I've been thinking...(Which is dangerous)

Your budget gets you more than just the calls you handle for certain, but
for me the cost of a call is better illustrated by thinking about funding
that supports our call activity up to a certain point of capacity.
Realistically, we aren't paid for how many calls we handled, but for how
many calls we could handle if necessary.

Budgeted man-hours divided by average call time = number of calls that you
could have covered without additional expense.

Provides level figures that won't fluctuate when asked year to year or for
specific periods. Total budget divided by number of calls makes it look
like the more calls you take the more efficient you are. Is that additional
call really cheaper?

We also like to constantly show unduplicated clients, or 'client incidents'
(where the same client has a new problem...)...make these numbers into
PEOPLE in need reaching services not calls. Funders want to be helping
people. I don't ever want to equate a call handled by a trained certified
PERSON with a website hit....EVER! They'll soon see that as a cost effective
option...

Funders will ask for what they THINK they WANT to know to measure your
effectiveness....it's up to you to get creative and give them what they
NEED.

That's what we do for our clients...

Tim

----- Original Message -----
From: "Jan Zak" <JZak@...>
To: <airsnetworker@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Tuesday, November 30, 2004 1:16 PM
Subject: RE: [airsnetworker] unit of service/cost per call




Dear Folks,

Our cost per call, based only on incoming calls from clients (no business
calls, hangups, wrong numbers, outgoing calls to follow-up, etc.) divided by
our total annual budget, comes out to $5.64 per call.

I estimate that our cost per unit of service, if we were to calculate it by
counting all calls, contacts, updates, meetings attended, website hits,
e-mail sent, postal mail sent, etc., would probably come in just under $3
per unit of service.

It seems to me that both numbers are important and would best be presented
side by side and well-defined as to what they represent.

Jan Zak, I&R Program Director
United Way Information & Referral
6031 NW 1st Place
Gainesville, FL 32607-2025
(352) 332-4636
(352) 331-2111 Fax
jzak@...
www.unitedwayNCFL.org

Leading the Community to Focus on Issues and Build Solutions that Improve
Lives.

-----Original Message-----
From: Bishop.Peter [mailto:Peter.Bishop@...]
Sent: Tuesday, November 30, 2004 11:00 AM
To: airsnetworker@yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: [airsnetworker] unit of service/cost per call


This is a very interesting topic.

Unit costs should be figured in different ways for different purposes. I
agree that for purposes of funding you need to cost out all you do. However,
if we were to compare one I&R to another, then we need to reduce it to those
things they have in common. The team writing the benefit cost analysis at
the University of Texas has used the cost per call as a method of comparing
211 centers to each other, only including those expenses directly attributed
to 211, not other activities.

I agree with John that many different activities would need to be calculated
if a funder feels that this is too high.

I think once we get some national benchmarks in this area that it would be
much easier to justify a $12 cost per call than it is now with no benchmarks
in place. If your cost is above the benchmark, you would need to show what
value added activities you provide or show that you are serving a small
population or primarily rural one which means that your costs will be higher
than a large call center that can count on efficiencies of scale.

Peter

Peter Bishop
Manager, 2-1-1
United Way of America
701 N. Fairfax St.
Alexandria, VA 22314
tel 904.285.0408
www.unitedway.org
what matters.ä

-----Original Message-----
From: Patricia Couto [mailto:CoutoP@...]
Sent: Tuesday, November 30, 2004 10:24 AM
To: airsnetworker@yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: [airsnetworker] unit of service/cost per call


Would you mind detailing the other things you count as a unit of service and
the value you place on each unit?

Patricia Couto


-----Original Message-----
From: John King [mailto:jking@...]
Sent: Tuesday, November 30, 2004 11:19 AM
To: airsnetworker@yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: [airsnetworker] unit of service/cost per call



Hello I&R enthusiasts,

In the old days, our unit of service cost was determined strictly by
number of phone calls we answered. At one time, it was nearly $12.00 a
call. The organization that has input in our contract was concerned that
$12 was way expensive - and asked can't we find a way to do this
cheaper? I said using just phone calls to determine the number of units
was misleading - as we update records, maintain the web site, print a
directory, go to the 4-H fair, etc. I said those other things are done
for free or at least at no cost using the calls only method. The
advisory group suggested I factor in these other areas as units of
service as well.

Although spending three days at a 4-H Fair presents the opportunity to
speak to a hundred people, and distribute brochures, etc., it now has
the same unit cost as a phone call asking for the number to the dog
catcher. For a brief period I thought this terribly unequal, but the new
formula lowered my unit cost to less than $4.00 (in a good year). I
accept that it's just numbers anyway, and if it makes the advisory
people happy, well, that makes me happy.

I could just sit here and hit the refresh button on my database search
page and watch the page counter advance - that also counts as a unit of
service. The more hits we get, the lower the cost of a unit of service.

So, think of everything you do - treat them all equal, and go from
there.

John King, Information Atlantic
http://infoatlantic.org



-----Original Message-----
From: Mindy Shepler [mailto:mkshepler@...]
Sent: Tuesday, November 30, 2004 9:55 AM
To: airsnetworker@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [airsnetworker] unit of service/cost per call


Hello everyone,

I am currently filling out a proposal for funding and have to identify a
unit of service and a cost per call. I think I am going to use each
call as a unit of service but would like input from others as to what
they use. I think I received some information on cost per call in the
past but I must have misplaced it. I am supposed to compare our cost
per call with the national average so any info would be helpful. Thanks
Mindy


Mindy Shepler, LSW
Butler County 211 Coordinator
Community Counseling and Crisis Center
110 S. College Ave. Oxford, OH 45056
513-523-3412
mkshepler@...

---------------------------------
Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Mail - You care about security. So do we.

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]



==================================================================
The AIRS Networker FAQ at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/airsnetworker/files/AIRS%20Networker%20FAQ

can answer all of your questions about the meaning of life.
==================================================================
Yahoo! Groups Links









==================================================================
The AIRS Networker FAQ at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/airsnetworker/files/AIRS%20Networker%20FAQ
can answer all of your questions about the meaning of life.
==================================================================
Yahoo! Groups Links









==================================================================
The AIRS Networker FAQ at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/airsnetworker/files/AIRS%20Networker%20FAQ
can answer all of your questions about the meaning of life.
==================================================================
Yahoo! Groups Links









==================================================================
The AIRS Networker FAQ at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/airsnetworker/files/AIRS%20Networker%20FAQ
can answer all of your questions about the meaning of life.
==================================================================
Yahoo! Groups Links












==================================================================
The AIRS Networker FAQ at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/airsnetworker/files/AIRS%20Networker%20FAQ
can answer all of your questions about the meaning of life.
==================================================================
Yahoo! Groups Links