Why Benchmarking is Critical for Contact Centers (and How to Do it Right)

If you're in the customer experience or contact center space, you've probably heard of benchmarking. But what is it, really? And how can it help you understand and manage performance in your contact center? 

In this blog post, I’ll explain what benchmarking is, how contact centers can use benchmarks to understand and manage performance, and the potential pitfalls of benchmarking. I’ll also provide some tips on how to get the most out of your benchmarking program.

What is Benchmarking?

Benchmarking is the process of comparing your company's results against its own past performance or against similar companies in your industry. This comparison allows you to identify areas where you're doing well and areas where you have room for improvement. Additionally, it can help you set realistic goals for performance improvement. 

How Can Contact Centers Use Benchmarks? 

Contact centers can use benchmarks to set goals, track progress, and improve performance. To do this, you’ll need to collect data on a variety of contact center metrics, such as first contact resolution rate, average handle time, service level, etc. 

Once the data is collected, it can be analyzed to identify areas of improvement and set goals for performance improvement. Additionally, the data can be used to track progress over time and compare the contact center's performance against similar organizations. 

In my experience, however, benchmarking can be misunderstood. I actually believe that benchmarking is one of the most important tools for contact center leaders who want to drive meaningful outcomes and create highly engaging work environments where employees feel satisfied with what they do each day in their jobs as well being able perform at peak levels when needed most! 

Here are three ways your contact center should use benchmarks: 

Measuring Internal Achievement

This is a great way to celebrate your success and drive progress toward the goals you've set. You can measure yourself against different milestones in order to determine how successful each department has been at achieving their objectives, which will enable everyone working together as one team towards those targets!

Gaining a Competitive Edge

In a highly competitive industry, you can use benchmarks to differentiate your company and excel. Here's an example: When I led the training and onboarding team of a four-star hotel, we would have new hires call other hotels in our competitive set. At the end of this exercise employees were asked where their favorite place was and why. 

By collecting this data, our agents gained ideas for service differentiators, while marketing teams got insights on programs offered by competitors like amenities or special offers. By using these comparisons against one another, we were able to clearly understand where we were exceeding and where we could use improvement.

Monitoring Industry Trends 

Benchmarking reports are a great way to gain insight into what’s happening in your industry and how it compares against other industries. These types of studies can give you an understanding for shifting trends, but they're not to be used in a vacuum as a decision-making tool. Use them as conversation starters so everyone on the team has input before coming up with next steps together!

Common Pitfalls of Benchmarking 

While benchmarking can be a valuable tool for understanding and improving performance, there are some potential pitfalls that should be avoided. 

First and foremost, avoid comparing apples to oranges. This means that you should only compare similar organizations when benchmarking. For example, don't compare a small contact center with a large one or a local organization with a global one. 

Second, avoid setting unrealistic goals. It's important to remember that benchmarks are meant to be aspirational—they should challenge you to improve but should also be achievable. 

Finally, avoid using benchmarks as a punishment or reward system. This will only lead to resentment and will ultimately damage morale within the contact center. 

The Bottom Line on Benchmarking

Benchmarking is a valuable tool that contact centers can use to measure progress and improve performance. By collecting data on various metrics, analyzing it, and setting goals based on the findings, contact centers can track their progress over time and compare their performance against similar organizations. 

Additionally, benchmarking can help contact centers gain a competitive edge by providing insights into what's happening in the industry and how they compare to other industries. However, some potential pitfalls should be avoided when using benchmarks, such as comparing apples to oranges or setting unrealistic goals. Finally, benchmarking should not be used as a punishment or reward system, which will only damage morale within the contact center.

Learn more about the role of metrics in the contact center and which metrics predict contact center success.

Justin Robbins is a researcher, educator, and advisor who’s spent the past two decades helping businesses define and deliver exceptional customer experiences. Justin is currently the Senior Director of Corporate Communications and Evangelism at UJET, where he leads the Public Relations, Analyst Relations, Customer Marketing, and Thought Leadership programs.