Occupancy rate is the percentage of time agents spend handling calls relative to the time they spend waiting for calls. The opposite of utilization rate is wait time (idletime). Occupancy rate is also known as occupancy .
For a half-hour interval the occupancy rate is: (call volume x average talk time in seconds)/(number of agents x 1800 seconds).
Occupancy rate is not a good measure of this contact center-effectiveness or efficiency, because this measure is influenced too much by fluctuations in the telephone traffic offered, by variations in call types and duration, the size of the agent group, etc.; variables that are beyond the control of the agents. It is important to understand that occupancy is a result of the service level and the random telephone offer and that it does not determine the service level. Conversely, it is true that service level dictates what the occupancy rate will be. Fictional example: a service level where 82% of calls are answered within 20 seconds, resulting in an occupancy rate of 86%. If it service level drops to 24% response within 20 seconds, the occupancy rate rises to 97%.
The terms schedule discipline and occupancy rate are often misused and wrongly confused with each other. Not only are they different things, they also work in opposite directions. As scheduling discipline (promoted by supervision) increases, the occupancy rate (determined by chance) decreases.
See service level, Schedule discipline