Benchmark Report

for Contact Centers in the

"Sample Industry" Industry

From the world’s largest & most

respected database of contact
center metrics

Bruce Belfiore
Senior Research Executive

Jose Perez David Raia

Senior Research Managers

Alan Pottkotter
Technical Producer

2023 Report
Copyright © 2023 BenchmarkPortal, LLC. V060123 DR
“Note: In order to offer the latest information and metrics, content and material in this document
may be updated without prior notice.”

Please send detailed questions to:

Information@BenchmarkPortal.com

This report may not be copied, scanned or reproduced without the written permission of
BenchmarkPortal, LLC. Additional copies may be purchased by e-mailing
Surveys@BenchmarkPortal.com
or by calling ++(800) 214-8929, extension 1.
For internal use only. Distribution beyond purchasing company is strictly prohibited.

2
 Table of Contents

Acknowledgements 5

Chapter 1: Introduction 6

Chapter 2: User Guide 9

Chapter 3: Methodology 11

Chapter 4: Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) 14

Chapter 5: Detailed Benchmark Results 30

Chapter 6: Trends In Selected Contact Center Metrics 35

Chapter 7: Frequently Asked Questions 47

Appendix A: Glossary of Terms for Contact Centers 50

Appendix B: Tonchev Performance Index 51

Appendix C: Principal Investigators 56

Appendix D: Community Resources & Product Listing from BenchmarkPortal 61

3
List of Charts and Graphs

List of Charts and Graphs

Figure 1: Reasons for Inbound Contacts 16
Figure 2: Average Cost per Inbound Call 17
Figure 3: Average Cost per Transaction by Channel – All Industries 18
Figure 4: Average Speed of Answer 19
Figure 5: Average Call Handle Time 20
Figure 6: Average Abandon Rate 21
Figure 7: Percentage of Calls Closed on First Call Resolution 22
Figure 8: Percent of Perfect Customer Satisfaction Scores 23
Figure 9: Percent of Lowest Customer Satisfaction Scores 24
Figure 10: Annual Agent Turnover Rate 25
Figure 11: Percent of Agent Time by Contact Channel 26
Figure 12: Average Handle Time per Channel 27
Figure 13: Average First-Contact Resolution by Channel 28
Figure 14: Customer Satisfaction Trends – 2018 - 2022 (All Industries Averages) 37
Figure 15: Customer Satisfaction & First-Call Resolution Trends – 2018 - 2022 (All Industries
Averages) 38
Figure 16: Agent Satisfaction vs. Customer Satisfaction Trends – 2018 - 2022 (All Industries
Averages) 39
Figure 17: Average Speed of Answer vs. Customer Satisfaction Trends – 2018 - 2022 (All
Industries Averages) 40
Figure 18: Containment/Efficiency KPI Trends – 2018 - 2022 (All Industries Averages) 41
Figure 19: Trends in Cost per Call – 2018 - 2022 (All Industries Averages) 43
Figure 20: Occupancy & Utilization Trends – 2018 - 2022 (All Industries Averages) 44
Figure 21: Trends in Auxiliary Time – 2018 - 2022 (All Industries Averages) 45
Figure 22: Calls per Agent Hour Trend – 2018 - 2022 (All Industries Averages) 46

Page | 4
Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements
We wish to extend our thanks to the many contact center managers who have
contributed to our database over the years. We would also like to acknowledge the
contribution of colleagues who have provided both inspiration and perspiration to
make this effort useful to managers all over the world. In particular, we note the
founding contributions of our former partners, Dr. Jon Anton and David Machin, and the
constant support of retired Professor Richard Feinberg of Purdue University.

We also thank our report team, especially Michael Feinberg, Alan Pottkotter and Sergio
Ramazzina for their untiring efforts to make these reports the best value available for the
contact center industry.

Bruce L. Belfiore, Senior Research Executive

David Raia, Senior Research Manager
Jose Perez, Senior Research Manager

5
Chapter 1: Introduction

Page | 6
Chapter 1: Introduction

1. Chapter 1: Introduction
“Every enterprise, in every sector, can benefit from comparing itself to other
similar operations. This promotes a process of creative soul-searching regarding
comparative strengths and weaknesses, which, in turn, leads to identification
and adoption of best practice improvements. We have repeatedly seen the
transformative power of systematic benchmarking for customer contact
centers.” ~ Bruce Belfiore, BenchmarkPortal
Please Note: We take the opportunity in our 2023 Industry Reports to signal the impact caused
by the recent COVID-19 pandemic and post Pandemic years, in addition to the effect that
advancements in contact center technology have had on contact center performance metrics.
These elements have had significant impacts on the collecting of KPI data and on the data as
well. Some metrics have changed noticeably as a result.
Benchmarking has proven to be an important tool for managers. Comparing operating
metrics and methodologies with other enterprises in the same industry has provided
managers a structured approach to contact center performance issues with useful
insights, resulting in a fact-based process of discovery, action and improvement that
leads to superior performance.
Superior performance in customer contact is more important today than ever. As
products become commoditized, it is the service aspect which determines loyalty and
repeat sales in more and more industries. Knowing your competitive position on the
customer service you provide is key.
Contact centers are ideal operations for benchmarking for several reasons:
 They all have software service platforms that automatically capture large
quantities of data on key performance metrics. Unlike industries where gathering
apples-to-apples data is a long and laborious process, gathering data for
contact centers is easier and can now be substantially automated under a
patented process pioneered by BenchmarkPortal.

