The Only Reports You Need to Create

In the call center world, data is more than numbers; it’s the secret sauce to making smart decisions. 

Imagine using data to find out exactly what each customer call reveals about your business. You’d be able to optimize customer interactions, understand where you’re losing customers, and improve your business’s bottom line.

But with so much call center data to review, which reports actually make a difference? Instead of trying to distill information from every report under the sun, there’s only seven you need to focus on.

These reports will help you track agent activity, call volume trends, and customer patterns, revealing how your call center is performing and where improvement is needed.

The Only 7 Reports You Need to Create For Call Center Reporting 

The following seven reports are all you need to master call center reporting. They provide comprehensive insights into agent performance, customer satisfaction, and operational efficiency.

1. Agent Activity Report 

The agent activity report is a tool that tracks the performance of each call center agent. It looks at how many calls they handle, how long they spend on each call, and whether they solve customer problems on the first try. This report helps managers see if agents meet their goals and do their jobs well.

Here are some of the most commonly tracked metrics in an agent activity report:

• The volume of calls handled: This metric tells how many calls an agent answers, showing how busy they are and how well they handle the workload.
• Call handling efficiency: Here, you find out the average time it takes an agent to deal with a call, which helps spot ways to make things more efficient.
• First-call resolution rate: This shows the percentage of problems an agent solves without the customer needing to call back, indicating how effective the agent is at solving issues quickly.
• After-call work time: This measures how much time agents spend on tasks after a call ends, like filling out forms or updating records, ensuring nothing gets missed.

An agent activity report is a great place to start with call center analytics because your agents reflect your business and directly communicate with your customers. 

With this report, you can identify training opportunities, recognize top-performing agents, and make data-driven decisions to improve your team’s performance.

2. Daily Summary Report

The daily summary report provides a bird’s eye view of the day-to-day operations within your call center, summarizing the day’s activities to offer insights into operational health and effectiveness. It’s an essential tool for understanding the bigger picture of how your call center is performing daily.

When curating your daily summary report, make sure to track the following:

• How many agents were working: This number gives you a snapshot of your staffing levels for the day, which is crucial for assessing if you have enough support to handle the call volume.
• The schedule adherence rate: This metric shows how well agents stick to their scheduled work times, an important factor in maintaining consistent service levels.
• Call volume for the day: Understanding the total number of calls received helps you gauge the demand and plan for future staffing needs.
• The number of calls answered and abandoned: This insight allows you to measure customer service success and identify areas for improvement in call management.
• If the service level was met: This checks whether the call center achieved its predefined service goals, offering a measure of overall performance.
• The average handle time for the entire call center: By looking at how long it takes, on average, to handle a call, you can assess efficiency and effectiveness across the board.
• The average answer speed for the day: This tells you how quickly agents can answer incoming calls—the quicker they answer, the happier your callers will be.
• The shortest and longest hold times: Analyzing these extremes helps identify inconsistencies in call handling and opportunities to improve the customer experience.
• The most used call disposition codes: Understanding the common outcomes of calls can guide training and operational adjustments.

Use this report as a daily check-in tool to quickly address any dips in performance and maintain a consistently high standard of customer service. It’s a great report to summarize and send to your team regularly to keep everyone informed and on track.

3. Monthly Volume Trend Snapshot Report

The monthly volume trend snapshot report helps you understand how busy your call center gets and when. This knowledge is key to ensuring that you have the right number of agents ready to help customers, whether it’s a slow day or your busiest season.

This report can be parsed into in four versions, each giving you a clear picture of call volumes over different periods: 

• Daily ups and downs
• Weekly peaks
• Month over month comparisons
• The big picture of your busiest seasons.

Within these reports, look for fluctuations in call volume that can help identify trends and patterns that could impact staffing, customer experience, and overall operational efficiency.

A month is usually long enough to measure changes in call volume, but some businesses may want to compare this report against year-over-year data to get a more comprehensive view.

4. Service Level Agreement (SLA) Report

The service level agreement (SLA) report is critical for any call center aiming to meet and exceed client expectations. An SLA sets the standard for service quality, like ensuring 80% of calls are answered within 20 seconds. This report shows how closely your call center follows these agreements.

