Service Level

[MikeTRI]

Someone provided a good formula for calculating service level about 6 months ago, but I seem to have messed it up in my spread sheet ... can I get it again please?

[beejay]

The general service level formula is: # calls answered in first or goal time interval / NCH

[MikeTRI]

Thanks beejay! I know the general jist of the concept. I read further and discovered that others are struggling with the same dillema that I am ... to include those calls that abandon before the goal interval ... or not. I think we're going with this formula:

Calls Answered in 20sec / (Calls Offered - <20sec Abandons)

I appreciate your help! I see you're in Kansas City too! I 'd love to trade theories on other Call Center Practices, if your interested.

[beejay]

Given the array of stats that have to be taken together to assess the productivity of a center/team/agent, I don't subscribe to the abandoned call addition to the formula. There are too many reasons other than agent engagement that would cause calls to be abandoned.

However, each center is different and so are the theories. Whatever you choose, it is important that you are consistent and fair, so stay with it once a decision is made.

Yes, I am in the metro Kansas City area which has more call centers almost than BBQ restaurants. Feel free to contact me anytime. I'd certainly enjoy it.

[JoeB]

Yes, the question whether abandoned calls should be considered is quite contentious. It should be addresses not from the perspective of agent productivity as much as from a business perspective. The call center should develop a position regarding abandoned calls: the impact on customer satisfaction, lost opportunity costs, etc., which will determine how you factor them into your overall performance metrics: you can count them as service events (meaning you give high importance to ALL calls), you can ignore them (MikeTRIÂ’s formula, which improves the calculated SL), or you argue that given the opportunity, you could have answered the calls that were abandoned prematurely, further improving the SL. Example:

Calls offered: 100
Answered within service level threshold: 70
Abandoned within service level threshold: 10

Service Level Calculations
Abandoned calls counted: 70 / 100 = 70.0%
Abandoned calls ignored: 70 / (100 - 10) = 77.7%
Abandoned calls opportunity: (70 + 10) / 100 = 80.0%

I agree with BJ that the important thing is to come up with a consistent, fair and defensible approach and stick to it.

On the other hand, I am not sure I agree with BJÂ’s formula that considers only calls handled (as opposed to offered) because it implies that the call centerÂ’s performance has nothing to do with abandoned calls. I agree that there are many additional factors influencing abandonment, but our research shows a direct correlation between ASA and abandonment, which is not linear but is a step function, where the abandonment time "knee" depends on the business environment.

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

[beejay]

I agree, Joe

That's why it's important to realize that Service Level is one of the most important measures of a center's success but not the ONLY measure. It's truly a combination of mutlple metric assessments. The agents have to be taught well how they fit into the business picture and how they influence it. And then through a combination of productivity metrics (i.e. ASA,AHT,Calls/P/hr,etc.) along with quality metics, each agent knows what to achieve and how to achieve it. These become a direct rollup and assessment of each supervisor and manager as the metric performances are aggragated.

My thought is that with the correct metrics, the floor contribution to the abandon rate will be addressed and then the other causes for abandoned calls can be researched for a solution if one exists.

However, you have to establish a consistent, fair and defensible approach and stick to it. Each center will probably be different and that's okay too. I appreciated your comments.