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The challenges in defining a single magic metric stem from the fact that most call center metrics represent different and conflicting interests, the more obvious ones being handling time vs. speed of answer, handling time vs. customer satisfaction and the like.
Different organizations attribute different weight (level of importance) to these metrics and to the outcome (customer satisfaction), which a single magic number will hide. Consequently comparing two different operations using a single metric will not be apples to apples.
Similarly, the inclusion of handling time will skew the results when comparing dissimilar operations. AHT will be very different if the call center supports standard MS desktop applications, custom UNIX software applications, answer HR questions, or handles hardware related problems. A very efficient operation with an intrinsic long AHT will still get a low score.
Cost-per-call metric attempts to reconcile all the factors into a single number, assuming that operational costs reflect internal efficiencies. But besides the inconsistencies in measuring cost per call (see www.DiagnosticStrategies.com/papers/benchmarking.pdf), assigning monetary value to customer acquisition/satisfaction/retention is far from being a science
Moreover, customer satisfaction is influenced by a number of factors, the more important one being first contact resolution, and much less ASA as many suggest. Another factor that is rarely measured is an outcome of inconsistency in service delivery.
A reasonable way out of this is to use a balanced scorecard approach to assign strategic and business values to each of the key metrics and define your own value equation. The formula may not be transferable to other organizations, which is impractical anyway
Many call centers flood management with too many charts of the various key performance indicators. This unnecessary and often confusing because many of these KPIs influence each other and the information may be too detailed for senior management (but very useful for the call center manager). If management is interested in a more concise report, customer satisfaction, abandonment rate and agent utilization (instead of AHA or even calls/agent) may be a reasonable compromise.
I agree with Bob that it is more important to emphasize effectiveness over internal efficiency, which may also lead to a more feasible definition of target performance metrics. (BTW, the proposed 6 months measurement period is fine only if you business is not seasonal; many are).
Joe
www.DiagnosticStrategies.com
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