 Senior managers look to contact centers to prove their value to the organization
on a regular basis. Regular benchmarking of the contact center provides
management the performance-based information needed to make decisions
on staffing, training, technology acquisition, and other investment and budget-
related matters.

 Contact centers are the enterprise’s “front door” to customer experience,

satisfaction and loyalty. The center’s relative performance on quality metrics
can reveal volumes about its competitive position against its industry.

We invite you to consider a client-specific, in-depth Benchmark Assessment, as well as

our certificated training courses, which are offered for all levels of contact center
professionals.

7
Chapter 1: Introduction
Why BenchmarkPortal?

Since beginning its benchmarking activities on the campus of Purdue University in 1995,
BenchmarkPortal has gained a reputation as the source for the broadest and most
reliable database for the contact center industry. Data we receive goes through a
multi-layered scrubbing process to ensure accuracy. This includes both automated
statistical parameters, as well as human quality control. In addition, BenchmarkPortal
was awarded a patent for its advanced benchmarking process. As a result,
BenchmarkPortal is considered the gold standard for data in our sector.
By monitoring competitive position with the help of BenchmarkPortal benchmarking,
and identifying areas that require improvement, contact centers can make continuous
improvement a part of their culture. The ROI that results from this approach provides
quantifiable proof of efficiency and effectiveness, as well as a source of self-funding for
technology and process improvement initiatives.
BenchmarkPortal has developed a balanced scorecard process which is explained in
Appendix B (The Tonchev Performance Index) and which lies at the heart of the
benchmark reports we create for individual companies (called Contact Center
Benchmark Reports).
A Balanced Scorecard Identifies Gaps Compared with Your Peer Industry
Your Industry Your Industry
Effectiveness Metrics Efficiency Metrics
Value Average Value Average
Top Box Caller Satisfaction in Percent Contacts per Agent per Hour
Bottom Box Caller Satisfaction in Percent Cost per Inbound Call in Dollars
Top Box Agent Satisfaction in Percent Average Talk Time in Minutes
Bottom Box Agent Satisfaction in Percent Average After-Call Work Time in Minutes
Calls Closed on First Call in Percent Average Occupancy in Percent
Average Speed of Answer in Seconds Average Utilization in Percent
Calls Transferred in Percent Adherence to Schedule in Percent
Average Hold Time in Seconds Average Agent Attendance in Percent
Average Time in Queue in Seconds Auxiliary Time in Percent
Average Calls Abandoned in Percent Turnover of Full-Time Agents in Percent

Our industry reports evolve over time and continue to do so in order to provide a robust and
current view of the Customer Service industry. We have also, over time, launched our Multi-
Channel Benchmark Performance Survey, which includes more data from the email, chat, social
media and other channels. It takes time to develop enough validated data to provide these
alternative channel metrics on an industry-specific basis. In the meantime, we include here
metrics that are gathered from all industries combined.
Please Note: We take the opportunity to signal the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic has
had on contact centers - - on the gathering of data and on the data itself. Naturally, there
have been some metrics that have changed noticeably as a result in many sectors.
We hope that you find this report useful and a stimulant for improvement. If comparing your
metrics to your industry causes you to take just one important action to improve your
operations, we will feel we have done our job. Please contact us with any questions or
requests for further assistance. Contact centers are our passion, and we are happy to
share our insights with you.

8
Chapter 2: User Guide

9
2. Chapter 2: User Guide

Most users of our Industry Reports fall into one of two categories:

1. Contact Center Managers

This Industry Report is a great first step into benchmarking for many contact center
managers. They want to become familiar with the Key Performance Indicator metrics
of the contact center sector, without making the commitment to assemble all of their
own metrics. For these purchasers we offer a complimentary one-hour session with one
of our experts, to walk through the report and discuss the metrics and what they can
mean to managers.

Ultimately, we hope that managers will consider becoming one of our In-depth
Benchmarking Assessment clients and database contributors. In fact, if you decide to
join our large community of data contributors within 90 days of buying this Industry
Report, we will offer you one free individual Multi-channel Contact Center
Benchmarking Report, which shows your metrics side-by-side with your industry peers.

To view a sample individual Multi-channel Contact Center Benchmarking Report,

please visit our website: CLICK HERE

2. Consultants and Analysts

Most consultants and analysts buy our Industry Reports to allow them to benchmark
their clients as part of a larger engagement. We understand that you are primarily
interested in the numbers, so we have made them easy to find and to use.

You may use them in your analyses and presentations to clients, with proper attribution
to BenchmarkPortal as your data source.

However, we would also like you to know that we may be available, under appropriate
circumstances, to work with you on your consultant teams. We have a very collegial
group of contact center experts who can add experience and depth to your teams
and add value to your client engagements.

