Glossary
Service level agreement (SLA)
A defined commitment to respond or resolve within a target time, often by channel and priority.
A service level agreement is a documented commitment to respond or resolve within a target time, often defined per channel and per priority. Common shapes include 'first response within 1 hour during business hours' and 'high-priority tickets resolved within 4 hours.' SLAs serve two purposes: they set customer expectations, and they give the support team a clear operational target. Modern help desks display SLA breach risk visually so agents and managers can rebalance workload before deadlines slip. Avoid setting SLAs you cannot consistently hit; missed SLAs erode trust faster than slightly slower ones that always land on time.
Related terms
- First response time (FRT): The elapsed time between a customer's first message and the first reply, whether from AI or a human agent.
- Resolution time: The total elapsed time from a ticket being opened to being marked resolved, including wait periods.
- Backlog: The set of unresolved tickets at any given point in time, typically tracked as total open and aging open.