--- title: "SLA: what it is, how to define it and measure it | attendo" description: "What an SLA or service level agreement is, the five things it needs so you can meet it, and the usual mistake: signing an SLA that nobody can measure." url: "https://attendo.me/en/glossary/sla" lang: "en" --- # SLA: what it is, how to define it and how to measure it Also known as: Service level agreement An SLA (service level agreement) is the written commitment, usually part of a contract, on how quickly you will respond to and resolve a customer’s tickets. ## What an SLA you can meet should include 1. **Severity levels defined** with concrete examples, not adjectives. “Critical” has to mean the same thing to the customer and to you. 2. **Two separate clocks**: [first response time](https://attendo.me/en/glossary/first-response-time) and [resolution time](https://attendo.me/en/glossary/resolution-time). Mixing them up is a common cause of disputes. 3. **Coverage hours** and a holiday calendar. A 4-hour SLA does not mean the same thing 24/7 as it does during business hours. 4. **Clock pauses**: when the next step depends on the customer, the clock stops. If it is not written down, it does not exist. 5. **How it is measured and who provides the data.** If you measure it yourself in a spreadsheet, the customer has every right not to believe it. ## The usual mistake Signing an SLA that cannot be measured. If the system does not record when the ticket came in and when it was answered, compliance is a matter of opinion. ## In attendo The deadline comes from the [contract](https://attendo.me/en/modules/contracts-and-sla), the work type or the general one, and it is counted to the minute on your hours and holidays. The clock pauses when the next step depends on the customer, and attendo alerts you before a breach. - [attendo Ticketing](https://attendo.me/en/ticketing) [Calculator](https://attendo.me/en/calculators/sla-breach-cost): Cost of missing the SLA What late tickets add up to per month and per year: contract penalties and the hours spent explaining and compensating. ## Where it is used in attendo ### Modules - [Contracts and SLA](https://attendo.me/en/modules/contracts-and-sla): Scope, SLA and hour bank, measured on every ticket - [Customer, supplier and partner portals](https://attendo.me/en/modules/customer-portal): Customers, subcontractors and partners reach their own, your brand - [Flows and AI-Flows](https://attendo.me/en/modules/flows): Flows, phased processes with approvals, and AI inside the flow - [Compliance · My team](https://attendo.me/en/modules/task-compliance): The list of what could be missed, sorted by urgency - [Communications](https://attendo.me/en/modules/channels): Email, WhatsApp, Teams, Meet, web chat and phone, channel by channel - [Reports and dashboards](https://attendo.me/en/modules/reports-and-dashboards): Reports and dashboards for every area, with today’s data ### Industries that use these modules - [IT services and MSPs](https://attendo.me/en/industries/it-services) - [Hospitality, retail and multi-site](https://attendo.me/en/industries/multi-site-operations) - [Facility maintenance and services](https://attendo.me/en/industries/facility-maintenance) - [HVAC and refrigeration](https://attendo.me/en/industries/hvac) - [And any other business](https://attendo.me/en/industries) ## Related terms Support and service ### First response time FRT First response time is how long your team takes to send a meaningful reply after a ticket comes in. Support and service ### Escalation Ticket escalation Escalation is handing a case over to a higher level, because of its technical complexity or because it is running late. Support and service ### Ticket backlog Support backlog The ticket backlog is the set of open tickets waiting to be resolved at a given moment. ### On the blog #### Working with subcontractors without losing control of the service The work you subcontract is still your service in the customer’s eyes. What gets lost is not the work itself. It is knowing whether the job was accepted, when it will happen and what was used. A few simple rules bring that back, without burying anyone in paperwork. 6 min read #### How to measure your support SLA and prove you meet it Signing an SLA is easy. Proving you meet it is another matter, and that is where renewals are lost. If you provide the data yourself in a spreadsheet, the customer has every right not to believe it. 4 min read [See all 53 glossary terms](https://attendo.me/en/glossary) ## Shall we look at it with your data? We will show you how what you just read works in attendo, with your own assets, tickets and customers. If it is not a fit, we will tell you. - With your operation, not a generic demo - A real person from our team replies - No cold calls afterwards Would you rather talk first? - Phone [+34 910 053 530](tel:+34910053530) - Email [sales@attendo.me](mailto:sales@attendo.me) - Monday to Thursday 9:30 AM to 6:30 PM and Friday 9:30 AM to 2:30 PM (Spain time)