Quality score: Performance reviews for your AI agents

AI agents are handling a growing share of the customer service workload. But many companies still struggle to evaluate how well they’re actually performing.

That’s because most rely on traditional metrics like deflection rates, average response times, or even CSAT scores. These tell you how fast the AI agent resolved the issue and whether the customer left satisfied. While both are useful, they don’t tell the full story.

What was the quality of the experience? Did the AI agent provide the correct discount code? Was it helpful, empathetic, and on brand? Did it feel like a human agent would have answered in the same way?

These are the factors that shape trust, loyalty, and repeat business—and they can’t be captured by speed and satisfaction alone.

Why AI agent quality is so important

Consistency builds customer trust. But without a way to evaluate AI agent performance, it can be nearly impossible to achieve.

Customers don’t want the level of service to change, just because they’re chatting with an AI agent. They expect interactions to be equally helpful, quick, and human-like. In fact, 68% say they’re more likely to engage with AI agents that are friendly and conversational—just like their human counterparts.

This consistency is especially important as AI agents take on more complex customer issues. From policy exceptions to emotionally-charged complaints (and everything in between), CX leaders must ensure they follow the same rules, use the same tone, and deliver that same quality standard across every touchpoint. When that happens, AI agents become true brand ambassadors at scale.

But it takes the right insights to get there.

Introducing Automated Quality Score from Zendesk QA

What defines a high-quality customer experience will look different for every business. Some companies want their AI agents to have a distinct tone and personality. Others need them to handle sensitive data or compliance workflows with precision.

However you define it, Zendesk’s Automated Quality (AQS) adapts to your priorities. It uses AI to automatically evaluate and score 100% of customer conversations, whether with an AI or human agent, on the factors that matter most to your business. This makes it possible to track performance and ensure a consistent experience, no matter who (or what) answers the call.

With AQS, you can:

• Understand your team’s quality score and track trends over time

• Benchmark AI performance against human agents

• Drill down by channel, topic, or individual AI agent

• Catch weak spots, improve training, and fine-tune the experience

This level of insight becomes critical as AI takes on more responsibility like processing refunds, applying personalized discounts, or verifying customer identities. With AQS, you can proactively identify risk areas, raise the quality bar, and ensure your AI agents are meeting their full potential.

A new standard for service quality

As your customer service operation evolves, so must your ability to evaluate performance. AQS helps you see the bigger picture by capturing the details that traditional metrics miss—things like tone, helpfulness, and brand alignment.

With deeper insights into every interaction, it’s now possible to create more consistent experiences and raise the bar for service quality across the board.

Already using Zendesk Advanced AI agents? Here’s your chance to join our QA for AI Agents pilot program. We’re offering free access, along with other essential QA features and insights. Learn more about the pilot by watching Zendesk’s Deep Dive webinar below and click here to sign up.