Cost per call

[caneuman]

Does anyone have the formula for cost per call..besides the generic (total costs/total calls)? I am trying to determine is the cost depatment salaries, plus a portion of the building expenses plus cost of support / total department calls? What components are generally in the "total Cost"?

[JoeB]

There is no standard way to calculate cost per call because the definition of cost varies from one organization to the next. It is simple when you consider only salaries, and not so bad when you add lease, if applicable, building facilities/utilities etc. But you could also include IT capital equipment costs (which will bring in amortization calculations), IT maintenance costs, and even opportunity costs. The result of non-standard cost accounting results in significant discrepancies in reported cost per call figures (see “Benchmarking in Call Centers” in http://www.DiagnosticStrategies.com/papers.htm)

This is one area that you need to agree with the financial people on a fair way to calculate costs and don’t change it unless there is a good reason to do so (one of our client managed to reduce their cost per call by simply changing the accounting method – without our endorsement, of course…)


Joe Barkai
DIAGNOSTIC STRATEGIES
http://www.DiagnosticStrategies.com/
Tel. 781-433-0833

[yooo]

Hi,
I had posted a thread about labout cost and more than 30 viewed that but nobody answered...sob! sob!

Can somebody please let me know what labout cost concerning an inbound call center is? And how we can effect it?

Thanks a lot.