Home Automations, SLA and service rules How to set up SLA and service time metrics

How to set up SLA and service time metrics

Last updated on Sep 02, 2026

When to use it

  • You need to set deadlines for first response, next response, and resolution on tickets
  • You want to visually track whether a ticket is within or outside the SLA
  • You want to apply SLA policies automatically based on tag, priority, or agent

Prerequisites

About this article

The SLA (Service Level Agreement) lets you define and track service time metrics. It is controlled by SLA policies that set limits for responses and resolution, applied to tickets through automations.

The goal is to ensure predictability, control, and monitoring of service time.

Access and permissions

SLA policy management lives under Settings.

Only users with the Administrator profile can:

  • Create SLA policies

  • Edit policies

  • Delete policies

  • Create automations with SLA policies

Other profiles do not have access to these actions.

SLA policies

Configured metrics

Admins can create policies with:

  • First Response Time (FRT) — first response time

  • Next Response Time (NRT) — next response time

  • Resolution Time (RT) — total resolution time

Rules and validations

The resolution time cannot be lower than:

  • The first response time

  • The next response time

If this rule is not followed, the policy will not be saved.

Editing

When a policy is already in use and gets edited:

  • The only value that can be changed is the NRT — and not immediately, but on the next message

Deletion

When you delete a policy:

  • It stops working immediately

  • Tickets that used that policy no longer have the SLA associated with them

Deletion is the only way to remove a policy from a ticket after it has been applied.

How to create a policy

Settings → SLA → Create a new SLA Policy → Fill in the fields (Name, description, FRT, NRT, RT) → Create

Once created, the next step is to add it to an automation.

Applying the SLA through automations

SLA policies do not work on their own — to apply one to a ticket, you must set it up through Automations.

Setup

Under Automations, create triggers to apply policies based on:

  • Tag

  • Priority

  • Agent

  • Others

When the trigger condition is met, the policy is applied automatically.

Important rules

  • A policy can only be added through an automation

  • Once added to a ticket:

    • It cannot be removed through an automation

    • Through an automation, it can only be replaced by another one

  • Complete removal only happens if the policy is deleted from the system

How SLA times are calculated

The metrics are calculated dynamically, taking into account the ticket status, who is interacting, and automatic pauses.

First Response Time (FRT)

Definition: the time between the customer's first message and the first reply from a human agent.

Calculation rules:

  • Starts when: the customer sends a message and the ticket is not in Pending status

  • Ends when: a human agent sends the first reply

  • If the policy is applied after the first response has already happened → FRT is not taken into account

  • If ClaudIA takes over the service → the time is frozen while the AI is working

Next Response Time (NRT)

Definition: the time between a customer message and the human agent's next reply, after the first response.

Calculation rules:

  • It only comes into existence after the FRT has been completed

  • Starts when the customer sends a new message

  • Ends when a human agent replies or the ticket is resolved

  • Every time the agent replies → the NRT is reset (it shows up again when the customer sends a new message)

  • Visually:

    • At some moments you see FRT and RT

    • At others, NRT and RT

    • At others, only RT (when the last message came from the agent)

  • It is paused while ClaudIA is handling the ticket

Resolution Time (RT)

Definition: the total time to resolve the ticket, counting only active periods.

Calculation rules:

  • Starts when the ticket is created

  • It is cumulative, with pauses

  • Ends when the ticket is marked as resolved

  • It is fixed — it always exists while the ticket is not resolved

  • It can never be lower than the FRT or the NRT

States that pause the SLA

Times are frozen when the ticket is being handled by the AI (ClaudIA) or when the ticket is Snoozed.

During that period, no time is added — the SLA remains associated with the ticket, but paused.

Changing the ticket to Pending does not pause the SLA — the deadlines keep counting normally. When you Snooze a ticket, the SLA is paused automatically (within up to 5 minutes): the snoozed period is discounted from the deadlines when the conversation resumes.

Behavior with ClaudIA

When the AI (ClaudIA) is working on the ticket, the SLA behaves in a specific way.

Pause rules with the AI:

  • If the AI is replying as the agent → all SLA times are paused

  • That time is not counted as first or next response

  • Counting resumes when:

    • A human agent takes over

    • The ticket leaves the paused state

This ensures the SLA does not penalize the time the AI is working — only human interactions are taken into account.

Viewing the SLA on the ticket

General rules

  • Active SLA → displayed normally on the ticket

  • Paused SLA → still visible on the ticket, showing the deadlines recorded at the moment of the pause

This applies when the ticket is being handled by ClaudIA or Snoozed. Since the paused period is discounted when it resumes, the deadline shown during the pause is provisional — it is recalculated (extended) when the SLA starts counting again, for example when a human agent takes over or the snoozed conversation receives a new message.

Left side — Dynamic times

The left side shows the SLA times according to the status and stage of the service.

How the times are displayed

  • No agent assigned → shows FRT (left) and RT (right)

  • Once the FRT exists → shows NRT (left) and RT (right)

Important rules

  • If the policy is added after the FRT has already happened → the FRT is neither taken into account nor displayed

  • The NRT is variable — reset every time the agent replies

  • The only fixed time throughout the whole cycle is the RT

Visual behavior (timers)

  • Within the deadline → the time counts down, displayed in green

  • Overdue → the time starts counting up, displayed in red

Hover

When you hover the mouse:

  • Within the deadline → shows "how much time is left before it expires"

  • Overdue → shows "how long ago the deadline was missed"

  • If only a dash (-) appears → "the next response is the customer's"

Center area — History

Shows when the policy was added and that it came through an automation.

Right side — Text details

Shows the deadlines and status of each metric in a clear, text-based format.

Metrics displayed

  • They vary depending on the conversation status: FRT, NRT, RT

  • The RT is the only fixed one

Format

Each metric shows:

  • The SLA due date and time

  • A text status below it: "Due in X" or "Overdue by about X"

Colors

  • Within the deadline → green

  • Overdue → red

Pause rules

When the SLA is paused:

  • It stays displayed, with the deadlines recorded at the moment of the pause

  • The deadlines are recalculated when it resumes, discounting the paused period

Summary of the important rules

  • Only administrators manage SLA policies

  • Deleted policies → stop working immediately

  • Edits only affect new tickets

  • The SLA is only applied through automations

  • The information visible to agents is dynamic

  • Once a policy is applied:

    • It cannot be removed through an automation

    • It can only be replaced by another one

  • The RT can never be lower than the FRT or the NRT

  • A paused SLA stays visible; the deadlines are recalculated when it resumes, discounting the paused period

Why do the time tabs show zeros?

The time metrics come in two versions: elapsed time (24h) and business hours. The business hours version is only calculated if the inbox has business hours enabled — without that, the value is always 0, which is why the tabs show zeros.

How to fix it: Settings → Inboxes → select the inbox → Business hours tab → turn on availability, set the hours for each day, and confirm the time zone. From then on, new tickets start populating the business hours tabs.

Notes