In this article, we’re going to discuss:

• What agent utilization is and how it impacts the contact center experience.
• How to calculate agent utilization and unlock valuable insights using real-time data.
• Common challenges that lower utilization—and how to turn them into opportunities for improvement.
• How call center quality monitoring software can help optimize workflows, balance workloads, and boost agent performance.

A strong contact center experience depends on more than quick response times—it’s about ensuring your agents are working efficiently and staying engaged throughout their day. 

But when workloads are uneven or non-call tasks pile up, productivity dips, and burnout creeps in. Tracking agent utilization helps you see exactly where time is going and where you can make improvements. 

Ready to learn how to boost productivity, support your agents, and deliver exceptional service? 
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What is Agent Utilization?

Agent utilization measures how much of an agent’s total work time is spent on productive tasks. Unlike agent occupancy, which only tracks time spent handling calls, utilization provides a broader view by including after-call work, such as logging notes and updating records, as well as administrative duties like team meetings or training sessions. 

By tracking both on-call and off-call activities, agent utilization gives managers a complete picture of how agents spend their time and helps identify patterns.
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The Importance of Agent Utilization Rates
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• Operational Efficiency: Contact center performance improves when managers can see both call-related and non-call-related activities, allowing them to address workflow inefficiencies.
  
  
• Workload Management: Call center monitor software helps managers detect imbalances and reassign tasks before agents become overwhelmed or burned out.
  
  
• Staffing Decisions: Employee computer monitoring software captures productivity trends, providing data to optimize staffing during both peak and quieter periods.
  
  
• Training & Development: Detailed reports from call center quality monitoring software highlight tasks that slow agents down, helping managers identify areas for targeted training.
  
  
• Performance Assessment: Call center monitor software pinpoints top performers and agents who may need additional coaching, making feedback and development plans more data-driven.

A clear understanding of agent utilization helps you create a balanced, productive environment where agents stay engaged, workloads are fair, and performance improves across the board.
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How to Calculate Agent Utilization

Calculating agent utilization is simple with the right data. The formula is:

(Total Productive Time / Total Logged-in Hours) x 100

Total productive time includes tasks like handling calls, after-call work, and other work-related duties. Total logged-in hours refer to the entire time an agent is logged into the system, including any idle time.

Manually tracking these data points can be time-consuming and inaccurate. Real-time call center monitor software automatically captures logged-in time and productive hours, ensuring accurate utilization metrics.

For both in-office and remote agents, this provides managers with a clear, up-to-date view of how agents spend their time, making it easier to identify and address productivity gaps.
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Strategies to Improve Agent Utilization

Improving agent utilization isn’t just about tracking how agents spend their time—it’s about making their workday more efficient and manageable. By streamlining tasks, balancing workloads, and giving agents the right support, you can help your team stay productive without feeling burned out.

Here are some practical strategies to get there:
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Set Realistic Agent Utilization Goals

Agent utilization goals should reflect the unique needs of your call center. By setting utilization goals that match your team’s workload and structure, you can keep agents productive without risking burnout.

Here are key factors to consider when setting achievable targets:
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• Call Nature: Inbound centers often face unpredictable call volumes and longer calls, while outbound centers follow more structured workflows.
  
  
• Business Sector: Industries like tech support may have lower utilization due to complex calls, while telemarketing centers often target higher rates for shorter, scripted interactions. Contact center experience data helps set benchmarks that match industry expectations.
  
  
• Call Center Size: Large centers handling high call volumes may target higher utilization, while smaller teams balance calls with tasks like meetings and training.
  
  
• Assigned Shifts: Day shifts often experience peak demand, while night shifts may be quieter. WFH online setups can also affect productivity patterns. 

Tip: Use tools like Insightful’s call center workforce management to track real-time agent activity and identify patterns in call volume, task durations, and productivity. This data helps you set realistic utilization goals and make quick adjustments to prevent burnout during busy periods.
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Streamline After-Call Work to Free Up Time

After-call work (ACW) is an essential part of an agent’s day, but when it becomes too time-consuming, it can lower agent utilization. 

Tasks like logging call notes, updating customer records, and sending follow-up emails can quickly pile up, leaving agents with less time to handle new calls. The longer these tasks take, the lower the percentage of their time spent on productive activities.

One of the most effective ways to improve utilization is by automating repetitive post-call tasks. Software-integrated solutions, such as automated call summaries and pre-filled templates, help agents complete ACW faster, freeing them up for the next call. This keeps workflows smooth and prevents downtime between interactions.

Tip: Use call center monitor software to track how long agents spend on after-call work and spot time-consuming bottlenecks. These insights help identify where to introduce automations or process changes, making post-call workflows more efficient and boosting overall agent utilization.
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Adjust Utilization with Real-Time Task Insights

Balancing workloads is crucial for maintaining agent productivity and preventing burnout. When some agents are overwhelmed with tasks while others have available capacity, it can lead to inefficiencies and frustration. Ensuring tasks are distributed fairly helps keep agents engaged and prevents overwork, improving overall utilization.

Real-time task insights make it possible to spot these imbalances as they happen. Instead of waiting for performance reports or end-of-day summaries, managers can see which agents are at capacity and which have room to take on more. This allows for quick, data-driven adjustments, ensuring that workloads remain manageable throughout the day.

Tip: Use call center QA software to get instant visibility into agent activity, from call handling to administrative tasks. This allows you to redistribute workloads in real time, shifting non-urgent tasks to agents with more availability and maintaining consistent productivity across the team.
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Personalize Training to Address Specific Time Drains

Generic training sessions may not always address the specific challenges agents face during their workday. Some agents may struggle with after-call documentation, while others may take longer to prepare for certain types of calls. 

Identifying these individual bottlenecks is key to boosting productivity and improving overall utilization.

Performance data helps you pinpoint where agents lose time and tailor coaching to their specific needs. By focusing on areas like faster documentation techniques or efficient system navigation, personalized training can make a noticeable difference in how quickly and effectively agents complete tasks.

Tip: Use reports from call center quality monitoring software to gain detailed insights into agent workflows. These reports highlight where agents spend the most time, helping you design targeted training sessions that address specific inefficiencies and drive long-term performance improvements.
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Implement Role-Specific Utilization Goals

Not all call center roles have the same responsibilities, so their utilization goals shouldn’t be the same either. For example, tech support agents often handle long, complex calls that require troubleshooting and detailed documentation, while outbound sales reps typically make shorter, scripted calls. 

Setting unique utilization targets ensures that expectations align with the type of work each role performs.

Role-specific goals help balance productivity with realistic workloads, preventing agents from feeling pressured by benchmarks that don’t fit their roles. Tailored utilization rates also make it easier to measure performance fairly across different teams without comparing unrelated tasks.

Tip: Use call center monitor software to create and track role-specific performance benchmarks. These tools let managers monitor agent activity by task type and role, making it easy to adjust targets based on actual data and ensure goals reflect each team’s responsibilities.
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Conclusion 

Most call center quality monitoring tools focus solely on call-related tasks, but Insightful goes further by tracking both on-call and off-call activities to give a complete view of agent productivity. 

By integrating employee computer monitoring software, Insightful provides real-time insights that help managers make data-driven adjustments and create a balanced, efficient team. 

Ready to transform your contact center performance? Start your free trial of Insightful today!

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