Call agent availability rate

This measure calculates the availability of agents. Availability measures how much agent time is spent simply waiting for contacts. Compute as the total time spent waiting for contacts to arrive, divided by total agent time worked, excluding planned downtime such as breaks and training. It is part of a set of Process Efficiency measures that help companies optimize the performance of their "plan and manage customer service operations" process by minimizing waste and refining resource consumption.

Benchmark Data

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Measure Category:
Process Efficiency
Measure Id:
100392
Total Sample Size:
441 All Companies
Performers:
25th
– Median
– 75th
–
Key Performance
Indicator:
No

Compute this Measure

Units for this measure are percent.

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Call agent availability rate

Key Terms

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Process efficiency

Process efficiency represents how well a process converts its inputs into outputs. A process that converts 100% of the inputs into outputs without waste is more efficient than one that converts a similar amount of inputs into fewer outputs.

Measure Scope

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Cross Industry (7.3.0)

  • 6.2.1 - Plan and manage customer service work force (10387) - Creating and administering the work force deployed for the customer service process. Forecast the customer work force needs to correctly schedule the work force. Track the utility of the work force deployed. Examine the interactions between the customer and customer service representatives to achieve high quality.
    • 6.2.1.1 - Forecast volume of customer service contacts (10390) - Projecting the total work force required to service customer service inquiries in order to effectively predict the volume of vendor contracts required. Estimate the number of the customer service contracts in an agreed-upon time frame in order to strategically maintain the work force necessitated for customer inquires. Analyze historical data around customer service contracts, the universe of customer inquiries, frequency of inquiries, servicing capability (per head) of the employees, etc.
    • 6.2.1.2 - Schedule customer service work force (10391) - Deploying the work force to manage customer service contracts. Create a systematic summary of the operations and service required, as well as the specific amount of work force that is to be deployed to the customer service operations. Ensure work force is directly proportional to the estimated forecast of customer service contracts.
    • 6.2.1.3 - Track work force utilization (10392) - Tracking the utilization of work force deployed for managing customer service operations. Monitor the utility of the work force deployed for managing customer service operations in order to evaluate its efficiency and cost effectiveness. Calculate the overall labor effectiveness, which measures the utility, performance, and quality of the work force.
    • 6.2.1.4 - Monitor and evaluate quality of customer interactions with customer service representatives (10393) - Tracking and determining the quality of interactions between the customer and customer representatives. Use electronic devices to record and effectively assess customer representatives' interactions.
  • 6.2.2 - Manage customer service problems, requests, and inquiries (10388) - Handling the requests and inquiries from customers that seek information regarding the organization's products/services. Obtain the customer requests online and by phone. Direct these requests to higher-level representatives. Approve requests, and respond to customers.
    • 6.2.2.1 - Receive customer problems, requests, and inquiries (10394) - Receiving requests for information from customers over multiple channels. Receive various requests and inquiries from customers regarding products/services. Accept these inquiries through channels such as email, telephone, online forms, text messages, social media, and in person. Supply dedicated equipment, systems, and personnel.
    • 6.2.2.2 - Analyze problems, requests, and inquiries (13482) - Analyzing various requests and inquiries from customers regarding products/services. Provide answers and offerings to satisfy the customer's needs.
    • 6.2.2.3 - Resolve customer problems, requests, and inquiries (10395) - Routing customer inquiries in order to service them with the most apposite response. Direct customer inquires to the best suited personnel or system. Have a system or procedure capable of efficiently channeling these requests.
    • 6.2.2.4 - Respond to customer problems, requests, and inquiries (10396) - Responding to customer requests by email, conversation, interactive voice response, mail, etc. with the most appropriate reply. Instill a robust process to locate the right information for a solution to a customer's problem.
    • 6.2.2.5 - Identify and capture upsell/cross-sell opportunities (16928) - Utilizing customer inquiries as opportunities to either provide a comparable service to the one in question, offer additional complimentary service, or suggest a service that is better than what was initially offered.
    • 6.2.2.6 - Deliver opportunity to sales team (16937) - Providing possible sales leads to the sales team in an effort to garner more business opportunities.
  • 6.2.3 - Manage customer complaints (10389) - Obtaining customer complaints online or by phone. Direct these complaints to higher-level representatives as appropriate. Resolve them. Respond to customers.
    • 6.2.3.1 - Receive customer complaints (10397) - Receiving any complaints or grievances from customers for the organization's products/services. Receive objections, complaints, and criticism from customers regarding products/services through email, telephone, online forms, text messages, social media, in person, etc. Dedicate equipment, systems, and personnel.
    • 6.2.3.2 - Route customer complaints (10398) - Routing any complaints or grievances received from customers in order to address them in the most appropriate manner. Direct complaints to the best suited personnel or system. Implement a system or procedure capable of efficiently channeling the various objections, complaints, and criticism from customers over the offerings provided by the organization.
    • 6.2.3.3 - Resolve customer complaints (10399) - Resolving any customer complaints that are deemed to be sound and reasonable. Redress any objections, grievances, and complaints received from customers regarding the offerings provided by the organization. Identify the legitimate complaints, where the situation needs to be appropriately corrected. Deploy personnel who can rectify the issue within a stipulated time frame.
    • 6.2.3.4 - Respond to customer complaints (10400) - Responding to customer complaints including all activities necessitated to service any objections, complaints, or grievances with the most appropriate reply. Source the right information to formulate a response that eases the discomfort being experienced by the customer. (Closely coordinate with Resolve customer complaints [10399].)
    • 6.2.3.5 - Analyze customer complaints and response/redressal (19072) - Analyzing complaint logs to provide input for continuous service improvement and customer profiling.
  • 6.2.4 - Process returns (20094) - Acquiring returns and identify if the returns are scraped or salvaged.
    • 6.2.4.1 - Authorize return (10364) - Approving and carrying forward the requests by the customers to return the product. This is part of the process of returning a product in order to receive a refund, replacement, or repair during the product's warranty period.
    • 6.2.4.2 - Process return and record reason (20095) - Notating the reason for the return of the product.
  • 6.2.5 - Report incidents and risks to regulatory bodies (12840) - Notifying all stakeholders, legal, and industry regulatory bodies of the incidents and risks related to a return or recall, if needed.