Short answer
A service-level agreement (SLA) says how fast a ticket closed. An experience-level agreement (XLA) says whether the person got what they needed. GBS needs both: SLAs to hold partners to time, XLAs to catch closed tickets that didn't help. Pair each SLA with one experience measure, and report both by tower.
Last reviewed Nov 2, 2026
Pairs that work
| SLA | Paired XLA |
|---|---|
| Time to resolve | Confirmed resolution, no repeat contact in the window |
| First response time | Satisfaction on the first answer |
| Self-service rate | Share of self-service sessions that resolved |
| Backlog age | Employee-reported wait |
Why it matters with AI
Agents can close conversations fast. A closed conversation isn't a solved problem. Employees who don't trust a channel route around it, so watch repeat contact and direct messages to known experts.
Reporting
One page per tower, monthly: the SLA, the paired XLA, and the five intents where they disagree most. Where they disagree is where to look. ServiceNow holds most of this data already; satisfaction needs a short survey.
See ServiceNow for GBS.
GCC Now™ is the ServiceNow Accelerator by ANSR × inMorphis, a joint venture for global capability centers (GCCs) and GBS organizations.