When tracking performance in an SLA report, you’ll want to pay attention to:

• Service level metrics: Outline each agreement, such as response times, and identify the client it’s associated with. This clarity helps you monitor specific goals tailored to each client’s needs.
• Goal achievement: Record whether your team is hitting these standards. Knowing where you stand allows you to celebrate successes or quickly address shortcomings.
• SLA breaches: Note any instances where service levels fall short, including who was responsible and what went wrong. This insight is vital for preventing future breaches.
• Timing of breaches: Pinpoint when these lapses occurred to detect any patterns or triggers. Understanding the timing helps in crafting strategies to improve service consistency.

Managers and directors rely on the SLA report to safeguard the call center’s reputation and client relationships. By analyzing this report, you can make informed decisions to enhance service quality, ensuring your call center meets and exceeds client expectations.

5. Queue Activity Report 

A queue activity report can help a call center fine-tune its operations and improve the customer experience. This report dives into what happens when customers are placed in different waiting lines, or queues, before they speak with an agent.

Queue activity reports help you to clarify the following:

• Number of calls in each queue: Indicates demand for different services, which can help you better allocate your staff.
• Percentage of abandoned calls: Suggests customer dissatisfaction with wait times, which can show you areas where you may need to improve.
• Shortest and longest hold times: Understanding wait time variances helps set customer expectations and reduce wait times.
• Average wait time before answer: Offers an overview of how quickly customers’ calls are addressed.
• Callers opting for a callback: Indicates customer preference, aiding in volume management and satisfaction retention.
• Average number of queues a caller is transferred to: Minimizing transfers is key to a smooth customer experience and can decrease frustration and improve resolution efficiency.

Understanding queue dynamics offers a window into your call center’s efficiency and customer satisfaction. For example, analyzing why some queues have longer wait times than others can help identify bottlenecks in your system.

These queue-related call center KPIs also measure customer patience and whether your Interactive Voice Response (IVR) or Automatic Call Distributor (ACD) system directs calls efficiently.

6. Customer Satisfaction Report

The customer satisfaction report is essential for gauging customer happiness with a call center’s services. It aggregates vital data points to paint a comprehensive picture of the customer experience.

Since customer satisfaction is a significant factor in achieving business success, call center managers and directors should take this report seriously.

Key components of this report include:

• Average CSAT score: Measures customer satisfaction levels immediately following interactions.
• Top contact channels: Identifies customers’ preferred methods to connect, pinpointing areas you may want to focus on.
• First call resolution rate: Indicates the percentage of issues resolved on the first attempt.
• Failed calls/missed calls: Tallies calls that didn’t connect or were dropped, shedding light on potential access or reliability problems.
• Customer effort score: Evaluates the ease with which customers can resolve their issues, impacting overall satisfaction.
• How often callers are transferred: Monitors the frequency of departmental transfers, which can adversely affect the customer experience if the transfer number is high.
• Customer sentiment analysis: Provides insight into customers’ general moods and feelings based on their interactions, which provides more depth and nuance beyond just the numbers.

These metrics can help you see whether customers will continue to engage with a call center. For example, improving the first call resolution rate can substantially increase CSAT scores, as customers appreciate getting their problems solved quickly.

7. Call Detail Report 

The call detail report is like having a microscope for every call center interaction. It lets you see everything about a call from the moment it starts to the moment it ends and even what happens after.

This close-up look is key to understanding how well your agents interact with customers and handle their questions or problems. By digging into these details, you can find ways to boost your team’s skills and make customers happier.

When diving into a call detail report, you should focus on:

• Who took the call: Knowing which agent handled the call can show you where you need to focus your attention and training.
• When the call came in: This helps you see how call volumes change throughout the day or week.
• How long the call was: Longer calls might mean more complicated issues or areas where an agent needs more training.
• Hold/queue times: Long wait times can be frustrating for customers, so keeping these short is good.
• What the call was about: Understanding why people call in can help you better prepare your team for future calls.
• How long after-call work took: Quick follow-up work means your team is efficient and ready for the next call faster.
• Details about the caller: Knowing your customers can help personalize their experience.
• If a call was abandoned: High abandonment rates can point to problems with wait times or customer satisfaction.
• Cost-per-call: Keeping an eye on this helps manage resources and ensure your call center runs efficiently.

Using the call detail report well means you can spot where your team shines and where they might need a little polish. For example, if you notice calls about a specific issue always last longer, you might need to provide more training in that area.

If your other metrics are performing well, a detailed report lets you use a fine-tooth comb to make small but impactful tweaks that can significantly improve customer satisfaction and take call center quality assurance to the next level.

Exploring these essential reports empowers you to comprehensively refine your call center’s performance and elevate the overall customer experience.