Australian Banks Q4 2024 Call Centre Rankings

1. Overall CX Scores

Banking Sector Trends

Overall CX Scores reflect a composite measure of customer experience, combining key metrics such as Accessibility, Agent Mastery, Average Wait Times, and Calls Answered. These scores provide a holistic view of how well banks are meeting customer expectations, particularly for new business opportunities.

• The sector-wide Overall CX ranking for Q4 2024 reached 51.5%, the highest recorded result for the banking sector and a significant improvement from 38.6% in Q3 2024 (+12.9%). This improvement was largely driven by the best-ever Accessibility scores, which made it easier for customers to connect with a live agent to discuss home loans, credit cards, and other new credit enquiries.

• Individual bank rankings varied widely, ranging from 20.4% (ING Direct) to 67.5% (Hume Bank), illustrating the disparity in customer experiences offered by different banking providers.

• Despite this quarter marking a milestone for the banking sector, it still ranked 5th out of the six sectors measured. This indicates a considerable gap between the banking sector’s performance and best-practice standards achieved by other industries.

Bank-Specific Results

• Hume Bank led the sector for the first time with a score of 67.5%, representing the highest level of customer experience among banks in Q4 2024. Their result, combined with an impressive 30.5% improvement from Q3 2024, highlights the impact of their enhanced focus on customer accessibility and agent interactions.

• ING Direct ranked last for the third consecutive quarter, with a score of 20.4%. This continued poor performance suggests systemic issues in managing new business calls efficiently and delivering a satisfactory level of service for prospective customers.

• Bank Australia (61.7%) and NAB (59.3%) followed as other strong performers, with NAB leading the Tier One banks. These results indicate that larger banks still have room to improve compared to smaller, more agile competitors.

Encouragingly, all banks demonstrated improved Overall CX results from Q3 2024. However, the significant gap between top and bottom performers highlights the importance of addressing key areas like accessibility, agent training, and wait times to achieve consistent excellence.

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2. Accessibility Rankings

Banking Sector Trends

Accessibility Ranking measures how easy it is for customers to connect with a live contact centre agent, accounting for factors like queue times, IVR efficiency, and system clarity. This metric is critical as it directly impacts the customer experience, particularly for time-sensitive enquiries such as new business opportunities.

• The banking sector achieved an average Accessibility Ranking of 58.6% in Q4 2024, the highest score recorded for the sector to date. This improvement reflects progress in reducing barriers for customers seeking live assistance.

• Despite this progress, the banking sector ranked second last (5th out of 6) across all industries measured. Car insurance providers recorded the lowest score at 50.9%, while the Education sector led with an impressive 90.4%. This comparison highlights that, even with improvement, banks still lag significantly behind most other sectors in ensuring easy access to live agents.

• Accessibility scores within the banking sector varied widely, from 15.9% (ING Direct) to 86.5% (Hume Bank), illustrating a stark contrast in customer experiences and highlighting inconsistencies in how banks prioritise new business opportunities.

Bank-Specific Results

• Hume Bank led the sector with an Accessibility Ranking of 86.5%, the highest quarterly score achieved by any bank since records began in Q3 2023. Their performance demonstrates a strong focus on minimising barriers to live assistance, setting a benchmark for other banks to follow.

• ING Direct recorded the lowest Accessibility Ranking for the second consecutive quarter at 15.9%, with only slight improvement from their 12.3% result in Q3 2024. This ongoing trend highlights persistent issues that could lead to customer dissatisfaction and missed opportunities.

• The significant gap between top and bottom performers underscores the need for underperforming banks to prioritise improvements in IVR design, reduce queue times, and increase agent availability. These enhancements are particularly critical for capturing new business opportunities, as delays or barriers in connecting with a live agent can result in missed revenue and a poor first impression for potential customers.

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3. Agent Mastery Scores

Banking Sector Trends

Agent Mastery measures the soft skills and effectiveness of contact centre agents across five core competencies: ENGAGE, DISCOVER, EDUCATE, CLOSE, and ENERGY.

These skills are crucial for delivering a high-quality customer experience, particularly for new business opportunities where agents must establish trust, understand customer needs, and provide clear, actionable advice to secure conversions.

• The average Agent Mastery Ranking for Q4 2024 was 52.6%, marking a positive shift from 47.6% in Q3 2024. This placed the banking sector equal third with Internet Retailers among all industries assessed, reflecting gradual improvement in agent soft skills and performance.

• Scores ranged widely, from 43.4% (CBA) to 64.2% (Hume Bank), underlining a significant gap in agent performance across providers. Lower-performing banks may need to prioritise targeted training in critical areas such as communication, problem-solving, and closing skills to improve outcomes in customer interactions.

