Standard Call Center Reports

[ecrewes]

All,

I am tasked with putting together a standard "core" list of Operations reports that can be used to bring up a brand new call center. We will be implementing Genesys enterprise wide not only on our 6 existing centers but several others to come. The intent is to have 16 or less reports that we can use to bring up a call center, train management, etc. Obviously there will be additional customized reports later on...

So here is my question. Does anyone have/know of a generalized list of must have reports that call centers need?

We have used Lucent CMS, and many different customized web reports that we have built ourselves. I have documented 106 current reports that operations uses....I need to bring that down to 16 "core" reports and any list of "must have" reports to run a call center would be a great headstart.

[JoeB]

This is a very important topic – we see too many call centers that are inundated with very impressive statistical reports, and still have difficulties managing the call center effectively.

The topic is too complex to answer in a single Web post, but the essence is that you have to decide on a minimal set of metrics that allow you to manage the call center on a routine basis. These are key performance indicators that truly reflect the quality and efficiency (in this order) of your operation. Think about the metrics from the perspective of the service recipient first, and internal perspective second. You should end up with a very small set (much smaller than 16!) of performance indicators that satisfy the needs of senior management and useful for general operation. The rest 160 reports you have should be used to determine causes for problems indicated by the key performance metrics. Additionally, they are needed to identify long-tem trends, which the KPIs do not reveal, and monitor impact of improvement programs you may introduce, but not as a routine management tool.

The question remains – how to choose your KPIs. While there are commonly used metrics, I suggest using a Balances Scorecard approach to determine the ones that truly apply to your operation and customers, and, more importantly, their relative weight. For example, some call centers care much about average hold time, while others, for a variety of (good) reasons choose to emphasize another metric. Also, one has to weigh customer satisfaction and service quality against operational efficiencies and internal costs, which the BSC approach provides for.

Please let me know if you need more information how to go about identifying your KPIs.

Joe
jbarkai@DiagnosticStrategies.com

[sjbogani]

As Joe had mentioned earlier it is very important to identify the metrics of your Call Center to be able to identify the core reports needed to run your Call Center. Whether you are primarily a Customer service organization or an outbound collections center your needs will hinge on some very basic items.

First item is Agent Productivity, this is a report that guages how well or how poorly your agents are performing against the standards your organization must set.

Next item is Call Volume by App or Platform or type. Given the name for how calls are divided varies from platform to platform the general idea is getting a picture of Call Volume by type with items such as average call time, average wait time, total handled and total abandoned.

Next item involves finding out the resource usage levels which involves items such as Trunks and IP circuits. These resources have to have some sort of measurment of usage to be able to plan for capacity increases or decreases.

Lastly is a look at peripherals and their usage. Items such as IVR's or Predictve Dialers have to be monitored through reports to see the net effect they have on Call Volume handling and resource support.

From these four areas you will derive the reports you need to configure your Call Center properly from start to finish. Bear in mind that these areas are starting blocks and the reports within the areas may differ depending on your business. For example in the Call Volume area that could be split into Voice Calls, Messages, EMails and Chat request and each has its own report detailing its net effect to the overall.

In any case you will find your reports with a little analysis and common sense. If you need any further assisstance or wish to chat more on the subject let me know.

Sergio Bogani
Secamer Corporation
sjbogani@secamer.com

[JoeB]

The reports Sergio suggests are certainly good and appropriate, but I propose that they need to be supplemented by more customer-centric information. Whether your metric is first contact resolution, down time, abandonment rates, or direct measurement of customer satisfaction, my recommendation is to consider this type of data ahead of productivity data.

Joe Barkai
DIAGNOSTIC STRATEGIES
http://www.DiagnosticStrategies.com/