CONTACT CENTER SIZING AND BROADCASTING BASED ON PROBABILITIES

• US 20100057521A1
• Filed: 09/04/2008
• Published: 03/04/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/04/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Gouda, Khaled A., Houri, Soufiane, Jordan, Kenneth
• Granted Patent: US 8,510,146 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/9
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063 Operations research, analysis or management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0639 Performance analysis of employees; Performance analysis of enterprise or organisation operations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/067 Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management

Abstract

A contact center or enterprise communication system is provided. The system includes a first contact associated with a first task offer; one or more resources operable to accept the first task offer; and a contact center or enterprise communication system operable to determine a broadcast group of the one or more resources as a function of an acceptance factor for one or more of the resources.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a contact center,

a first contact operable to contact the contact center, the first contact is associated with a first task offer that defines a first task offer request; and

one or more resources operable to accept the first task offer, the one or more resources support the contact center;

wherein the contact center is operable to determine a first broadcast group of the one or more resources as a function of an acceptance factor for one or more of the resources.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the contact center is operable to broadcast the first task offer to one or more resources in the first broadcast group.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the first broadcast group is the minimum set of resources required to satisfy a service level goal.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the service level goal is a desired probability that the first task offer will be accepted.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein the service level goal ensures that the first task offer is accepted.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the acceptance factor is a probability that one or more resources will accept the first task offer.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the contact center is operable to broadcast a second task offer associated with a second contact to one or more resources in a second broadcast group.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the first broadcast group and second broadcast groups are a minimum set of resources required to satisfy a service level goal, the service level goal being a desired probability that each task offer will be accepted and ensuring that each task offer is accepted.

9. A method, comprising:

receiving a first contact in a contact center;

generating a first task offer for the first contact;

determining an acceptance factor, which is a probability that one or more resources supporting the contact center will accept the first task offer;

determining a broadcast group as a function of the acceptance factor; and

broadcasting a first task offer to the broadcast group.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

determining the acceptance factor based on contact information.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the broadcast group is smaller than a total set of resources supporting a contact center.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein broadcasting the first task offer includes broadcasting the first task offer to a minimum set of resources that ensure that the first task offer is accepted.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein determining the broadcast group includes determining a minimum set of resources required to satisfy a service level goal.

14. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

receiving a second contact in the contact center;

determining a second broadcast group as a function of an acceptance factor of resources not in the broadcast group; and

broadcasting a second task offer to the second broadcast group.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein broadcasting the second task offer includes broadcasting the second task offer after the first task offer was broadcast and before the first task offer was accepted.

16. Logic encoded in one or more tangible media for execution and when executed operable to:

receive a first contact,

generate a first task offer for the first contact based on a task for the first contact, such that the first task offer is operable to be accepted, denied, or ignored by one or more resource that are operable to accept the task offer, and

determine a minimum set of the one or more resources as a function of one or more acceptance factors of the one or more resources, such that the task offer will be accepted.

17. The logic of claim 16, when executed also operable to determine a minimum set of resources that support the contact center as a function of an acceptance factor of the resources.

18. The logic of claim 16, when executed also operable to size the resources associated with a contact center to ensure a service level goal is satisfied.

19. The logic of claim 16, when executed also operable to determine a broadcast group of the set of resources.

20. The logic of claim 16, when executed also operable to broadcast a task offer to the broadcast group.