If you would like to discuss the possibility of having BenchmarkPortal work with you as a
consulting partner on your engagements, please contact us at:
CLICK HERE

A link to our BenchmarkPortal’s complete Glossary of Terms is found in Appendix A of

this Report.

10
Chapter 3: Methodology

11
3. Chapter 3: Methodology
Our data is gathered on a continuous basis using one of three means:

 The majority of our BenchmarkPortal data points are gathered from the many
Contact Center Benchmark Questionnaires (CCBQ) submitted by clients as a
critical part of the benchmark assessment and Report process.
 Participants can download the benchmarking survey from the BenchmarkPortal
website. They can print and complete the survey by hand and then scan or fax
it to us for insertion into our database.
 Participants can also subscribe to iBenchmark, our automated process that
receives many metrics directly from the participants’ systems and enters them
into our database. Data that does not come directly from systems data (such as
budget and agent turnover) are input manually once or twice a year by the
participants via a survey portal.

Data that is submitted by survey participants are subject to three levels of rigorous
quality checking, to ensure that our database remains accurate. The first level involves
static parameters, which are set by our statistical experts. The second level of quality
assurance involves a series of cross-check formulae, which utilize the data provided to
validate key pieces of data. For example, if the sum of the average talk time plus the
average after call work time multiplied by the average number of calls per agent per
hour yields a number over 60 minutes, the anomaly will result in a red flag for our
database department. We will then reach out and work with the participant to
identify the proper metric from their management reports. The third level of scrutiny is
provided directly by our Research team members, who review each survey report
individually.

This commitment to quality distinguishes BenchmarkPortal’s database from other

industry sources which simply take in metrics as entered by participants. While this level
of scrutiny requires considerable effort and cost, we are committed to providing the
best data possible to our industry.

We note that, as more centers adopt the patented iBenchmark automated

benchmarking, the less impact there will be from human error. Automating the entry of
data and provision of reports, utilizing our patent-protected system, ensures that the
correct data are being entered “at the source” for the majority of the key performance
metrics.

All individual metrics are held as completely confidential and are never revealed with
the name of the participant to third parties. Only aggregated data are published in our
Industry Reports, such as the one you are reading now.

The data sets are all tagged by industry sector, as well as by other characteristics, such
as country of origin. This allows us to create reports that are drawn entirely from one
industry sector. Custom reports can be generated by using parameters agreed with
the client. The report generator accesses the data and calculates the industry

12
averages. It also segregates the top quartile (25%) of the data sets and shows the
average for these top-performing centers under the “Upper-Quartile” column.
To determine which centers to include in the Upper Quartile calculation, we do the
following:

● We separate the performance metrics into two categories: efficiency metrics

that correspond to costs (these are metrics such as cost per call, talk time, after-
call work time, etc.) and effectiveness metrics, which correspond to quality
(caller satisfaction, first contact resolution, etc.). In this way we place balanced
emphasis on the elements that reflect quality of customer service and elements
that indicate careful use of company resources.

● The two groupings of metrics are put through separate expert formulae to
calculate two coefficients: the cost index (indicating overall efficiency) and the
quality index (indicating relative overall effectiveness).

● The two indices are added together for each center, and the centers are stack
ranked by their combined scores.

● The top quartile of the centers is selected out.

● The averages for each metric are calculated from this upper quartile of centers.

Note that use of this methodology means that not every upper quartile average will be
better than the overall industry average. Centers that perform better overall may be
less strong (compared with the industry) for specific metrics.

Additional Note on the Pandemic Impact.

As stated in Chapter 1, the COVID-19 pandemic had a major impact on our industry and the
people working in it. This, in turn, affected the metrics which many centers submitted. After
hours of study and discussion, our Research Department has decided to use rolled up
averages for 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022 to account for this phenomenon. These
averages include the two years before the pandemic, the height of the pandemic, and the
period immediately post pandemic. This approach flattens the spikes and the fall-off in
performance during the most difficult years. The Trends Analysis section helps to put some of
the peaks and valleys into perspective.

Thank you for acquiring this report. Please let us know if you have any questions or
comments or wish to discuss purchase of a customized report.

13
Chapter 4: Highlights and Comments of Computer – Insurance - Health
Industry Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Chapter 4: Key Performance Indicators

(KPIs)

Page | 14
4. Chapter 4: Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

This chapter provides focus on individual metrics of interest to contact center managers
and analysts. The metrics are grouped according to the following categories:

Section One: Contact Center Classification

Section Two: Contact Center Costs

Section Three: Contact Center Performance

Section Four: Customer Satisfaction

Section Five: Human Resource Management

Section Six: Multi-Channel Metrics

15
 Section One: Contact Center Classification
In this section we graphically depict the survey results of selected contact center
classification questions.

Question: Which functions do your agents provide regarding inbound contacts?

Figure 1: Inbound Contacts – Call Types

16
Section Two: Contact Center Costs
This section graphically depicts survey results regarding contact center cost
performance.

