- Call center KPIs answer three questions: do customers wait too long, do their problems get solved, and is your team staffed correctly?
- Start with five: service level, average speed of answer (ASA), abandonment rate, first contact resolution (FCR) and customer satisfaction (CSAT).
- Never read a metric alone: a short call can mean a fast agent or an agent who hangs up early.
- Read figures by hour and day, not just the monthly average, and open the call journey for unusual cases.
Every customer service manager has heard "customers say nobody answers". But what does that mean in numbers? Is the problem only at peak hour? Are there too few agents, or are they scheduled wrongly? Are calls long because the system is slow, or because the agent lacks information? That is what call center KPIs are for.
This guide explains 15 metrics in four groups: waiting and access, resolution quality, team efficiency and customer experience. For each one: what it is, how it is calculated, a reasonable starting target and what to do if it is poor. At the end we show how to read them in the report builder and how the call journey helps you understand the cause, not just the number.
Why measure KPIs at all?
Without numbers, every call center decision is an opinion: "we need more agents", "this agent is weak", "customers call a lot in the morning". KPIs turn opinions into facts you can act on: how many agents each shift needs, which team needs training, and which IVR option causes pressure. They also link call center work to something management understands: fewer lost customers and more closed sales.
The golden rule: pick a few metrics and review them consistently, rather than a dashboard of fifty numbers nobody reads.
Group 1: waiting and access
1. Service level
The share of calls answered within a set time. The common standard is 80/20: 80% of calls answered within 20 seconds. Calculation: calls answered within target ÷ all calls entering the queue. It is the most customer-centred metric because it measures "did I reach someone quickly?".
2. Average speed of answer (ASA)
The average seconds a caller waits in the queue before an agent answers. If ASA is high only at certain hours, the problem is shift distribution, not total headcount.
3. Abandonment rate
The share of callers who hang up while waiting. Calls dropped within the first 5 seconds are usually wrong numbers, so most centres exclude them. Above 8–10% signals long waits or an annoying queue message.
4. Longest wait
Averages hide the bad cases. One customer who waited nine minutes can write a review thousands will read. Watch the longest wait daily and add a fallback to voicemail or another queue after a set time.
5. Missed-call call-backs
How many missed calls you called back, and how quickly. This separates a centre that loses customers from one that wins them back. In Klamna every missed call shows a call-back status: whether someone has returned it or not.
Group 2: resolution quality
6. First contact resolution (FCR)
The share of requests solved on the first contact, with no need to call again. The simplest measure: customers who did not call back about the same subject within 48–72 hours, or the wrap-up code the agent picks. High FCR means happier customers and fewer calls.
7. Transfer rate
If many calls are transferred between agents, the IVR is probably routing customers wrongly, or agents lack permissions or information. Review your IVR options before blaming the team.
8. Repeat calls
The same number calling more than once in a day or week. It is the opposite of FCR and is useful by topic: does "order status" keep repeating? An automatic WhatsApp message may replace the call.
9. Wrap-up codes
Not a metric in itself, but the source of most smart metrics: the agent picks the reason and outcome of the call (enquiry, complaint, sale, follow-up), and you learn what makes people call.
Group 3: team efficiency
10. Average handle time (AHT)
AHT = talk time + hold time + after-call work (ACW). Do not push it down at any cost: a very short AHT with low FCR means agents hang up quickly and customers call back.
11. After-call work (ACW)
Time spent after the call writing notes or opening a ticket. If it is long, the system is probably clumsy. A practical fix: the customer record opens automatically with the call and the ticket opens from the same screen.
12. Occupancy
The share of an agent's available time spent on calls. 75–85% is healthy. Above 90% for long periods means burnout and turnover; below 60% means the shift is overstaffed.
13. Schedule adherence
Did the agent log in on time? Were breaks on time and of the right length? This links the call center to attendance and shifts: if half the team is fifteen minutes late every morning, the first hour's service level collapses however good the plan looks on paper.
Group 4: customer experience
14. Customer satisfaction (CSAT)
A short question after the call or chat: "How would you rate our service?" from 1 to 5. Calculate the share of 4 and 5 ratings among all responses. More important than the number is linking it to the agent and topic. With customer surveys the same survey covers calls and chats.
15. First response time in chats
Today's call center is not only calls. A customer who writes on WhatsApp expects a reply within minutes. Measure first response and resolution time per channel, and keep calls and chats in one report to see the full picture.
Quick reference table
| KPI | What it measures | Reasonable starting target | If it is poor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Service level | Speed of reaching an agent | 80% within 20 seconds | Review shift distribution by hour |
| ASA | Average wait | Under 30 seconds | Add peak-hour agents or an overflow queue |
| Abandonment | Callers who hang up while waiting | Under 5–8% | Call back missed calls; shorten the queue message |
| FCR | Solved first time | 70% or more | Training, knowledge base, permissions |
| AHT | Total handling time | Depends on the service | Read it with FCR; never cut it alone |
| Occupancy | Workload per agent | 75–85% | Adjust headcount per shift |
| CSAT | Customer satisfaction | 85% rating 4–5 | Listen to low-rated recordings |
How to read KPIs in reports
- Read by hour, not by month: an excellent monthly average can hide two hours a day when everyone waits. Open queue reports by hour and day.
- Compare metrics with each other: AHT falling together with FCR? Agents are rushing. High occupancy and high abandonment? You really are short-staffed.
- Drill down to agent and queue: in the report builder you choose fields and filters (queue, agent, period, wrap-up code), save the report and schedule it by e-mail.
- Open the call journey for odd cases: a long or abandoned call? The call journey shows each step: the IVR choices, the queue wait, who was rung and did not answer, and who finally answered.
- Listen to the recording: the number tells you where the problem is; the recording tells you why. AI call analysis summarises the call and the customer's sentiment so you do not listen for hours.
- A live screen for supervisors: the wallboard shows callers waiting now, available agents and today's service level, so the supervisor acts during the day, not after it.
Common measurement mistakes
- Rewarding short AHT alone: agents learn to hang up fast and customers call back.
- Ignoring chats: if half your customers use WhatsApp, a calls-only report shows half the picture.
- Metrics without an owner: each KPI needs someone who reviews it weekly and decides an action.
- Imported targets: 20 seconds may not suit complex technical support and may be slow for a store during sales.
- Forgetting attendance: queue numbers look fine on paper but the team did not log in on time — link reports to shifts.
Getting started with Klamna
In the Klamna call center all this data is collected automatically: queues, IVR, recordings, wrap-up codes, surveys, chats and attendance. No exporting and merging spreadsheets by hand. Start with five KPIs, show them on the supervisor's screen and review them weekly with the team. You build your own package and see the price before paying at sign-up, or talk to us and we will set up your first KPI dashboard with your team.
FAQ
What is the most important call center KPI?
If you pick one: service level together with abandonment, because they measure whether the customer reached an agent at all. Then FCR, because it measures whether the problem was solved.
What is the difference between ASA and AHT?
ASA is how long the caller waits before an answer; AHT is how long the call takes after the answer (talk + hold + after-call work).
How do I measure FCR without a survey?
Count a call as resolved if the same number did not call back about the same subject within 48–72 hours, or rely on the agent's wrap-up code and audit a sample.
How often should I review KPIs?
Supervisors watch live on the wallboard, managers review weekly, and leadership monthly with the trend against the previous month.
Can I measure chats the same way?
Yes, with small changes: first response time instead of ASA, resolution time instead of AHT, and the same CSAT for both channels.