvement without causing undue stress.
  • Regularly monitor and review KPIs: Continuously monitor KPIs to track performance and identify trends. Regular reviews help in understanding progress and making necessary adjustments promptly.
  • Provide feedback and training: Use KPI data to provide constructive feedback to agents. Offer training and development programs to address areas needing improvement, thereby enhancing overall performance.
  • Use technology effectively: Leverage advanced call centre technologies and analytics tools to accurately track and analyze KPI data. Automated reporting and real-time dashboards can significantly enhance monitoring efficiency.
  • Foster a culture of accountability: Encourage a culture where agents understand the importance of KPIs and take ownership of their performance. Transparency in sharing KPI results can motivate agents to strive for better outcomes.
  • Balance quantitative and qualitative metrics: While quantitative KPIs are crucial, don't overlook qualitative measures such as customer feedback and agent engagement, which provide deeper insights into performance and customer experience.
  • Continuously improve: Treat KPI tracking as an ongoing process. Regularly refine and adjust KPIs based on evolving business needs, customer expectations, and industry trends to ensure they remain relevant and effective.

What are the benefits of call centre KPIs?

The benefits of call centre KPIs:

  • Improved customer satisfaction: By tracking KPIs such as CSAT and FCR, call centres can identify and address issues that impact customer satisfaction, leading to a better overall customer experience.
  • Enhanced agent performance: Monitoring KPIs like AHT, quality assurance scores, and occupancy rates helps in assessing agent performance, identifying training needs, and fostering continuous improvement.
  • Operational efficiency: KPIs provide insights into the call centre's operational efficiency, enabling management to optimize processes, reduce waste, and improve service levels.
  • Cost reduction: By improving operational efficiency and reducing call handling times, call centres can lower operational costs and allocate resources more effectively.
  • Increased customer loyalty: Higher customer satisfaction and better service quality often lead to increased customer loyalty and positive word-of-mouth referrals.
  • Goal alignment: KPIs help align the call centre's goals with the broader organizational objectives, ensuring that everyone works towards common targets.

What is typical performances of call centre KPIs?

Here are some typical performance metrics for key call centre KPIs:

1. Average handle time (AHT)

  • Typical performance: 4 to 6 minutes
  • Benchmark: Achieving a lower AHT while maintaining high-quality service is ideal. The target varies depending on the complexity of the calls.

2. First call resolution (FCR)

  • Typical performance: 70% to 75%
  • Benchmark: A high FCR rate indicates efficient problem-solving. The goal is often set at 70% or higher, with some high-performing centres aiming for 80%+.

3. Customer satisfaction (CSAT)

  • Typical performance: 80% to 90%
  • Benchmark: CSAT scores typically range between 80% to 90%. Scores above 90% are considered excellent.

4. Service level

  • Typical performance: 80% of calls answered within 20 seconds
  • Benchmark: The common industry standard is to answer 80% of calls within 20 seconds. This may vary slightly based on specific service agreements.

5. Call abandonment rate

  • Typical performance: 2% to 5%
  • Benchmark: An abandonment rate of 5% or lower is generally acceptable. Lower rates are better, indicating that customers are not hanging up before reaching an agent.

6. Occupancy rate

  • Typical performance: 85% to 90%
  • Benchmark: An occupancy rate between 85% and 90% is typical. Rates higher than 90% can lead to agent burnout, while rates lower than 85% may indicate inefficiency.

7. Net promoter score (NPS)

  • Typical performance: +10 to +30
  • Benchmark: NPS can vary widely by industry, but a positive score (above 0) is generally good. Scores above +50 are excellent.

8. Agent turnover rate

  • Typical performance: 20% to 30% annually
  • Benchmark: A turnover rate of 20% or lower is ideal. Higher rates are common in the industry but indicate potential issues with job satisfaction or working conditions.

9. Quality assurance scores

  • Typical performance: 75% to 90%
  • Benchmark: Quality assurance scores in the range of 75% to 90% are typical, with higher scores indicating better compliance with quality standards.

Employee pulse surveys:

These are short surveys that can be sent frequently to check what your employees think about an issue quickly. The survey comprises fewer questions (not more than 10) to get the information quickly. These can be administered at regular intervals (monthly/weekly/quarterly).

One-on-one meetings:

Having periodic, hour-long meetings for an informal chat with every team member is an excellent way to get a true sense of what’s happening with them. Since it is a safe and private conversation, it helps you get better details about an issue.

eNPS:

eNPS (employee Net Promoter score) is one of the simplest yet effective ways to assess your employee's opinion of your company. It includes one intriguing question that gauges loyalty. An example of eNPS questions include: How likely are you to recommend our company to others? Employees respond to the eNPS survey on a scale of 1-10, where 10 denotes they are ‘highly likely’ to recommend the company and 1 signifies they are ‘highly unlikely’ to recommend it.

Based on the responses, employees can be placed in three different categories:

  • Promoters
    Employees who have responded positively or agreed.
  • Detractors
    Employees who have reacted negatively or disagreed.
  • Passives
    Employees who have stayed neutral with their responses.

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