Template · Contact centre operations
Nesting period checklist
In short
A call center nesting checklist lists everything that has to happen between classroom training and full production: setup before agents take live calls, daily support and huddles, ramping targets for each week, and the graduation criteria an agent must meet before joining a regular team. Use it to run a consistent nesting plan for every new-hire class.
New Agent Nesting Checklist template
New Agent Nesting Checklist
Class: [Class name / start date]. Nesting lead: [Name]. Planned nesting length: [2] weeks. Tick each item when done and initial it. Track each agent's daily metrics on the class tracker alongside this checklist.
Before nesting starts (training team and WFM)
- Classroom assessments complete; agents below the pass mark have a remediation plan or a decision has been made
- Nesting area or virtual nesting channel set up, away from the main floor noise if possible
- Nesting lead and floor support assigned at a ratio of about 1 coach to 8 to 12 agents
- Production logins tested for every agent: phone/ACD, CRM, knowledge base, ticketing, payment or verification tools
- Agents routed to a limited queue or skill (simpler call types first) in the ACD
- Escalation path agreed: who agents ask, how to raise a hand (physical or chat), and the supervisor for transfers
- Ramp targets for each week agreed with operations and shared in writing
- Workforce management has the class in the forecast at reduced productivity
- Shift schedule and break times confirmed with each agent
- Receiving team leads named, with a planned transition date
Day 1 of nesting
- Welcome huddle: what nesting is, how long it lasts, what graduation requires
- Walk through ramp targets and how agents will get feedback
- Agents listen to 3 to 5 live calls from an experienced agent before taking their own
- First live calls taken with a coach listening in or seated alongside
- Every agent takes at least [10] calls, with feedback on each of the first few
- End-of-day debrief: top questions, system problems, call types that caused trouble
- System or access issues logged and assigned to IT the same day
Daily during nesting
- Start-of-shift huddle (10 minutes): one skill or policy tip, changes, yesterday's common errors
- Each agent gets at least one side-by-side or call review with written feedback
- Daily metrics captured per agent: calls handled, average handle time, QA score, holds and transfers, escalations
- Questions agents asked are collected and turned into knowledge base fixes or job aids
- Attendance and tardiness tracked and addressed the same day
- Agents at risk (falling behind ramp or absent) flagged to the training manager
End of week 1
- Each agent within [150]% of target average handle time
- QA score of at least [75]% on [5] evaluated calls
- All compliance items (verification, disclosures) passed on every evaluated call
- One-on-one check-in with each agent: confidence, workload, schedule concerns
- Additional call types or skills added to routing for agents on track
- Remediation plan written for any agent behind ramp
End of week 2 (graduation review)
- Average handle time within [120]% of team target
- QA score of at least [85]% on the last [5] evaluated calls with no compliance failures
- First contact resolution or repeat-call rate at or near [target]
- Schedule adherence at or above [90]%
- No unresolved attendance issues under the attendance policy
- Agent can find answers in the knowledge base without help for the top 20 call reasons
- Graduation decision recorded: graduate, extend nesting by [1] week with a plan, or refer to HR
- Handover meeting with the receiving team lead, including strengths, focus area and open coaching
First 30 days after graduation
- Weekly coaching session with the new team lead
- QA evaluations at an increased rate (for example 8 per month instead of 4)
- 30-day check-in by HR or training on experience and intent to stay
- Class results reported: graduation rate, nesting attrition, days to proficiency
Sign-off
Agent name: ____________________ Graduation date: __________ Nesting lead signature: ____________________ Receiving team lead signature: ____________________ Operations manager signature: ____________________
How to use this template
- Agree ramp targets and graduation criteria with operations before the class starts, and write them into the checklist placeholders.
- Work through the before-nesting items at least two days ahead of the first live call, especially system access testing.
- On day 1, have agents listen before they talk, then take first calls with a coach alongside.
- Run the daily items every shift and record each agent's metrics against the ramp target for that week.
- Hold the week 1 review and write a remediation plan for anyone behind, rather than waiting for graduation day.
- At the end of nesting, make a clear graduate, extend or exit decision and hand each graduate over to a named team lead.
- Report class results so recruiting and training can see which sources and class designs produce agents who reach proficiency.