Question: What is your average cost per inbound Agent and IVR handled Voice call?
This is the sum of all costs for running the call center (Total Accounting Department
reported Contact Center Budget) for the period times divided by the number of calls
handled in the call center for the same period. This includes all calls for all reasons
whether handled by an agent or technology, such as IVR. You can also just calculate
the cost per call for agent-handled calls as follows = Budget times the percentage of
Agent time spent handling Inbound Voice calls divided by the number of Agent-
Handled calls. The number of Agent–handled calls will be captured by the ACD.

Figure 2: Average Cost per Inbound Call

17
There are 10 additional highlight charts &
interpretations included in this chapter.

18
Chapter 5: Detailed Benchmark Results – All Metrics – All channels

Chapter 5: Detailed Benchmark Results – All

Metrics – All Channels

19
Chapter 5: Detailed Benchmark Results – All Metrics – All channels

"Sample Industry"
"Sample Industry" All Industries
Classification Questions Average
Upper Quartile
Average
Average

Calls Offered ******* ******* *******

Calls Handled Annually ******* ******* *******

Annual Call Volume Handled by Agents ******* ******* *******

Annual Call Volume Handled by IVR ******* ******* *******

Business to Business ******* ******* *******

Business to Consumer ******* ******* *******

Full Time Agents ******* ******* *******

Part Time Agents ******* ******* *******

Full Time Equivalents (FTE's) ******* ******* *******

Labor Union (Yes) ******* ******* *******

Labor Union (No) ******* ******* *******

Call Type (Question & Inquiries) ******* ******* *******

Call Type (Order Taking / Tracking) ******* ******* *******

Call Type (Technical Support) ******* ******* *******

Call Type (Complaints) ******* ******* *******

Call Type (Re-directing Inbound Calls) ******* ******* *******

Call Type (Other) ******* ******* *******

"Sample Industry"
"Sample Industry" All Industries
Financial Average
Upper Quartile
Average
Average

Annual Budget ******* ******* *******

Agents Base Salary ******* ******* *******

Average Hourly Wage Front Line Agents ******* ******* *******

Average Starting Hourly Wage Front Line
******* ******* *******
Agents
Average Cost Per Call (Includes IVR) ******* ******* *******
Average Cost Per Contact (Includes IVR) ******* ******* 20
*******
Chapter 5: Detailed Benchmark Results – All Metrics – All channels

"Sample Industry"
"Sample Industry" All Industries
Agent Time Per Channel Average
Upper Quartile
Average
Average

Inbound Phone ******* ******* *******

Outbound Phone ******* ******* *******

E-mail ******* ******* *******

Web Chat ******* ******* *******

Other ******* ******* *******

"Sample Industry"
"Sample Industry" All Industries
Voice Channel Performance Metrics Average
Upper Quartile
Average
Average

Average Speed of Answer in Seconds ******* ******* *******

Average Talk Time in Minutes ******* ******* *******

Average After Call Work Time in Minutes ******* ******* *******

Average Queue Time in Seconds ******* ******* *******

Average Caller Hold Time in Seconds ******* ******* *******

Average Abandoned Rate in Percent ******* ******* *******

Calls Resolved on First Call In Percent (FCR) ******* ******* *******

Agent Occupancy in Percent ******* ******* *******

Adherence to Schedule in Percent ******* ******* *******

Average Attendance in Percent ******* ******* *******

Average Calls Transferred in Percent ******* ******* *******

Average Auxiliary (AUX) Time in Percent ******* ******* *******

Average Utilization in Percent ******* ******* *******

Calls Per Agent Per Hour ******* ******* *******

21
Chapter 5: Detailed Benchmark Results – All Metrics – All Channels

"Sample Industry"
"Sample Industry" All Industries
Human Resources Metrics Average
Upper Quartile
Average
Average

Span of Control (Agent:Supervisor Ratio) ******* ******* *******

Annual Turnover ******* ******* *******

Promotional Turnover ******* ******* *******

All Other Turnover ******* ******* *******

Number of Shifts (Full Time) ******* ******* *******

Number of Shifts (Part Time) ******* ******* *******

Shift Length in Minutes (Full Time) ******* ******* *******

Shift Length in Minutes (Part Time) ******* ******* *******

Formal Method Collect Agent Satisfaction
******* ******* *******
(Yes)
Formal Method Collect Agent Satisfaction
******* ******* *******
(No)
Top Box Agent Satisfaction ******* ******* *******

Bottom Box Agent Satisfaction ******* ******* *******

"Sample Industry"
"Sample Industry" All Industries
Caller Satisfaction Metrics Average
Upper Quartile
Average
Average

Formal Method Collect Caller Satisfaction

******* ******* *******
(Yes)
Formal Method Collect Caller Satisfaction
******* ******* *******
(No)
Top Box Caller Satisfaction ******* ******* *******

Bottom Box Caller Satisfaction ******* ******* *******

22
Chapter 5: Detailed Benchmark Results – All Metrics – All Channels

"Sample Industry" All

"Sample Industry"
Outbound Call Metrics Average
Upper Quartile Industries
Average Average

