Measuring the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) of Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) extends beyond technical performance. Stakeholders range from leadership and IT executives to programmers and development teams, meaning the KPIs won’t be the same at each level. Nonetheless, tracking the right KPIs can be monumental for creating service consistency and delivering the ideal customer experience.
Starting from the API’s foundation, developers will be at ground zero for the overall technical performance. Their interests will lean towards the API’s actual efficiency, checking in on measured and effective pass/error rates and watching latency KPIs for call times like TCP connection completions and DNS lookups.
- Measured Pass Rate keeps track of the success rate on API calls from various server locations.
- Effective Pass Rate helps developers pinpoint bottlenecks, causing end-user issues, such as server timeouts and event latencies.
- Effective Error Rate calculates the amount of failed API calls, whether they’re caused by coding issues or slow response times.
- TCP Connection, or Transmission Control Protocol Connection, shows the established connection between the client and the server to ensure data can be sent. If the server isn’t listening for connection requests, then links will not be made, and there will be disruption between data transmissions.
- DNS Lookups, or Domain Name System Lookups, is another essential part of transmitting data, and it can have a heavy impact on the APIs performance. The faster the DNS provider, the better the API performs.
Other areas of interest for the developers include server-side processing, internet travel, and overall usage from other developers to track throttling limits, query completion, and the number of simultaneous endpoints the API can handle. While the developers track those metrics on their side, the IT Leadership is more concerned with the API’s customer side.
Their focus is more geared toward digital experience and how customers are interacting with the API. Program Directors are looking to enhance the buyer experience, so the KPIs they keep in mind include which APIs see the most interactions and how those interactions are closing sales. On the other hand, IT leaders are looking at the possibilities of growing new business with their APIs, capitalizing on new opportunities, minimizing operational costs, and prospects with partners. Here are some of the specific metrics they take into consideration.
- API Ramp Up: Building on top of successful APIs means finding areas of improvement, which for the stakeholders at hand includes evaluating the time to market for new API capabilities and the time it takes for developers to implement upgrades.
- API Consumption: It’s important to know how your customers and end-users are engaging with APIs, tracking their ease-of-use, relevance to your services, how many are actually accessible, and the value they deliver. Additionally, it’s key to take an inside look at this as well, tracking how well adoption is going with your developers, business partners, and other departments. These KPIs roll into traffic metrics and allow your team to dissect each API’s effectiveness to drive improvement projects and initiatives.
- Return on Investment (ROI): From a fiscal standpoint, tracking your ROI will be a considerable part of your KPIs, showing the direct revenue your API is generating and cost reductions related to reuse and resources.
IT leaders and program managers ultimately want to know how much revenue is involved with the company’s APIs, which in turn relates to the digital experience they’re providing. If they’re generating conversions and closing the sales cycle without extraneous costs, then the developers are probably succeeding in keeping their KPIs in line as well.
KPIs for Service Consistency
When you’re a stakeholder in the API arena, there’s not a more satisfying feeling than knowing you’re hitting your goals. Whether it’s a 100% pass rate or hitting your year-end revenue goals, capitalizing on API utilization is a home run for the entire company because it provides consistency of service across the board.
Consistency for the developers means delivering on the program manager’s demand for exceptional customer interactions on the digital front. The program manager’s consistency means providing unwavering customer journeys, enabling IT executives to act on new opportunities and drive the business toward fresh possibilities. And, for IT leaders, consistency means being at the forefront of innovative operations that keep the company endlessly relevant to customers and partners.
It’s no secret that consumers love consistency. By closely tracking the KPIs of APIs that elevate your brand and give a level of consistency that resonates with your customers, you can position your brand for success.