ACD Proxy Call Task Assignment for Contact Centers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Contact centers face challenges in efficiently managing and assigning tasks to agents beyond incoming calls, as existing systems lack integration for routing and monitoring both telephony and non-telephony activities, leading to conflicts and distorted statistics.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that utilizes an automatic call distributor (ACD) to distribute tasks such as email responses and Internet chat sessions by generating proxy calls, ensuring agents are assigned tasks without interfering with incoming calls and maintaining accurate statistics, while a monitor component reassesses agent availability for incoming calls.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple work assignment systems are used to distribute tasks to agents, then task assignment coverage is improved, but system conflicts and coordination difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple work assignment systems (ACD, dialer, work management systems) into a unified coordinated system where a central coordinator manages task assignments across all systems, preventing conflicts and ensuring seamless agent allocation
Solution Approach 2:
The coordinator system serves multiple functions: it manages task assignments from various sources, monitors agent availability across different systems, prevents double-booking, and maintains centralized control over the entire work distribution ecosystem
2Device complexity
If manual assignment methods are used for non-telephony tasks, then system complexity is reduced, but assignment efficiency and accuracy deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an automated coordinator as an intermediary between work management systems and agents, which handles task assignment automatically through standardized processes, eliminating manual assignment inefficiencies while maintaining system integration
3Device complexity
If agent availability is not centrally coordinated, then system simplicity is maintained, but task assignment conflicts increase
Solution Approach 1:
The coordinator continuously monitors agent availability status and receives feedback from multiple work assignment systems, using this real-time information to make informed assignment decisions and prevent conflicts through centralized visibility
Data Source
AI summary
A method and system for assigning tasks to contact center agents is disclosed, wherein an automatic call distributor (ACD) used for distributing incoming contact center calls to the agents is used to distribute other tasks to the agents. When an agent task (different from handling an incoming call) is determined, a corresponding “proxy” telephone call is generated from within the contact center to a PBX to assign an agent to the task. The ACD processes the proxy call substantially identically to any other incoming call requesting an agent's services. A proxy call has as its destination phone number the directory number of a call group used in selecting an appropriate agent for performing the task. The proxy call phone number additionally identifies the location of detailed information about the task. When a proxy call is routed by the ACD to the selected agent's worksite, the called phone number is used to fetch the detailed task information, and the selected agent is made unavailable to the ACD for further incoming calls. The agent is made available for taking contact center incoming calls when the task is completed or pre-empted.