Average Annual Volume (Outbound) ******* ******* *******

Average Talk Time in (Minutes) ******* ******* *******

Average After Call Work Time (Minutes) ******* ******* *******

Average Cost Per Call (US Dollars) ******* ******* *******

"Sample Industry" All

"Sample Industry"
E-mail Metrics Average
Upper Quartile Industries
Average Average

Average Annual Volume (E-Mail) ******* ******* *******

Average Speed of Answer (Hours) ******* ******* *******

Average Handle Time (Minutes) ******* ******* *******

Average First Contact Resolution (Percent) ******* ******* *******

Average Cost Per E-mail (US Dollars) ******* ******* *******

"Sample Industry" All

"Sample Industry"
Social Media Metrics Average
Upper Quartile Industries
Average Average

Average Annual Volume (Social Media) ******* ******* *******

Average Speed of Answer (Hours) ******* ******* *******

Average Handle Time (Minutes) ******* ******* *******

Average Cost Per Social Media (US Dollars) ******* ******* *******

23
Chapter 5: Detailed Benchmark Results – All Metrics – All Channels

"Sample Industry" All

"Sample Industry"
Web Chat Metrics Average
Upper Quartile Industries
Average Average

Average Annual Volume (Web Chat) ******* ******* *******

Average Speed of Answer (Seconds) ******* ******* *******

Average Handle Time (Minutes) ******* ******* *******

Average First Contact Resolution (Percent) ******* ******* *******

Average Cost Per Web Chat (US Dollars) ******* ******* *******

"Sample Industry" All

"Sample Industry"
Fax Average
Upper Quartile Industries
Average Average

Average Annual Volume (Fax) ******* ******* *******

Average Handle Time (Minutes) ******* ******* *******

Average Cost Per Fax (US Dollars) ******* ******* *******

"Sample Industry" All

"Sample Industry"
Postal Mail Average
Upper Quartile Industries
Average Average

Average Annual Volume (Postal Mail) ******* ******* *******

Average Handle Time (Minutes) ******* ******* *******

Average Cost Per Postal Mail (US Dollars) ******* ******* *******

"Sample Industry" All

"Sample Industry"
Other Average
Upper Quartile Industries
Average Average

Average Annual Volume (Other) ******* ******* *******

Average Handle Time (Minutes) ******* ******* *******

Average Cost Per Other Transaction (US
******* ******* *******
Dollars)

24
Chapter 5: Detailed Benchmark Results – All Metrics – All Channels

Chapter 6: Trends In Selected Contact

Center Metrics
(All Industries Averages)

25
Chapter 6: Trends in Selected Contact Center Metrics

Introduction
As heir to the industry’s first call center benchmark studies, launched at Purdue
University over two decades ago, BenchmarkPortal has a wealth of data of interest to
contact center managers and consultants. The statistical trends in this section reflect
yearly changes in contact center KPIs across All Industries, with focus on the past
decade.

The first groups of graphics look at quality-related items, while the second group
considers cost-related metrics over time.

Page | 26
Chapter 7: Frequently Asked Questions

27
Chapter 7: Frequently Asked Questions

This FAQ contains common questions asked by contact center

professionals who have purchased our Industry Reports
Question Answer
How are your Industry Reports Members of our benchmark community
produced? provide us data via surveys. When a
contact center professional
participates in our flagship survey, the
Contac Center Benchmark
Questionnaire (CCBQ), their data is
scrubbed, validated, cataloged in their
industry, and then housed in our
databases. We then take the data and
run the averages that appear in the
Industry Reports.
What Industries are reported on Each standard Industry Report covers a
within an Industry Report? single Industry. Please refer to our
website
What kind of Key Performance We report metrics for general
Indicators (KPIs) are measured classification (i.e. size, business
within your Industry Reports? orientation), contact center costs and
contact center quality. You may
download a sample Industry Report
Click Here

How current is the data contained The reports are updated annually.
in your Industry Reports?
Can I get a list of the contact Our confidentiality policy prevents us
centers that participated in your from disclosing the identity/contact
Industry Report(s)? information for any individual
participant. A copy of the
confidentiality agreement can be
found at the following Web address:
www.benchmarkportal.com/cs.pdf
Where can I purchase additional Additional reports can be purchased
Industry Reports? via our Web site at
www.BenchmarkPortal.com (then click
on Benchmarking / Industry Reports)
What format does the report come Industry Reports are delivered
in? electronically in Adobe PDF format

28
Chapter 7: Frequently Asked Questions

using a download link and password

sent to the purchaser by email.
I would like to order an Industry Reports that are current (updated
Report, what is the earliest I can get within the past 12 months) are provided
it after placing an order? within 2 business days of receipt of
order. Reports that require updating
are usually shipped within 7-12 business
days.
What if I am looking for a custom cut We can do custom cuts upon request.
within an Industry? Can an Industry Custom Industry Reports take time to
Report be produced that can suit my produce, so it will typically take 10 – 14
needs? days. Prices of custom reports are quoted
on an individual basis.
I have a list of companies I would like For a fee of $300, we will scan the
Industry data on. Can you produce a database to determine the percentage of
custom Industry Report? companies you listed that are included in
our database that we could roll-up into a
custom Industry Report. However, as per
our confidentiality statement, we cannot
and will not disclose the name of any single
company or group of companies included
in a specific report. If an order is
subsequently placed, the $300 search fee
will be deducted from the purchase price.
In Chapters 3 & 4 of the report, how do See Chapter 3 – Methodology.
you define “Upper-Quartile”?

