KPI Focus: AHT, FCR, CSAT, SLA
The Situation
An appliance manufacturer and retail service team was handling high contact volume across warranties, installation follow-ups, and troubleshooting. Customers were waiting too long for resolution.
What Wasn’t Working
A few process gaps were driving most delays:
- Ownership was fragmented across warranty, logistics, and support teams.
- Appointment coordination had too many handoffs.
- First-contact troubleshooting depth was inconsistent.
What We Changed
We introduced a case-flow model focused on faster ownership and clearer routing:
- Segmented queues by warranty, delivery, and troubleshooting intent.
- Standardized triage scripts with clear escalation triggers.
- Added daily unresolved-case reviews with named owners.
- Tightened QA/coaching around resolution quality and documentation.
What Happened
Performance improved quickly once the flow was simplified.
- Warranty backlog dropped by 33%.
- First-contact resolution improved by 21%.
- Service appointment completion improved by 18%.
The team also reported better internal coordination across support and field-service groups.
A Real Moment From the Engagement
Operations leaders pointed out that customers were often calling about “what happens next,” not just technical faults. That shifted focus to case visibility and coordination.
Before vs After (Operationally)
- Before: Warranty and service calls bounced between teams for status checks.
- After: Ownership checkpoints reduced back-and-forth and sped up closure.
What Changed for the Team
Support staff spent less time chasing updates and more time guiding customers through clear next steps.
Constraints We Worked Within
- Limited time to redesign workflows without disrupting live service.
- Existing tools and reporting structures that could not be replaced immediately.
- Need to improve performance while maintaining day-to-day SLA commitments.
Tradeoffs We Made
- Prioritized highest-impact workflows first instead of trying to fix every queue at once.
- Chose repeatable process controls over one-off optimizations.
- Deferred lower-priority enhancements until baseline stability was proven.
If We Were Starting Again Today
We would still start with ownership clarity and a fast governance cadence, but we would add earlier frontline shadowing in the first two weeks to accelerate practical workflow adjustments.