BusinessPhone Communication Platform 5.1
Facilities

## ACD-Queue Administration and Overflow Criterias

## Definition

Queue administration denotes the way incoming calls are handled by the various ACD-queues and it is based on the call priority and on 3 overflow criterias:

- Overflow log-off criteria
- Overflow length criteria
- Overflow waiting time criteria

Call priority and administration denote how calls are selected and distributed via available agents.

In addition the caller has the possibility to leave the queue at any time by pressing the key ’#’. This will exit the call from the ACD queue and reroute it to a programmable ACD exit position.

## Use

Each call that arrives at the ACD-group will be queued, unless it can be presented immediately to a free agent.

When an agent goes free the longest waiting call will be presented to this agent provided that there is no agent with higher priority.

### Priority at agent level

Each agent can have an arbitrary (optional) priority for the call queues that are to be answered. For example an agent who is experienced enough to deal with calls from several queues has these queues as priority 1, whereas the other agents have the queue as priority 0.

In this manner, if all agents dealing with one queue are busy, the calls will immediately be directed to the agent(s) who has/have priority 1.

### Overflow log-off criteria

This is the overflow criteria that takes in consideration the log-status of the agents. If all the agents are logged off, a new call is routed to the reroute position of the corresponding ACD-group.

### Overflow length criteria

If the queue is at its maximum length the new incoming call will be rerouted to an ACD-reroute position that is individual for each ACD-group. This reroute position can be another ACD-group, an external abbreviated number, a common mailbox, an external voice mail system such as Voice 4000, or a telephone answering machine that can provide a message (stating that the queue is at maximum length and requesting the caller to leave her/his telephone number to be called later).

### Overflow waiting time criteria

This is an overflow criteria in reference to the expected waiting time in queue.

For each new call coming into an ACD-group the expected waiting time will be automatically calculated as follows:

If the result is equal or longer than the programmed waiting time limit (overflow criteria), the new call will be routed to the reroute position of the corresponding ACD-group.

If the ACD-reroute position is another ACD-group, the call will enter the corresponding queue and the expected waiting time in this queue will be checked. If in this queue another overflow waiting time criteria is matched, the call will not be routed any more; instead busy tone will be sent to it.

Blocking tone will be sent to the caller when the ACD-reroute position is a night switched ACD-group or there are no active agents for the considered ACD-group.

### Dynamic ACD-queue length

It is possible to program the system for dynamic queue length.

This means that the programmed maximum queue length (see formula below) varies with regard to the number of active agents. The purpose of dynamic queue length is that it shall be possible to maintain the desired “grade of service” irrespective of the number of active agents.

If the maximum queue length is reached, the busy tone will be sent to the caller.

The dynamic queue length is calculated as follows:

#####

Active Agent:

Group key is selected, logged in and agent is not in passive or pause state.

##### Programmed Agent:

The required group key is selected.

Note

The formula with the higher Result will be used. If the number of calls in queue is higher or equal the result, then the call will be rerouted.

The calculated dynamic queue length must never be less than 1 (one). If the calculated queue length is theoretically less than 1, the system sets this value to 1.

### Principle of queue administration

### Leaving the ACD queue

The waiting caller has the possibility to leave the queue, independent whether the waiting time or the queue position feature is used.

A ’leave announcement’ will be attached to the ’2nd voice announcement’ for the waiting caller.This announcement informs the caller, that he can leave the queue, by pressing a dedicated key (#-key). The 2nd voice announcement and the leave announcement will be played as one message. Therefore all programmed references have to be recorded, otherwise the announcement will not be played.

The new command 3833 ACD repetition rate of queue exit announcement will be used to define the repetition rate of the 2nd voice announcement before the ’leaving announcement’ will be attached.

If the waiting caller presses the ’#-key’, the caller will be connected to a programmed exit-position (See command 3832 ACD queue exit position). The key for leaving the queue is fixed with ’#-key’.

If the caller presses a wrong key (all other key then ’#’, the leaving-announcement (without 2nd voice announcement) is played again.

If there is no reaction (timeout of 5 seconds) the call remains in the queue.

If the caller leaves the ACD-queue by pressing the ’#-key’ via the ACD queue exit-position CCS and CTI (if available) will be informed.

Only MIS - protocol number 04 and higher will be supported.

## Capacity / Limitations

The overflow time can be programmed between 0 and 60 seconds or minutes (depending on command 3834 Select minutes or seconds for overflow time)

However, a caller being in an ACD queue hears his individual queue position / calculated waiting time. The maximum queue position / calculated waiting time the caller will hear does not exceed position 23 / 23 minutes, even the individual queue position / waiting time is more than 23.

This is because the voice prompts of the ACD queue position are the same as used for the 24-hour voice prompts.

If overflow time is set to 1 second, then the call is rerouted immediately instead of entering into the ACD-queue.

## Programming

3817 |  | Dynamic queue

3816 |  | Queue length

3825 |  | Overflow time

3824 |  | Alternative answering position

3832 |  | ACD queue exit position

3833 |  | ACD repetition rate of queue exit announcement

3834 |  | Select minutes or seconds for overflow time

Revision: K © Ericsson Enterprise 2003