5 Rules For Choosing Service Level Agreement Metrics

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choosing service level agreement metrics

Failed outsourcing deals litter the business landscape. Just ask any consultant or service provider — how many exactly is hard to tell. Businesses hate to announce failures. But one IT executive estimates that about 25%—and maybe more than half—of all outsourcing projects fail. How do you produce a successful outsourcing project? You craft a well-thought-out for choosing  SLA or Service-Level Agreement.

SLA Definition: A service level agreement is a contract between a business & its service provider clearly defining the expected quality of service, governed by metrics, and the remedies or penalties, if any, should the service levels not be achieved.

An SLA measures your relationship with a service provider. It also defines key activities. Creates expectations and objectives. And accurately measures performance.

At the heart of an SLA is its set of metrics. They translate an SLA into something that can be measured and managed. So choosing the right metrics for an outsourcing project is paramount.

But doing that is often a challenge. With so many metrics out there, managers are hard-pressed to decide on the right ones.

Rules For Choosing Service Level Agreement Metrics

If you’re like most managers, you’re open to any tips on choosing the right metrics. The five tips below help you do that:

Rule 1: Motivate Behavior

It’s not enough for metrics to motivate. They must motivate the right behavior. This can be a chore when both parties are trying to optimize actions to meet SLA objectives. Nevertheless, realism must prevail here.

When choosing metrics, focus on factors critical to your business. Then pick a set of metrics that relate to these factors. You also must decide which factors you’ll trade for performance improvements in another area.

Action Point: Define all the key factors critical to your success. Then develop a list of metrics that tells you if you’re achieving these objectives.

Rule 2: Easy To Measure

You don’t want teammates spending hours collecting metrics manually. Instead, you want metrics that are easy to calculate. Ideally, you want a cost-effective system that collects metrics automatically. So try to use metrics readily available.

If the required data isn’t easily obtainable, you may have to compromise. Or you may have to devise other ways of collecting the data. A third option is using a commercially available metric analysis tool.

Rule 3: Keep It Simple

Some managers like to gather reams of information. Keep it simple. You have enough information being thrown at you already. Instead, choose a select group of metrics. Make sure they provide data easily analyzed and digested.

Rule 4: Set Reasonable, Attainable Goals For Managed Projects

This can be a challenge if the service provider lacks a historical record of meeting these metrics. If not, establish initial baselines. Then readjust them at a future date. Also, it includes built-in realistic tolerance levels.

Rule 5: Ensure Factors Are Within The Provider’s Control

This is key. The factors affecting the metrics must be under the service provider’s control. Otherwise, the metrics just cause unnecessary problems.

Make sure metrics are double-sided where necessary. If the provider’s ability to do something depends on you, have a metric that measures your performance. And avoid choosing metrics that dictate how service providers do their jobs.

These five rules help you choose the right outsourcing metrics. They’ll form the basis of developing an effective service level agreement, the one that helps you forge a partnership with your call center services provider, set project expectations, and accurately assess performance.

Action Point: Review the metrics in an existing SLA. Do they follow these rules? If not, how can you change them to bring them in line with the rules?

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