Managing
Contact Center Metrics
A healthy skepticism regarding workforce performance statistics can be a good thing. After all, we often make key business decisions based on productivity metrics, including both hire and fire decisions, and sales efficiency reports. Are the numbers underlying these decisions both reliable (consistent over time) and valid (true to their purpose)? We should, by the way, distinguish here between raw data such as call volume and speed of answer, which tend to be reliable and valid, and those key performance metrics based upon raw data, such as first-call resolutions or cost per call, which can easily be unreliable or misapplied.
For a systematic treatment of how to identify and avoid problems with the integrity of contact center data, see the reprint of my article for Call Center Management Review.
For a more comprehensive analysis of how contact center metrics apply to maintaining service quality and customer satisfaction see my paper on Leveraging Customer Satisfaction.
For more on the topic of strategies to develop sound strategies for maintaining valid and reliable contact center metrics, contact me directly.
© 2009 Henry Baird