Call duration is a very important KPI (Key Performance Indicator) to how efficient a contact or technical support center operates. The idea being that efficiency, and therefore the staff numbers required, depends on the number of operators who can answer, respond and close a customer’s call with a positive response within a given period. The more efficiently the agents can achieve this then the more effective they will be in handling inbound customers’ calls, therefore the larger the number of calls they can process per hour. This relates to efficiency, and call duration is all about efficiency – discover the customer’s issue and then resolve the issue in the minimum time.
However, call duration is not always under the control of the call agent, many times the caller is unsure what the problem is or are so agitated that they cannot articulate the problem they are experiencing clearly. This is why, to prevent customers rambling on for ages, the agent has to follow a strict line of questioning, this might sound impolite but it follows a script which enables the contact center agent to get to the solution quicker.
There are also other reasons for monitoring call duration, for example contact agents receiving personal calls. Another reason is an agent receiving frequent well-known customer calls, which can lead to social interaction leading to social chat whilst other agents are busy answering incoming calls. Therefore, call duration is an important KPI in any call center or business. Depending on the number of incoming lines that are available to a business it could lose important business calls due to an agent spending an unnecessary length of time on a social call or using their time to deviate from the business script.
Call duration monitoring is an important KPI for any business and management should closely monitored, per extension and per agent the time spent per call per employee.
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