Can you all try to help me with an argument I am currently having with a colleague?
Are other Call/Contact Centre managers targeted with an agent availability percentage of sign in time?
If so, could you share with me what the % is?
Thanks in advance...
Hi Coops,
I have targeted staff in the past using targets of 95% and 97% based on a 7 hour working day, however it really depends on the culture within the centre.
But it's unlikly not to have nothing in place if you are taking large call volumes.
Hope that helps and good luck with the argument, let me know how you get on!!
Thanks Neil
To give you my colleagues point of view, she believes that agents should be available to take calls for up to 20% of the day to take into account peaks in call volumes etc. I think, after speaking to a few people, that this seems quite high, I'm thinking 10-15% should be nearer the truth. This means that we are happy for staff to sit around twiddling their thumbs for an hour and 20 minutes in a 7 hour shift - am I being too harsh? To give you an idea, our core call handling staff are approx 30-35.
This available time is included within the staffs productivity target of 90% made up:
(Talk time + Available + After Call Work)/Working Time
I'm guessing our culture is rather laid back by comparison to your targets.....
Any pointers would be useful.
The more idle you have the more resource cost you carry, call me old school but I would expect agents to be able handle volume, another option if you don't do so already to avoid burn out is to have say 2 15 min breaks 1 am and 1 pm. Assuming the aim is to avoid a call after call basis, these could either be unpaid by taking lunch down to 30 mins or paid if you leave the lunch period as it is currently.
Very interesting debate I am sure!
Which ever way you go it's hard to reverse if your headcount gets cut and you don't replace due to attrition, by adding idle to a shift then staff find it hard to adjust when volume goes up.
10% gets my vote :)
Very interesting debate!
You must log in to post.
