Metrics for 211 Centers and
Systems
Policy Dialogue with Maribel Marin
Executive Director, 211 LA County – CAIRS President
29th I&R Annual Training and Education Conference
May 7, 2007
Policy Objectives
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Identify a specific set of metrics that all 211
centers can measure and track.
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Provide a clear definition of each metric so
that they measure “apples to apples.”
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Communicate a clear scope for 211 service
to the public and for funders.
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Enable regional, statewide, and national
calibration, evaluation, and assessment of
211 services.
What is a metric and what is it’s value?
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A metric is a measure of activity or
performance that enables the assessment
of outcomes.
Metrics can help to answer key questions
about operational effectiveness:
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Are long term goals and objectives being
achieved?
What does success look like?
How satisfied are callers with services?
How important is the service to the
community?
How effective are managers and specialists?
What are the Benefits?
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Enhanced decision making – goals can be set for
desired results, results can be measured, outcomes
can be clearly articulated.
Improved internal accountability – more delegation
and less “micro-management” when individuals are
clear about responsibilities and expectations.
Goals and strategic objectives are meaningful –
tracking progress enables the evaluation of planning
efforts and can aid in determining whether a plan is
good or not.
Source: Wayne Parker, Strategic Planning 101 – Why Measure Performance? Workstar Library 2003
Why Metrics Matter for 211?
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Most 211s collect or have the ability to collect
voluminous amounts of data through their Call
Management Systems (CMS), Automated Call
Distribution systems (ACDs), and/or their I&R
software.
Much data is collected for purposes of complying with
AIRS standards, particularly for agency accreditation or
reporting to boards, funders, and/or contracts.
We have yet to realize the full value of this data for
benchmarking (comparing performance against
goals/mission and/or industry peers) and for its
potential for aggregation across regional, state, and
national levels.
Why Metrics Matter for 211?
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Through benchmarking and aggregation of data
across the field, a story can be told about the
value of 211 service as a social safety net for the
entire nation on a daily basis and during times of
crisis and disaster.
The national 211 business plan clearly calls out
the need for creating a unified system through
the development of industry standards in order to
avoid misuse of 211 (too broadly or too narrowly
defined) and create “sustainability for the total
system.”
Funding, funding, funding – aggregate data and
demonstrable performance outcomes enable
pursuit of system-wide funding strategies.
AIRS Data Requirements:
Reports and Measures
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Service Requests
Referrals Provided
Service Gaps
Demographic Data
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Zip Code
City
Age
Gender
Language
Target Population
First Time/Repeat Caller
Follow up
AIRS Standards
National Reporting
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Total Calls Answered/Handled
Services Requested
Commercial Call Center Metrics
Call center trade journals* consistently identify the following Key
Performance Indicators (KPIs) as leading performance metrics or
benchmarks:
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Service Level (% of calls responded to within a specified timeframe
such as 80% in under 60 seconds)
Speed of Answer (time caller waits in queue before live answer)
First-Call Resolution (% of callers helped with one call not requiring
repeat call on same issue)
Adherence to Schedule (actual and scheduled work by time of day
and type of work – handling calls, attending meetings, coaching,
breaks, etc.)
Forecasting Accuracy (measured on 2 levels: actual vs. forecasted
call volume for hiring/recruiting and for existing staff schedules)
Handle Time (includes talk time, hold time, and after call work)
Customer Satisfaction
Cost per Call
Abandonment Rate (calls in queue disconnected by caller)
*ICMI Call Center Magazine, Contac Professional, Benchmark Portal, Customer Operations Performance Center Inc.
(COPC Inc.) incoming.com,
Govt/Non-Profit Gold Standard
Metric
Avg
Best
Metric
Avg
Gold
Service level
(80% of calls
answered)
62.8 sec
21.3 sec
Speed of
Answer
40 sec
31 sec
Avg Speed of
Answer
59.4 sec
18.6 sec
Avg Call
Length
7.04 min
4.44 min
Avg Handle Time
7.1 min
6.9 min
First Call
Resolution
49.1%
65.3%
52%
75%
Abandonment
Rate
9.18%
5.46%
% Very
Satisfied
Schedule
Adherence
70.1%
73.3%
Cost per Call
$6.31
$3.52
Benchmark Portal (2003) Govt & NonProfit Industry Benchmark Report
Govt & NonProfit
industry benchmark report: Best-inBenchmark Portal (2005)
class call center performance”
Best Practices Study on Customer
Service – City of Los Angeles
Common Call Center Performance Measures
Dimension
Interpretation
Average Speed
of Answer
Measures the percent of calls answered within a
prescribed period of time.
Queue
Measures the length of time callers wait for live
assistance, when requested
Electronically
Handled Calls
Measures how many callers complete their calls
using only the self-help technologies (IVR
automated attendant)
Measures how many callers hang up while waiting
for live assistance.
Measures how many calls are satisfactorily
completed, or not escalated, after receiving live
assistance.
Generate reports on call center performance that
can serve as input into budgeting process.
Abandonment
Rate
First Contact
Resolution
Performance
Tracking
Source: Gartner Group and PwC subject matter experts
Best Practice
80 percent
within 20
seconds
43 seconds
30 percent
5 percent
88 percent
Weekly
Common 211 Metrics
Quanity of Service
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Quality of Service
Number of Calls
Handled/Answered
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Referrals Provided to
Callers
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Speed of
Answer/Service Level
Abandonment
Rate/Dropped Calls
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Call Length
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Follow up Rate
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Service Gaps
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Caller Satisfaction
211 Recommended Best Practices
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Agency Accreditation (AIRS Standards
compliance)
CIRS/CRS certification
24/7 service
Universal Access – cell, TTY, cable, web
Service provided by a live, trained I&R
Specialist without being required to leave a
message or hang up and dial a separate
number.