29
Appendix B: Tonchev Performance Index

Appendix A: Glossary of Terms for Contact

Centers
CLICK HERE

Page | 30
Appendix B: Tonchev Performance Index

Appendix B: Tonchev Performance Index

31
Appendix B: Tonchev Performance Index

Tonchev Performance Index

1. Introduction

Indexes have been widely used to measure the market performance of companies
active in diverse industry sectors. However, as the business processes become more
complex and inter-dependent there is an emerging need for a structural analytical
methodology that thoroughly examines all the aspects of the company’s performance.
In response to this challenge, the Tonchev Performance Index (TPI) was developed to
match the performance requirements of the Contact Center Industry. The index’s
objectives, structure, calculation and characteristics are briefly described in this paper
to facilitate its understanding and utilization.

2. Objectives
The Tonchev Performance Index (TPI) has the following six objectives:
1. Business Performance Measurement: to quickly and quantitatively describe a
company’s Contact Center as compared with its industry peers.
2. Effectiveness and Efficiency Balance: to take into consideration the balance needed
between effectiveness (quality) and efficiency (productivity).
3. Industry and Operations Sensitivity: to evaluate the Contact Center’s performance
based on both industry and business criteria.
4. Mathematical Normalization: to normalize all key performance indicators so that
metrics are expressed in identical and comparative units.
5. Simplified Calculation: to be easily comprehended, calculated and believed
6. Adjustment Allowances: to allow adjustments and updates without major re-design.

3. Index Structure
Considering the above-mentioned objectives, the TPI index has a multi-level division of
its composite metrics. The first division is by types of Contact Centers. Here, there are
three possibilities: inbound, outbound, and both. For each of these three categories,
there is a further split into equal amounts of effectiveness and efficiency key
performance indicators. The idea behind this separation is to achieve a balanced
model that realistically measures a Contact Centers’ performance. Finally, the last
metrical division is by industry types. (Please, see the two figures below.)

32
Appendix B: Tonchev Performance Index

4. Index Calculation

The main TPI index’s formula is:

Q = Effectiveness Metrics
P = Efficiency Metrics
k = “Out-of-Balance” Penalty Factor

33
Appendix B: Tonchev Performance Index

KPI = Key Performance Indicator

n = Total Number of Effectiveness KPIs
m = Total Number of Efficiency KPIs
n = m (Balanced Model)
KPIq,i = Effectiveness KPI
KPIp,i = Efficiency KPI
Cq,i = Gap Direction Coefficient
Cp,i = Gap Direction Coefficient

5. Graphical Presentation of the TPI index

The Tonchev Performance Index is graphically represented by “The Leaf Diagram” (See
the figure below). This diagram is a type of matrix with two axis: effectiveness and
efficiency. Diagonally, across the center of the matrix, there is a yellow line that shows
the balance between the two parameters. Additionally, there are “Line 0” and “Target
Line”. The first line shows the combination of points with TPI index equal to zero, whereas
the second line points the desired performance. The slope of these lines determines
how much a particular company is penalized for not being able to balance quality with
productivity. The closer a given point is to the upper right side of the balance line, the
higher the TPI index and therefore the better the performance.

34
Appendix B: Tonchev Performance Index

6. Advantages and Limitations of the TPI Index

The TPI index differs substantially from the conventional performance indexes. Its main
advantages and limitations can be summarized as follows:

Advantages:

Balance between effectiveness and efficiency - Equal attention is paid on both

goals. Therefore, if there is an imbalance between effectiveness and efficiency,
the company’s performance is penalized, and the index is lower.
Transparent Results – The index value tells exactly the company’s deviation from
the industry average. Depending on the performance, this value can be positive,
neutral, or negative.
Normalization – All metrics included in the index calculation have the same units,
namely they are all in percent, (%).
Adjustability – When necessary, the index allows updates and corrections.

Comparability – Since the company performance is measured by percentage

deviation from the industry average, the index compares “apples with apples”.
Dynamics – Except for the penalty factor, the index does not rely on static
coefficients. Instead, it is based on dynamic industry data.

Limitations:

Database Requirement – The index requires a large database.

Pair Principle – Since the index’s effectiveness-efficiency balance must exist, the
addition of new effectiveness metrics always has to correspond with the inclusion of
equal amounts of efficiency metrics.
Penalty Factor – Even though the penalty factor has a logical justification its value
can be biased.

In Conclusion
The TPI index is a performance benchmark tool that gives a numerical value of the
Contact Centers’ performance. It is a balanced index that can be used for
comparisons of different types of Contact Centers with various business operations. The
strength of the TPI index is its simplicity and dynamic nature. It can help organizations to
identify their weak areas and show the path leading to improved financial and market
results. In conclusion, just as the finish time determines the performance of the long-
distance runner, the TPI index is a single aggregate value that measures a Contact
Center’s competitive performance.

