This week we present a new installment in our “Pitfalls” series which looks at common mistakes made when measuring or interpreting contact center metrics. Occupancy rate basically measures how “busy” call center agents are when they are at work.
Occupancy is often used as a predictor of “agent burn-out”. Agents need time to take a breath and collect their thoughts between calls. Otherwise, performance suffers, followed by higher absenteeism and, eventually, agent attrition. There is a general consensus that occupancy above 85% is not sustainable. But how do we arrive at that number? It’s driven by the number of calls per agent per day, but, as usual, there are nuances to the calculation that have important ramifications. Let’s look into how to calculate — and use — occupancy rate properly. Continue reading
In our on-going effort to demystify call center metrics, let’s take a look at “occupancy rate”. This is basically a measure of how “busy” call center agents are when they are at work. It is sometimes referred to as “utilization”. You might think a simpler measurement like “call per hour” would answer this same question. But as is often the case with call centers, things get complicated quickly.