What nesting is and why it fails
Nesting is the transition phase between classroom training and full production, when new agents take real calls in a protected setting: limited call types, a dedicated coach, relaxed targets and fast help. It usually lasts 1 to 4 weeks, depending on call complexity. A simple order-status line may need 5 days; a technical support or healthcare benefits queue may need 3 to 4 weeks.
Nesting is where most early attrition happens. Agents who were confident in class meet an angry caller on day 2, cannot find the answer in the system, and nobody comes when they raise a hand. The checklist exists to stop that: access tested in advance, a coach close enough to help within a minute, and ramp targets that tell agents they are on track even while they are slower than the floor.
Setting ramp targets
Ramp targets should rise each week toward the team standard. A common pattern:
- Week 1: handle time within 150 percent of target, QA at 75 percent, compliance items always passed.
- Week 2: handle time within 120 percent, QA at 85 percent.
- First month on the floor: at target.
Example: the team target handle time is 6 minutes. A week 1 agent at 8.5 minutes is within 150 percent (9 minutes) and on track. By week 2 the bar is 7.2 minutes. Compliance has no ramp. A missed recording or privacy disclosure is a fail on day 1 just as on day 300.
Tell workforce management the ramp too. A class of 20 at 60 percent productivity in week 1 is worth about 12 agents in the forecast, not 20.
Measuring speed to proficiency
Speed to proficiency is the number of days from hire (or from the start of nesting) until an agent meets the full production standard for the role. Track it per class and per agent, along with nesting attrition (agents who leave or are exited before graduation) and the graduation rate.
These numbers belong in recruiting discussions as much as training ones. If agents hired from one source consistently take 20 days longer to reach proficiency, or a certain screening step predicts who leaves in nesting, that should change how you hire. A call center training plan sets the classroom side; this checklist and its data tell you whether the plan worked.
Making nesting work for remote and high-volume classes
With a 30-person class starting every month, nesting is a production line and needs the same consistency.
- Use one checklist and one tracker for every class and site.
- For remote nesting, open a dedicated chat channel staffed by coaches and keep video on during the first days, so agents can be seen raising a hand.
- Limit routing to simpler call types in week 1 and add skills as agents meet ramp targets.
- Have the receiving team lead join at least one nesting huddle before handover. Agents who meet their next supervisor before graduation settle faster.
- Start the onboarding experience before day 1, with paperwork, equipment and logins handled in advance. Candidate onboarding automation helps here, so nesting days are not lost to missing access.
Keep the classroom checklist separate. The new-hire training checklist covers what happens before nesting.
Common mistakes
- Putting nesting agents straight into the full queue with every call type.
- A coach ratio of 1 to 25, so hands stay up for 10 minutes.
- Targets that are not shared until graduation day.
- Graduating everyone on the scheduled date regardless of results because the floor needs bodies, then wondering why QA drops.
- Handing graduates over with no conversation between the nesting lead and the new team lead.
- Counting nesting exits as "bad hires" without checking whether the nesting setup failed them.
Nesting extensions should be the exception, documented with a plan, and applied consistently to every agent.
Frequently asked questions
What is nesting in a call center?
Nesting is the phase after classroom training when new agents take live calls in a supported environment, usually with limited call types, a dedicated coach, quick access to help and lower targets that rise each week until they meet the full production standard.
How long is the nesting phase in a call center?
Typically 1 to 4 weeks. Simple, transactional queues may need about a week; complex technical, financial or healthcare lines often need 3 to 4 weeks. Base the length on graduation criteria rather than a fixed calendar.
What should a nesting plan template include?
Setup tasks before live calls, the coach ratio and escalation process, daily huddles and feedback, weekly ramp targets for handle time and quality, compliance requirements, graduation criteria, the handover to a team lead and the metrics you will report for each class.
What is a speed to proficiency plan?
It is a plan that sets the expected days for a new hire to reach full performance and the milestones along the way. In a contact center, nesting ramp targets and graduation criteria form the core of it.
What happens if a new agent does not pass nesting?
Most centers extend nesting by about a week with a written plan focused on the specific gap. If the agent still does not meet the standard, the decision goes to HR and operations, applied consistently to all agents in the same situation.