Driving Answer Rates to the Maximum, Unlocking Peak Call Center Performance
Working with one of our dev agency partners, we put the right data in place, and helped to transform both internal agent behavior and external customer perception.
The Client
B2B Human Resources – Benefits and Healthcare
This HR services firm was growing quickly, handling benefits for some of the world’s largest tech companies. But when employees couldn’t consistently connect with call center agents, the consequences were steep: negative feedback, declining NPS scores, and lost business.
The Main challenge
No Call Data
While negative feedback and poor survey responses made the external consequences clear, there was no accessible call data to explain what was happening inside the system. When we implemented tracking, the true scope of the issue became clear: agent answer rates were just 26%, leaving about 2/3 of callers frustrated and underserved. With no visibility before our work, leadership had been unable to diagnose or address the root issues.
Secondary challenge
Human Behavior
Interviews with agents revealed the issue wasn’t just operational – it was behavioral. Many newer, younger agents admitted they avoided answering live calls. Lacking confidence in their ability to handle complex requests on the spot, they preferred to let calls roll to voicemail. This allowed them to review the request first, research an answer, and then call back. While understandable, this practice created long delays for customers and reinforced the perception that the call center was unresponsive.
The SOlution
Gather and Operationalize Detailed Call Log Data
Custom Webex Integration
We developed a custom Python API integration to extract detailed call log data from the client’s Cisco Webex VOIP system and devices. This gave the organization, for the first time, a reliable source of truth about call volumes and answer rates.
Data Warehouse + Business Context
Next, we built a data warehouse that combined call logs with data from the client’s internal operational tools. By linking calls to specific agents, teams, managers, and clients, we created reporting that could finally show performance at every level of the organization.
Making the Data Actionable
Finally, we embedded these analytics directly into weekly operations meetings. By surfacing call answer rates and trends in front of managers and agents, the data became a driver of accountability and behavior change – leading to improvements in both answer rates and customer satisfaction.
The Results
The impact was immediate and measurable. At the company’s annual kickoff, the CEO unveiled the new call analytics dashboards we built – revealing a startling 26% call answer rate. The effect on behavior was dramatic: within a week of surfacing the data, answer rates jumped by 10%.
From there, continued use of the dashboards and targeted coaching eliminated the issue entirely. Key outcomes included:
Smarter Data. Better Outcomes.
Let’s talk about how we can help your team perform at its peak.