RESPONSE TIME 4 minute read
Measure the response, not just the notification.
A useful response-time report needs consistent timestamps and a clear definition of contact. Otherwise, a quick notification can be mistaken for a quick human response.
Christopher SilveyPractical workflow guidance · November 1, 2026
Keep source time and arrival time separate
Store when the form or CRM created the inquiry and when your monitoring system received it. A scheduled integration may deliver it later. Measuring only from arrival hides that delay. Use the source timestamp where it is available and trustworthy.
Define a qualifying contact event
A phone attempt, an email sent by an employee, and a two-way conversation are different events. Decide which one satisfies your response policy. Label manually reported contact separately from activity supplied by a connected system. Neither necessarily proves a successful conversation.
Choose elapsed time or business time
Elapsed time includes nights and weekends. Business time counts only the defined working schedule. Both can be useful, but a report must say which it uses. Store a timezone for every business and handle holidays and daylight-saving changes when building the scheduling service.
Show overdue leads alongside averages
Reporting only on contacted leads leaves untouched inquiries out of the calculation. Show the number still waiting, their age, and the percentage contacted within the target. For contacted leads, median and slower response times can reveal more than a single average.
Separate data quality from team performance
Missing timestamps, unlogged calls, duplicate submissions, and broken connections can distort results. Show unknown states explicitly. A gap in the activity log means no qualifying activity was recorded; it does not prove that nobody acted.
See the idea in a sample workspace.
The interactive demo uses fictional inquiries. Try recording contact and setting a next action.
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