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Appendix D: Community Resources from Benchmark Portal

Appendix C: Principal Investigators

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Principal Investigators
Bruce Belfiore

Bruce Belfiore is CEO and Senior Research Executive of BenchmarkPortal,

which provides key performance metrics and offers best practices
information to the customer contact industry worldwide.
Bruce is the host of CallTalk™, the industry’s first online radio talk show
dedicated to contact center topics. Through CallTalk and his frequent
articles, he provides innovative thought leadership for the contact
center sector.
He is the author of the books Benchmarking for Profits! a manual for best practices
contact center benchmarking, as well as its sequel, Benchmarking at its Best for
Contact Centers. Bruce has authored numerous White Papers and case studies on
contact center topics, as well as being the principal investigator for BenchmarkPortal’s
benchmarking surveys and reports.
He is also head of the College of Call Center Excellence, which provides training
curricula to contact center professionals at all levels through in-person, live-online and
on-demand formats.
A dual national, Bruce has divided his career between North America and Europe and
has fulfilled work assignments in Asia and Africa as well. He formerly worked in the
finance sector with international commercial and investment banks, and also worked
with the Bain & Co. management consulting group in Italy. While in Europe, Bruce was
also a speaker and writer on business topics in English and Italian.
Bruce holds an A.B. degree from Harvard College, a J.D degree from Harvard Law
School, and an MBA degree from Harvard Business School, where he also attended the
HBS Entrepreneur’s Tool Kit program.
Bruce can be reached at BruceBelfiore@BenchmarkPortal.com.

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Jose (Joe) Perez

Jose (Joe) Perez, CCCM, CCCA has over 40 years of managing and
operating support call centers nationally and internationally.
Mr. Perez spent several years managing the technical support/field
operations group for Digital Equipment Corp. in San Diego (later
acquired by HP) as well as directing the technical support group for
three of the largest refineries in South America.
Prior to joining BenchmarkPortal, Mr. Perez was the Director of
Operations, Technical Support Group, for a large communications company in NY and
CT with a staff of over 900 customer services representatives.
As the Dean of BenchmarkPortal’s College of Excellence and its Senior Instructor for
over 11 years, Mr. Perez has developed and delivered the Call Center Management
Certification course while demonstrating his effectiveness in training call center’s staff in
Strategic Planning, Data Analytics, Metrics, Quality Assurance and Workforce
Management among other areas.
Currently, Mr. Perez is also a Certified Call Center Auditor, a Certified Call Center
Manager and Senior Consultant for BenchmarkPortal.
Mr. Perez is fluent in English and Spanish.

Jose can be reached at: jperez@benchmarkportal.com

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David Raia

David Raia is a Senior Research Analyst and metrics database

manager for BenchmarkPortal. He is also a Senior Consultant and is
highly regarded in the industry as a Contact Center Operations
Improvement Specialist. He began his consulting career in 1995 and
spent 15 years successfully driving a variety of complex Contact
Center Optimization engagements for Fortune 500 companies and
Government agencies in the United States and Canada. David
manages BenchmarkPortal’s industry-leading KPI database and
has been responsible for the expansion of the database into multi-
channel and omni-channel metrics. He is a thought-leader in KPI
analytics, gap analysis and ROI, as well as the impact of technology on performance
metrics. His consulting areas of expertise include reporting and performance
management, workforce optimization, process reengineering, quality assurance
programs, contact management, agent and supervisor training, market segmentation,
business process outsourcing and virtual consolidations. David has been a featured
speaker on many of these topics at a variety of national Contact Center and
Management Seminars.
David enjoyed a successful thirty-year career in the telecommunications industry,
holding a variety of line and staff managerial positions in Sales, Service, Strategic
Planning and Finance. In his last assignment, he was the General Manager for a 1,500-
seat multichannel and multi-functional national sales and service assistance center. He
was responsible for introducing a leading-edge expert systems knowledge and contact
management platform to his organization that, with modifications, is still operating
effectively today.
David can be reached at DavidRaia@BenchmarkPortal.com

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Alan Pottkotter

Alan Pottkotter is the Chief Operating Officer for

BenchmarkPortal. Within that role, he also is our Director of
Marketing and Information Technology. He is responsible for
database automation for BenchmarkPortal’s large database of
contact center metrics. He is also in charge of the design of all
electronic reports for the company’s benchmarking and other
reports. Alan works with BenchmarkPortal’s partners on all
technology issues and assists clients with issues involving BenchmarkPortal’s product
delivery technology. He attended Santa Barbara City College for Computer Network
Engineering.

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Appendix D: Community Resources
from BenchmarkPortal

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Appendix D: Community Resources from Benchmark Portal

1. BenchmarkPortal’s Mission
At BenchmarkPortal, we believe every contact center professional can make a
difference for each customer experience. Everything we do is about discovering and
sharing better ways to optimize those experiences.

