SLA policies define how your organization measures case performance. They determine which service-level targets apply to a case, how those targets are calculated, and when a case is considered on track, at risk, or breached.
SLA policies are configured in Case Setup and are applied automatically as cases are created.
What is an SLA policy?
An SLA (Service Level Agreement) policy is a set of rules that defines how service levels are measured for a group of cases.
A policy answers questions such as:
- Which cases should be measured?
- Which service-level metrics apply?
- What targets should those metrics meet?
- When should service-level clocks pause or resume?
You can create multiple policies to support different teams, priorities, categories, or service types.
How policies are applied
When a case is created, the system evaluates all active SLA policies to determine which ones apply.
Policies typically use case properties such as:
- Team
- Priority
- Category
- Request type
- Other case attributes defined by your organization
If multiple policies apply to the same case, the system uses the most demanding target for each service-level metric.
The selected targets remain associated with the case, even if the policy changes later. This ensures that historical reporting remains accurate.
What an SLA policy contains
An SLA policy typically includes:
- A name and description.
- Conditions that determine which cases the policy applies to.
- Service-level metrics to measure.
- Target values for each metric.
- Rules that define how service-level clocks behave.
Policies can include both traditional SLA metrics and Experience Level Agreement (XLA) metrics, providing a complete view of service performance.
How SLA policies affect cases
As work progresses, the system compares case activity with the targets defined by the applicable SLA policy.
This information is used to:
- Display service-level indicators.
- Highlight cases that need attention.
- Measure team performance.
- Support operational and management reporting.
If no SLA policy applies to a case, analytics may still collect information for reporting, but the case won't be measured against service-level targets.
Designing effective SLA policies
When creating SLA policies:
- Match service targets to business priorities.
- Use separate policies for different levels of service when appropriate.
- Keep policies simple and easy to understand.
- Review policies regularly to ensure they continue to support operational goals.
Well-designed policies help teams prioritize work consistently while producing meaningful reporting.