As a call center manager, it's essential to track and monitor your agents' performance in a standardized way—that's where a quality assurance (QA) scorecard comes into play.
Although conventional metrics may indicate agents are performing well, team leaders and managers need to monitor calls to ensure employees adhere to all requirements during every interaction. Through QA scorecards, you can help agents understand expectations and give them the knowledge to become better employees.
The Main Goal of the QA Department
Before going further, it's important to understand why the quality assurance department exists.
Whether you're running sales, customer service, tech support, or collections, you need to ensure agents follow the right steps. Your agents don't only represent your company—they're also the face and voice of your client.
Whatever your agents say or do can be interpreted as coming directly from the companies you work with.
QA Responsibilities:
- Monitor and evaluate agent performance
- Deliver constructive feedback to teams
- Maintain communication with clients
QA Impact:
- Bridge between client needs and agent behavior
- Empower agents to deliver great experiences
- Build agent confidence for difficult tasks
What is a QA Scorecard?
A call center scorecard is a practical tool that helps you measure agent performance in a standardized way. In practice, it looks and feels like a checklist that QA employees and leadership use to assess performance and identify strengths and areas for improvement.
How It's Used:
- 1Fill in agent ID, call ID, and interaction information
- 2Go down the checklist during the call
- 3Grade performance as percentage
- 4Determine if agent passes minimum threshold
QA scorecards vary from one call center to the next, but they should all provide a comprehensive view of calls being monitored. Work with your clients' QA department and perform calibrations to ensure both teams are in sync.
The Advantages of Implementing a QA Scorecard
Customers prefer companies that ensure great experiences. Your agents directly impact client results.
Highlight Areas of Improvement
Pinpoint which areas employees need to work on. See mistakes as coaching opportunities and deliver positive feedback in review sessions.
Collect Information Effectively
Monitor agents at random to collect objective feedback. Understand how customers react to tone and approach for a clear interaction picture.
Easier Feedback Delivery
Make feedback delivery easier for managers and agents. Center evaluations around the scorecard to remove negative connotations.
Encourage Teamwork
Increase interactions between agents and supporting departments. Agents understand QA work; QA learns agent challenges.
Monitor Progress
Track agent growth and QA measurement improvements. Adjust scorecard after training to ensure changes are implemented.
Better Customer Experience
Minimize bad service instances. Help agents build deeper bonds with callers and guide them through unusual experiences.
What Elements Are Monitored on QA Scorecards?
Every scorecard is adapted to its call center, but some elements are present in almost all scorecards regardless of business line.
1. Agent Responsiveness
Time it takes for representatives to interact after the call starts. Faster response = better customer experience.
2. Knowledge
Basic understanding of products, plans, and companies. Expectations should scale with agent seniority.
3. Attitude
Polite, friendly, and sympathetic personality traits. Monitor how agents treat clients in early call stages.
4. Ability to Solve Issues
Skills to find solutions on impulse. Essential for sales and technical support agents. Relates to first-call resolution.
5. Follow-Up Services
Additional interactions agents initiate or complete after calls. Only applicable if outbound calls are allowed.
6. Cultural Alignment
Agent mentality compared to company culture. Helps ensure team members understand why certain steps are taken.
5 Tips to Improve Your Call Center Scorecard
Clients set minimum QA scores that facilities must meet. Here's how to improve yours.
Train Leaders to Give Feedback
Your scorecard is only effective if leaders know how to use it. Take time to train leaders on effective communication and providing constructive feedback to team members.
Create a New Script Based on Your Scorecard
Most call centers fail to revisit scripts after introducing new scorecards, causing agents to repeat mistakes. Create a new script version based on the scorecard you're using to evaluate customers.
Schedule Quarterly Calibration Sessions
Calibration sessions align your QA team with the client's expectations. The client's QA team explains requirements and conducts group evaluations. Hold these at least once per quarter (every 3 months).
Keep It Short and Simple
Longer processes = more tedious feedback sessions = lower engagement. Narrow down the most important variables. Keep scorecards to a single page printed on both sides maximum.
Update Regularly
Create a schedule, evaluate scorecard performance, and update regularly. Some do it yearly, others quarterly. Determine your needs and adjust your optimization schedule accordingly.
How to Build the Best QA Scorecard
Consider All Channels
Create unique scorecards for each channel. People behave differently on phone vs. chat vs. email. Don't copy scorecards between channels.
Identify Performance Variables
Waiting time, agent tone, issue type—these elements impact customer experience and agent performance. Identify all variables with potential influence.
Define KPIs to Monitor
Select KPIs based on influential variables. Not all KPIs link directly to variables—you may need to track obscure metrics depending on your industry.
Set Your Objectives
Include specific, realistic goals achievable by improving QA. Be detailed—write down exact steps you'll take to achieve each goal.
Ask Stakeholders for Input
Leverage QA analysts, managers, agents, and support staff. You don't have to use all collected information, but it's valuable for inspiration and understanding team preconceptions.
Gather Feedback Information
Use all available resources to collect feedback. Don't limit yourself to traditional methods—platforms like Autopilot Reviews deliver real-time customer feedback directly to agents.
Ready to Enhance Your QA Scorecard?
Building your QA scorecard can become overwhelming, but it doesn't have to be. As long as you plan ahead and stay organized, you can create a checklist that helps your teams evaluate agent performance effectively.
Autopilot Reviews collects feedback from customers right after they finish speaking with agents, then sends it directly to agents in real-time.
This improves the quality and effect that comments have, giving you more data to build better scorecards and improve agent performance.