IT metrics are measurable values that reflect how well IT systems, services, or teams are performing. They can cover a wide range of areas, such as service availability, incident response times, system utilization, or user satisfaction. Some metrics are highly technical, while others are more business-focused, like cost per ticket or ROI on IT projects.

Different roles rely on IT metrics for different reasons. Service desk managers look at incident volumes and resolution times to manage workload and staffing. IT leadership might review system uptime and change success rates to assess service quality and risk. Even Finance or Operations teams may use IT cost metrics to align IT spending with business goals.

Why are IT KPIs and metrics important?

IT metrics help turn abstract performance into something tangible. They allow teams to see what’s working, what’s slipping, and what needs attention. Without metrics, it’s difficult to make informed decisions or justify investments.

For example, if a service desk resolves most incidents within SLA but customer satisfaction is dropping, that’s a signal to investigate whether speed is coming at the cost of quality. Or if a company tracks software license usage and finds significant underutilization, that’s an opportunity to cut costs without affecting performance.

Metrics also help teams stay aligned. A shared dashboard of KPIs creates visibility and accountability, especially when teams work across functions or time zones.

"Wherever you are, whatever you do, start baselining and benchmark always because you won't know how much you want to improve until you know where you are."

Jeevan Lobo - Vice President of Security and Governance at Citibank - Episode 53 of Ticket Volume

How to decide what IT KPIs to track?

There are many IT metrics and KPIs, but that doesn’t mean you should track everything. If you’re wondering where to begin, start with your objectives. 

Metrics should be tied to specific goals — whether it's reducing downtime, improving service quality, or optimizing costs. If a metric doesn’t connect to something you’re trying to improve or manage, it’s probably not worth tracking.

You’ll also want to consider:

• Audience: What does your audience care about? An executive dashboard will look different from an operational one.
   
• Data availability: Can you track this metric reliably and automatically? If you can’t measure it consistently, it won’t help.
   
• Actionability: Can your team act on the metric? Good KPIs guide behavior. If a metric shows a problem but there’s no clear next step, it won’t drive improvement.
   
• Balance: Tracking too many metrics can dilute focus. It’s better to monitor a handful of meaningful KPIs than dozens of low-value ones.

IT metric categories

IT metrics can be grouped into categories based on what they measure. If you're following ITIL or a similar ITSM framework, metrics are typically aligned with specific processes, such as Incident, Problem, or Change Management. 

• Service performance metrics: These reflect how well IT services are delivered and aligned with business expectations. Common examples include service uptime, availability percentages, and SLA compliance KPIs. In ITIL terms, these relate closely to Service Level Management and Availability Management processes.
   
• Support metrics: These focus on the IT support process, particularly service desk operations. Metrics like first response time, resolution time, backlog volume, ticket reopen rates, and customer satisfaction scores fall into this group.
   
• Infrastructure and IT asset metrics: These track the performance and health of physical and virtual systems. Think server CPU usage, memory consumption, disk space utilization, network latency, and system downtime. These metrics help identify early signs of failure or degradation.
   
• Security metrics: These monitor the security posture of IT environments. Examples include vulnerability counts, patching status, number of security incidents, access violations, and failed login attempts. They help manage risk and ensure compliance.
   
• Project and change metrics: These measure the success, efficiency, and risk of IT initiatives and changes. Examples include project completion rate, change success rate, unplanned rollbacks, and time to implement. They support better planning and impact analysis. 
   
• Cost and efficiency metrics: Include cost per ticket, software utilization rates, and other financial indicators.

10 common IT metrics to track

Here are some widely used IT metrics that give valuable insight into performance and service quality:

1. First response time: Average time between ticket submission and the first response. A good indicator of how quickly users are acknowledged.
    
2. Mean time to resolution (MTTR): Measures how long it takes, on average, to resolve issues. Helps assess the overall efficiency of support teams.
    
3. Ticket volume: Tracks the number of requests or incidents in a given period. Useful for spotting spikes in demand or recurring issues.
    
4. Uptime percentage: Reflects the availability of critical systems. Often used in SLAs to measure service reliability.
    
5. Change success rate: Percentage of changes implemented without causing incidents. A key metric for Change Management performance.
    
6. First contact resolution rate: Percentage of tickets resolved during the first interaction. Indicates how effectively front-line support is working.
    
7. SLA compliance: Measures how often service teams meet agreed-upon response and resolution times.
    
8. Incident recurrence rate: Shows how frequently similar issues come back. High rates may point to root causes not being addressed.
    
9. Patch compliance rate: Tracks how many systems are up to date with security patches. A key indicator of risk exposure.
    
10. IT spend per user: Average cost of IT services per employee. Useful for evaluating efficiency over time or across departments.

InvGate’s IT metric dashboards and reports

InvGate provides built-in dashboards and reporting tools across both InvGate Service Management and InvGate Asset Management, giving IT teams visibility into key metrics without relying on external tools or manual tracking.

In the Service Management platform, dashboards help you monitor and analyze support performance. You can track ITSM metrics like:

• Ticket volume and trends.
• SLA compliance.
• First response and resolution times.
• Reassignment and escalation rates.

These metrics can be filtered by department, location, support group, or service, helping you understand where bottlenecks are happening or where additional resources might be needed.

With InvGate Asset Management, metrics follow inventory, performance, and usage. You can track:

• Asset lifecycle status, including procurement, deployment, and retirement stages.
   
• Software license utilization, showing how often applications are used relative to their license counts.
   
• Hardware health indicators, such as disk space, CPU usage, or patch status.
   
• Device availability and downtime, helping identify assets with frequent issues.
   
• Compliance reports, including patching, antivirus status, and warranty coverage.

These are especially helpful for understanding risk exposure, forecasting replacement needs, and avoiding unnecessary purchases.

One of the key advantages is that both solutions can share data, offering a more complete picture. For example:

• If certain laptops show a high number of support tickets and repeated downtime, you can identify them through cross-platform metrics and flag them for replacement.
   
• You can link incident trends to specific hardware models, software versions, or locations.
   
• Budget planning becomes more grounded in reality when you combine asset usage with support demand and resolution times.

All dashboards are customizable and can be scheduled for automatic distribution. Teams can build views based on their roles — support leads might focus on SLA trends, while IT operations monitors hardware performance and compliance. This makes it easier to align decision-making across departments using real-time data.

4 IT metrics best practices

To get value from your metrics, how you track them matters just as much as what you track. Here are a few practical tips:

1. Start with clear goals: Define what you're trying to improve before selecting metrics. Avoid collecting data just because it’s available.
    
2. Focus on quality, not quantity: Tracking fewer, meaningful metrics is more effective than trying to monitor everything.
    
3. Make data visible: Dashboards should be accessible to the people who need them. Use automation to keep reports updated.
    
4. Review regularly: Schedule time to analyze your metrics and adjust if priorities shift or metrics become less useful.