Comments on: Average Handle Time – A Good Metric? For Whom? http://rudyvidal.net/2009/04/average-handle-time-a-good-metric-for-whom/ Aligning the Business to Your Purpose and Your Customers Sat, 05 Dec 2009 20:02:03 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Laura Kinney http://rudyvidal.net/2009/04/average-handle-time-a-good-metric-for-whom/comment-page-1/#comment-110 Laura Kinney Tue, 27 Jan 2009 21:06:38 +0000 http://willtheybuyagain.wordpress.com/?p=245#comment-110 AHT measurement is pointless. From an agent's point of view, it's even counter-productive to their performance. Below, I give you a humorous excerpt from the hot, new, call center fiction book, HANDLE TiME by LiNCOLN PARK; which illustrates the agent's point-of-view: "In call centers, to take time and help your customer will absolutely RUIN your Average Handle Time. Ruining your handle time means that you are ruining your quality; thus ruining your agent variable pay; finally ruining your paycheck. In other words, TO HELP YOUR CUSTOMER IS TO COMPLETELY AND UNEQUIVOCALLY RUIN YOUR PAYCHECK. I'm serious! The idea is to stay on the call for the shortest amount of time that you can; in order for you to take as many calls as you can. The customer's satisfaction with your service is incidental. And so -- every call center worker must ponder the following question and make a choice each time they logon to their systems -- DO I HELP THE CUSTOMER, OR -- DO I PAY RENT?" Besides reading the fantastically crazy fiction book, HANDLE TiME, I suggest call center managers consider humanity in the calculation of metrics to produce more realistic projections. AHT measurement is pointless. From an agent’s point of view, it’s even counter-productive to their performance. Below, I give you a humorous excerpt from the hot, new, call center fiction book, HANDLE TiME by LiNCOLN PARK; which illustrates the agent’s point-of-view:

“In call centers, to take time and help your customer will absolutely RUIN your Average Handle Time. Ruining your handle time means that you are ruining your quality; thus ruining your agent variable pay; finally ruining your paycheck. In other words, TO HELP YOUR CUSTOMER IS TO COMPLETELY AND UNEQUIVOCALLY RUIN YOUR PAYCHECK. I’m serious! The idea is to stay on the call for the shortest amount of time that you can; in order for you to take as many calls as you can. The customer’s satisfaction with your service is incidental. And so — every call center worker must ponder the following question and make a choice each time they logon to their systems — DO I HELP THE CUSTOMER, OR — DO I PAY RENT?”

Besides reading the fantastically crazy fiction book, HANDLE TiME, I suggest call center managers consider humanity in the calculation of metrics to produce more realistic projections.

]]> By: Robert Braathe http://rudyvidal.net/2009/04/average-handle-time-a-good-metric-for-whom/comment-page-1/#comment-109 Robert Braathe Tue, 16 Dec 2008 01:42:37 +0000 http://willtheybuyagain.wordpress.com/?p=245#comment-109 In a similar vein, the Wall Street Journal featured an article talking about timing cashier's efficiency when ringing out customers. Here is an excerpt http://s.wsj.net/article/SB122651745876821483.html "The computer scores, Ms. Gauna says, don't "take into consideration the many things that can go wrong at a register to kill your time" -- a customer who doesn't have enough cash and is "digging through a purse," a credit card that doesn't swipe through the charge, or an item with no price or item number on it. Some customers ask for cigarettes located in another part of the store, and the cashier has to get them. Others forget items and retreat to the aisles to find them." Again, much like AHT, timing cashiers is not a testament of how efficient cashiers are, but how well managers are effective at operating their businesses. In order for these measures to be effective, variables such size of sale and type of transaction need to be considered. In a similar vein, the Wall Street Journal featured an article talking about timing cashier’s efficiency when ringing out customers. Here is an excerpt

http://s.wsj.net/article/SB122651745876821483.html

“The computer scores, Ms. Gauna says, don’t “take into consideration the many things that can go wrong at a register to kill your time” — a customer who doesn’t have enough cash and is “digging through a purse,” a credit card that doesn’t swipe through the charge, or an item with no price or item number on it. Some customers ask for cigarettes located in another part of the store, and the cashier has to get them. Others forget items and retreat to the aisles to find them.”

Again, much like AHT, timing cashiers is not a testament of how efficient cashiers are, but how well managers are effective at operating their businesses. In order for these measures to be effective, variables such size of sale and type of transaction need to be considered.

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