What is After Call Work (ACW)?

One of the most important elements of working at a call center is completing after call work (ACW). In this post, we’ll explore the concept and provide tips for reducing ACW.

What is After Call Work (ACW)?

After call work includes all of the tasks required from customer service agents and sales representatives after a call has ended. 

What are common after call tasks?

• Logging a call disposition code
• Writing call notes
• Updating information in a CRM or helpdesk
• Providing feedback on customer sentiment
• Sending an email to the caller

What is the “After Call Work” agent status?

Agent status is a call center feature that allows agents and reps to display their circumstance by picking from a pre-created dropdown menu. “After Call Work” is a standard option in this dropdown menu, along with “Available,” “On a Call,” “Away,” and “Offline.”

Agent statuses are useful for a variety of reasons. The most simple reason is that statuses enable call center IVRs to distribute calls effectively. For example, if an agent is in “After Call Work,” it doesn’t make sense to route a call to them.

Another use for agent statuses is that it provides a record of agent activity to the rest of the team and management. For instance, an agent that is found to spend significantly more time than others in “After Call Work” might be targeted for further training.

How long should after call work take?

There is no standard amount of time that should be allotted for after call work because the circumstances of every call center are different. As a general rule of thumb, after call work should be as short as possible while still allowing for accurate completion of after call tasks.

Tips for reducing after call work time:

There are two major ways to cut down on after call work time. The first is to reduce the number of tasks that need to be completed. The second is to empower agents to be as efficient as possible.

1. Reduce the number of tasks

• Invest in call center software that makes your agents’ lives easier. The more advanced the call center software solution, the more streamlined the ACW process will be. Automated tasks can shave minutes off of the average ACW.
• Integrate with business tools. Instead of having agents spend time updating CRMs or help desks, automatically sync applications. Added bonus: information is less likely to be lost or misrecorded.

2. Improve agent efficiency

• Boost agent coaching and training efforts by creating a clear plan for after call work.
• Explore call center gamification by publicly tracking and rewarding agent statuses.

After call work is an essential part of work at a call center. Supervisors and agents alike should be well-versed in the concept and steps that they can take to reduce ACW time.

For more information on call center software with advanced agent statuses and automations, request a free demo of Talkdesk’s innovative solution.