Among the five Agent Mastery competencies:

• DISCOVER saw the largest improvement, rising by 9.0% to 46.8%, suggesting that agents are becoming more effective at uncovering customer needs through questioning and active listening.

• EDUCATION declined by 2.4% to 65.6%, indicating a need for agents to provide clearer and more relevant information during interactions.

• EMPATHY, a core soft skill within the ENERGY competency, declined for the fifth consecutive quarter to an all-time low of 60.9%. This downward trend may reflect increasing challenges in maintaining emotionally supportive interactions, which are especially important in building rapport during high-stakes conversations, such as those related to new business enquiries.

Bank-Specific Results

• Hume Bank overtook ANZ to claim the top spot in Q4 2024, achieving a sector-leading Agent Mastery score of 64.2%, the highest recorded for the quarter. Their performance underscores the importance of consistent excellence in agent interactions for converting new business opportunities.

• CBA remained the lowest-ranked bank for Agent Mastery at 43.4%, despite a marginal improvement of 0.4%. Westpac, slightly ahead at 45.1%, also struggled to compete with higher-performing banks. These results highlight the pressing need for underperforming banks to implement targeted upskilling initiatives aimed at improving agent effectiveness in key areas like empathy, education, and closing techniques.

• The significant gap between top and bottom performers illustrates the critical role of agent mastery in customer satisfaction and business outcomes, particularly for new sales opportunities. Underperforming banks risk losing potential business if they fail to address these challenges.

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4. Calls Answered

Banking Sector Trends

Calls Answered measures the percentage of calls answered by a live agent within 10 minutes of being placed into the queue. The majority of our mystery shopping calls focus on new business opportunities (e.g., Home Loans, Credit Cards), meaning delays in answering represent missed opportunities and create a poor first impression for potential new customers.

• The banking sector achieved its highest Calls Answered percentage to date, with an average of 84.0% in Q4 2024. This marks the third consecutive quarter of improvement following a record low of 55.6% in Q2 2024.

• Despite this improvement, banks remain last among all six sectors measured for this metric and have consistently ranked last every quarter since benchmarking began in August 2023. In contrast, three sectors achieved 100% Calls Answered in Q4 2024, demonstrating that this benchmark is not only achievable but also a standard in other industries.

Bank-Specific Results

• Bank Australia led the sector with a perfect 100% of calls answered in Q4 2024, the only bank to achieve this milestone. They maintained their leadership position from Q3 2024, where they achieved an impressive 94.4%.

• ING recorded the lowest Calls Answered rate at 44.4%, leaving 55.6% of new business calls unanswered within the 10-minute benchmark. This was the lowest result of all contact centres measured in Australia during Q4 2024, and ING has held the last position for three consecutive quarters.

• Bendigo Bank achieved a significant milestone with their best-ever result of 88.9%, a significant improvement from their all-time low of 33.3% in Q4 2023. Their performance reflects steady progress, demonstrating their ability to turn around this key metric.

5. Average Wait Times

Banking Sector Trends

Average Wait Time measures the time customers spend in the queue after being placed there, excluding delays caused by IVR navigation, forced messaging, or system menus. This means the actual time it takes customers to connect to a live agent is longer than the figures reported here. (Detailed data on pre-queue delays is available to ACXPA Members.)

• The banking sector recorded an average wait time of 2:21 minutes in Q4 2024, its best result to date and a significant improvement from the peak of 4:34 minutes in Q2 2024. However, it remains the longest average wait time across all six sectors measured.

• By comparison, the next longest sector average was 1:27, with other sectors ranging from 0:50 (Energy Retailers, the best performers in Q4 2024) to 1:27 (Councils). This highlights the banking sector as an outlier, with customers waiting significantly longer to connect to a live agent than in any other sector.

• Wait times within the banking sector varied dramatically, from a low of 0:23 minutes (Great Southern) to a high of 6:30 minutes (ING Direct), illustrating the disparity in customer experiences depending on the provider.

Bank-Specific Results

• Great Southern led the sector for the second consecutive quarter, maintaining an average wait time of 0:23 minutes. This demonstrates their ability to provide a prompt and professional response to new sales opportunities, creating a strong first impression for potential customers discussing their banking needs.

• Among Tier 1 banks, Westpac performed best, with an average wait time of 1:12 minutes, well below the banking sector average. This performance highlights their relative efficiency within the Tier 1 category but shows room for improvement compared to smaller, top-performing banks like Great Southern.

• ING Direct recorded the longest average wait time at 6:30 minutes, marking the third consecutive quarter they ranked last in this metric. However, this result reflects consistent improvements, with wait times reduced from 8:27 minutes in Q2 2024 and 6:44 minutes in Q3 2024. While progress is evident, their performance remains far behind the banking sector leaders.