To fulfill this mission, we conduct original research on the contact center sector and
offer a menu of products and services that have proven useful to managers around the
world.

2. Contact Center Certification

The Center of Excellence recognition is one of the most prestigious awards in the
customer service and support industry. The certification process is management's best
path to a world class customer contact operation.
A contact center that has been certified as a Center of Excellence by BenchmarkPortal
has met and/or surpassed rigorous standards of efficiency and effectiveness. This
certification is unique in that its achievement is ascertained strictly “by the numbers.”
This means that the BenchmarkPortal team audits and verifies the center’s key
performance indicators and compares that data to data from other peer
organizations. This is different from other types of contact center certifications that
typically focus on less results-oriented measures, such as process handling methods and
procedures.

3. Contact Center Benchmarking

Benchmarking is now recognized as an essential function for a properly managed
customer contact center. The competitive insights and aids to decision-making that are
offered through benchmarking are so compelling that
managers cannot do without it and still consider themselves
in line with professional standards.
In 1995, BenchmarkPortal's founders conducted the first
scientific, industry-wide benchmark study at Purdue
University, under a grant from IBM. Now custodian of the
world's largest and most respected database of contact
center metrics, BenchmarkPortal uses this data to provide
Contact Center managers with individualized reports. These
reports provide managers the information to:
Compare their performance against an appropriate peer
group of Contact Centers
 Make optimal, fact-based decisions regarding investment, personnel,
procedures, etc.
 Formulate recommendations on how to improve their contact center

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Appendix D: Community Resources from Benchmark Portal

 Determine if they qualify for BenchmarkPortal's Contact Center of Excellence

Certification
Through our reports, as well as our leading edge research, we aim to contribute to the
continual improvement processes of individual customer Contact Centers, and
ultimately to improve the performance of this vital sector as a whole, worldwide.

4. Contact Center Training

BenchmarkPortal manages The College of Contact Center Excellence (originally
developed by us for AT&T) to offer training and certification for Managers, QA
Managers, Workforce Managers, Supervisors, and Agents. The College of Contact
Center Excellence offers one of the most highly sought-after Contact Center Training
Certification programs in the world, led by the industry's top-rated instructors, and with
over 150 years combined experience. These courses will equip you and your colleagues
with the skill sets needed to improve your Contact Center's performance.

5. Contact Center Campus Week

BenchmarkPortal’s Contact Center Campus week is an annual,
unique industry event that presents an opportunity for attendees
to get on the fast track to upgrade customer service and to
drive their Contact Centers’ performance to the top.
Industry experts, along with BenchmarkPortal’s premier team of instructors, will lead and
guide classes and group discussions that explore Contact Center challenges and
emerging trends in the industry. Note: BenchmarkPortal expects to revive Contact
Center Campus after the COVID-19 pandemic.

6. Contact Center Assessments and Customized

Consulting
BenchmarkPortal will help your contact center balance customer expectations and
financial objectives by identifying the metrics that will drive success. Our assessment
process will make performance gaps more obvious and will help pinpoint the initiative
that commits a minimum of resources to achieve the best performance results. Note
that BenchmarkPortal also offers customized consulting on a range of contact center
issues (IVR optimization, WFM, consolidation, multi-center organization, center
reengineering, HR issues, training improvement, technology selection, outsourcer
selection, etc.)

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Appendix D: Community Resources from Benchmark Portal

7. Industry Reports, White Papers, Research Reports

We have turned many of our best practice research initiatives into Industry Reports,
White Papers and Books. BenchmarkPortal's Industry reports are the industry's richest
source of Contact Center information. As the economy and business goals change, our
reports can provide critical information that will ultimately affect your bottom line.

8. iBenchmark
iBenchmark automates the process of benchmarking,
transforming a valuable but time-consuming, manual
process into an automated, user-friendly service that
allows managers to monitor performance on a monthly basis. Monitoring your Contact
Center performance on a monthly basis will allow you to make decisions and select
improvement initiatives that will have measurable impacts on the financial and
operational performance of the contact center. iBenchmark thus represents a major
step forward for Contact Center decision-makers.

9. CallTalk Online Radio Show

A fun and exciting on-line program for education and

learning, featuring BenchmarkPortal’s Bruce Belfiore
interviewing managers and other thought leaders in the contact center
industry. Broadcast monthly, directly over the Internet to your desktop, CallTalk covers
informative and educational topics that impact today's Contact Center. CallTalk airs
without the participation of vendors so that topics will be free from their influence and
guided by the needs of its listeners. Interested parties can access the archive of
programs by visiting the BenchmarkPortal website at www.BenchmarkPortal.com.

10. The Learning Channel

A resource of free video training geared toward agents,

supervisors, managers, directors, or any contact center
personnel, produced in short micro-learning segments
of approximately 5 minutes long. This quick learning
format makes it easy for you to provide training that
works into any busy schedule and because they are short, provides better long-term
results. These videos are constantly updated to meet the changing needs of our
industry. Best of all they are free to use and share as you see fit by visiting the Learning
Channel page on the BenchmarkPortal website at www.BenchmarkPortal.com.

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