Multilingual service
Call monitoring
211 LA County Metrics
Metric
Target
Actual
(1st Qtr 2007)
Service Level/Speed of Answer
80% in 60 sec
92%
Abandonment Rate
< 10%
3.5%
Satisfied with Services
95%
93%
Follow-up Rate (non-crisis 211)
3 calls/CRA per month
3+/CRA/mo
Average calls monitored
2 calls/CRA per week
2/CRA/wk
# of new programs/services added to
database each year (for FY 06-07)
10% increase per year
3.6%
Annual Survey Response Rate
(figures for June-July 06-07 fiscal year 1 qtr remaining in process)
1st Mailing: 60%
2nd Mailing: 20%
Phone Contact: 20%
49.96%
18.44%
9%
# of agency site visits per year
50
20
% of eligible CRAs AIRS certified
100%
81%
Employee turnover rate
< 10%
7.7%
Standardizing 211 Metrics
Attempts to generate national reports on performance and
service outcomes to support funding requests have been
challenged by the lack of common definitions for basic
measurements.
Many 211 systems are attempting to bridge the differences
through data standardization processes – just a few
referenced here:
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Texas I&R Network: Dr. Sherry Bame, Texas A&M University
United Ways of Ontario, Canada: Michael Milhoff, consultant
WIN 211 (Washington and Oregon): Karen Fisher, Associate
Professor, University of Washington Information School (211
Outcomes Registry project)
IN 211 (Indiana): through it’s 211 operations manual
development process
AIRS Accreditation Committee: through 2007 revised standards
led by Faed Hendry, chair and Manager of Training and Outreach
at Findhelp Information Services of Toronto.
Challenges to Standardization
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Limited data collection/reporting
capability
Lack of common terms and definitions
Lack of standard call types/needs lists
Inconsistent measurement/reporting
frequencies
Too much variation in data collection
fields among I&R software systems
Varying data sources: I&R software vs.
CMS/ACD
Too much data collection not enough data
analysis
Key Consistency Questions
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How is a call defined?
Are demographics taken on caller or client?
Are multiple clients on one call counted as a
single transaction? A single call?
Is age data collected by number of years, age
range/group, birth date?
Is location data related to caller or client? Is it
location of call or location of residence?
Data reported daily, monthly, quarterly, annually?
Why Metrics Matter
1.
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8.
What you don’t measure doesn’t count.
What gets measured gets done.
If you don’t measure results, you can’t tell success
from failure.
If you can’t see success, you can’t reward it.
If you can’t reward success, you’re probably
rewarding failure.
If you can’t see success, you can’t learn from it.
If you can’t recognize failure, you can’t learn from it.
If you can demonstrate results, you can win public
support.
Source: Aiming to Improve, Audit Commission, Reinventing Government, Osborne and Gaebler
Next Steps
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Join 211 North America Metrics Project
http://211metrics.updatelog.com
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Share findings of your region’s work
Weigh in on which metrics should be
collected by 211s
Voice your position on how the scope of
211 service should be defined
Participate in discussions on:
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Common definitions and terms
Standard call types/needs lists
Measurement/reporting frequencies
Demographic data best practices
Sources and References
Websites
 www.callcentermagazine.com
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www.contactprofessional.com
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www.incoming.com (Queue Tips)
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www.copc.com Customer Operations Performance Center Inc.
(COPC Inc.) is a leading authority on operations management
and performance improvement for buyers and providers of
customer contact center services.
www.iawg.gov/performance/ - The Interagency Working
Group (IAWG) on U.S. Government-Sponsored International
Exchanges and Training created in 1997 for improving the
coordination, efficiency, and effectiveness of United States
Government-sponsored international exchanges and training.
www.211California.org Section on 211 Standards
Sources and References
Reports
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National 211 Benchmark Survey – conducted by 211 San Diego
(www.cairs.org/211.htm in 211 standards section)
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Devising, Implementing, and Evaluating Customer Service Initiatives
(1/30/2007) – Office of Citizen Services & Communications: US GSA
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Agency Experiences with Outcomes Measurement – United Way of America
(2000)
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WIN 2-1-1 Performance Evaluation and Cost-Benefit Analysis of 2-1-1 I&R
Systems – University of Washington, Information School – Karen
Fisher/Matt Saxton (2005)
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National 211 Business Plan – AIRS/UWA (2002)
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211 Data Entry & Database Coding for TIRN – Texas A&M University – Dr.
Sherry I. Bame
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211 Across California by 2010 – Business Plan: 211 California Partnership
with Sadlon & Associates, Inc.
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AIRS Standards for Professional Information and Referral, Version 5.1
(2006)
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Operations Manual – Indiana 211 Partnership, Inc. - First Approved
7/09/02; last revision 5/9/06
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COPC-2000 CSP Gold Standard Release 4.1 (January 2007)
Contact Information:
Maribel Marin
Executive Director
211 LA County
(626) 350-1841
mmarin@211LA.org
Real People. Real Answers. Real Help.
www.211LACounty.org
INFORMATION AND REFERRAL FEDERATION OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY
Serving Los Angeles County since 1981