But, according to data analyzed in Aquant’s 2022 Service Intelligence Benchmark Report, there is another overarching theme to be found: the way organizations provide service today is not in tune with customer expectations.

Evaluating data from 76 organizations, 31,000+ technicians, 6+ million service tickets, and $7+ billion in service costs, Aquant’s annual benchmark report sought to answer common service industry questions.

For one, how do service organizations and their workforce measure up against industry benchmarks? Why does hitting KPIs rarely equate to outstanding customer experiences? How can organizations stop a failed First Time Fix (FTF) event from spiraling into larger customer problems?

In addition, the report details how a workforce shortage has exacerbated the existing skills gap between the heroes (highest performers) and challengers (lowest performers) within each organization.

With these questions in mind, the Aquant Service Intelligence Benchmark Report identifies and analyzes the sources behind the industry’s biggest trends.

● Service organizations suffer from a wide customer experience (CX) gap. First Time Fix (FTF) rates are one of the biggest contributors to CX gaps, or the difference between what customers expect and what an organization delivers. Aquant’s report shows that companies who measure FTF rates in 7-day or 14-day windows have artificially inflated FTF rates, and are setting the stage for a wide experience gap. That’s the perfect setup for frustrating customer experiences. The moral of the story: a few metrics can’t provide the entire picture—and organizations need to look at experience as a whole.

• The knowledge gap between heroes and challenges is becoming more expensive. In 2021, service organizations faced even larger hiring challenges than in the past. This has left the industry with tens of thousands of unfilled jobs, and caused service costs to increase.
  • The bottom quarter of the workforce costs organizations 84% more than the top quarter. That’s 4% higher than last year.
  • The top 20% of the workforce (service heroes) has a 75% FTF rate.
  • The bottom 20% of the workforce (service challengers) has a FTF rate of 59%.

● It’s possible to overcome these challenges. Each organization’s data tells a bigger story—if they know what they’re looking for. Looking beyond KPIs can help tailor service for every customer, provide a better CX, upskill teams, and cut costs.

For more details, download Aquant’s 2022 Benchmark Report. See how your organization stacks up to its peers, uncover the real-life scenarios that weekly or monthly KPI tracking misses, and start seeing service from the customer’s perspective.