Determining life-cycle of task flow performance for telecommunication service order

• US 10,346,221 B2
• Filed: 05/01/2017
• Issued: 07/09/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/13/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Kandappan, Arun, Schutte, Joseph, Welch, Mark, White, Kevin
• Primary Examiner(s): Truong, Lechi
• Application Number:
  US15/583,639
• Publication Number:
  US 20170235597A1
• Time in Patent Office: 799 Days
• Field of Search: 719310, 718100, 718310
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/54 Interprogram communication
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063114 Status monitoring or status determination for a person or group

Abstract

A method includes a processor for determining a life cycle of a first performance of a task flow for a telecommunication service order, determining that a performance of a first task within the first performance of the task flow has exceeded a threshold processing time, and determining that there is a problem with a first centralized system component in response to determining that the performance of the first task within the first performance of the task flow has exceeded the threshold processing time. The method may further include identifying the centralized system component for servicing when it is determined that there is a problem with the centralized system component.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

determining, by a processor, a life cycle of a first performance of a task flow for a telecommunication service order, wherein the task flow comprises a plurality of tasks to be followed by at least one human agent associated with a telecommunication service provider in order to complete the telecommunication service order, wherein the life cycle of the first performance of the task flow comprises a duration of time to complete the first performance of the task flow, a duration of time to complete each of the plurality of tasks in the task flow, and an identity of a human agent of the at least one human agent performing each of the plurality of tasks in the task flow;

determining, by the processor, a performance of a first task of the plurality of tasks within the first performance of the task flow has exceeded a threshold processing time duration to complete the first task, wherein a first duration of time for a completion of the performance of the first task is determined based upon a duration of time that a first application screen associated with the first task is active on a device of a first human agent of the at least one human agent performing the first task;

determining, by the processor, that there is a problem with a first centralized system component in response to the determining the performance of the first task within the first performance of the task flow has exceeded the threshold processing time duration; and

Identifying, by the processor, the first centralized system component for servicing in response to the determining the problem with the first centralized system component.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining the life cycle of the first performance of the task flow comprises:

determining a duration of time to complete the first performance of the task flow, wherein the determining the duration of time to complete the first performance of the task flow is based upon the first duration of time for the completion of the performance of the first task.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first duration of time for the completion of the performance of the first task is further determined based upon data received from the first centralized system component.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the determining the life cycle of the first performance of the task flow further comprises:

determining a second duration of time for a completion of a second task of the plurality of tasks within the first performance of the task flow, wherein the second duration of time for the completion of the performance of the second task is determined based upon data received from a device of a second human agent of the at least one human agent, wherein the determining the duration of time to complete the first performance of the task flow is based upon the first duration of time for the completion of the performance of the first task and is further based upon the second duration of time for the completion of the performance of the second task.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the performance of the first task is performed by the first human agent, wherein the performance of the second task is performed by the second human agent.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein data received from the device of the first human agent used in determining the first duration of time for the completion of the performance of the first task comprises a first time stamp indicating a time of an invocation of a first application and an identification of the first application.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the determining the first duration of time for the completion of the performance of the first task is further based upon data received from the first centralized system component, wherein the determining the first duration of time for the completion of the performance of the first task further comprises correlating the first time stamp indicating the time of the invocation of the first application and the identification of the first application with an access of the first centralized system component.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the first application screen is determined to be associated with the performance of the first task based upon a tracking of a progress through the first performance of the task flow to a current task of the plurality of tasks of the task flow, wherein a first application associated with the first application screen is anticipated to be invoked based upon the current task of the task flow.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a number of performances of the task flow for which a time to complete the first task has exceeded the threshold processing time duration.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

reporting the first task as being subject to revision when the number of performances of the task flow for which the time to complete the first task has exceeded the threshold processing time duration exceeds a threshold number of performances.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

identifying a problem with a performance of the first human agent of the at least one human agent when the number of performances of the task flow for which the time to complete the first task has exceeded the threshold processing time duration is less than a threshold number of performances, wherein the performance of the first task within the first performance of the task flow is performed by the first human agent.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the problem with the first human agent comprises a need for training.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the problem with the first human agent comprises an improper staffing level.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the telecommunication service order is of a first telecommunication service order type of a plurality of telecommunication service order types, where each of the plurality of telecommunication service order types is associated with a different one of a plurality of task flows, the plurality of task flows comprising the task flow.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the first centralized system component is implemented on a network-based server.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations, the operations comprising:

determining a life cycle of a first performance of a task flow for a telecommunication service order, wherein the task flow comprises a plurality of tasks to be followed by at least one human agent associated with a telecommunication service provider in order to complete the telecommunication service order, wherein the life cycle of the first performance of the task flow comprises a duration of time to complete the first performance of the task flow, a duration of time to complete each of the plurality of tasks in the task flow, and an identity of a human agent of the at least one human agent performing each of the plurality of tasks in the task flow;

determining a performance of a first task of the plurality of tasks within the first performance of the task flow has exceeded a threshold processing time duration to complete the first task, wherein a first duration of time for a completion of the performance of the first task is determined based upon a duration of time that a first application screen associated with the first task is active on a device of a first human agent of the at least one human agent performing the first task;

determining that there is a problem with a first centralized system component in response to the determining the performance of the first task within the first performance of the task flow has exceeded the threshold processing time duration; and

identifying the first centralized system component for servicing in response to the determining the problem with the first centralized system component.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the determining the life cycle of the first performance of the task flow comprises:

determining a duration of time to complete the first performance of the task flow, wherein the determining the duration of time to complete the first performance of the task flow is based upon the first duration of time for the completion of the performance of the first task.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the first duration of time for the completion of the performance of the first task is further determined based upon data received from the first centralized system component.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the determining the life cycle of the first performance of the task flow further comprises:

determining a second duration of time for a completion of a second task of the plurality of tasks within the first performance of the task flow, wherein the second duration of time for the completion of the performance of the second task is determined based upon data received from a device of a second human agent of the at least one human agent, wherein the determining the duration of time to complete the first performance of the task flow is based upon the first duration of time for the completion of the performance of the first task and is further based upon the second duration of time for the completion of the performance of the second task.

20. A device, comprising:

a processor; and

a computer-readable storage medium storing instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform operations, the operations comprising;

determining a life cycle of a first performance of a task flow for a telecommunication service order, wherein the task flow comprises a plurality of tasks to be followed by at least one human agent associated with a telecommunication service provider in order to complete the telecommunication service order, wherein the life cycle of the first performance of the task flow comprises a duration of time to complete the first performance of the task flow, a duration of time to complete each of the plurality of tasks in the task flow, and an identity of a human agent of the at least one human agent performing each of the plurality of tasks in the task flow;

determining a performance of a first task of the plurality of tasks within the first performance of the task flow has exceeded a threshold processing time duration to complete the first task, wherein a first duration of time for a completion of the performance of the first task is determined based upon a duration of time that a first application screen associated with the first task is active on a device of a first human agent of the at least one human agent performing the first task;

determining that there is a problem with a first centralized system component in response to the determining the performance of the first task within the first performance of the task flow has exceeded the threshold processing time duration; and

identifying the first centralized system component for servicing in response to the determining the problem with the first centralized system component.