Dynamically allocating server resources to competing classes of work based upon achievement of service goals
First Claim
1. A method for servicing work items in a contact center, comprising:
- (a) selecting, by one or more processors, a first agent and a first work type and/or a first work item of the first work type;
(b) determining, by the one or more processors, a state of the contact center;
(c) based on the determined state of the contact center, selecting, by the one or more processors, a composite preference value function from among a plurality of differing composite preference value functions, each composite preference value function being a function of a dynamic preference value and an agent preference value;
(d) determining, by the one or more processors, a composite preference value using the selected composite preference value function, wherein the determined composite preference value is a number and is associated with at least one of (i) the first work type, (ii) the first agent, and (iii) the first work item; and
(e) based on a comparison of the determined composite preference value with a threshold value, assigning, by the one or more processors, the first agent to service contacts of the first work type and/or the first work item.
25 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A facility for adjusting a number of servers assigned to server pools for performing certain work types on the basis of unmet service needs in a work processing facility. Servers may include service agents, both human and robotic. A server assignor and a corresponding server assignment method may each be employed in a work distributor or an automatic call distributor (“ACD”) to conditionally adjust server availability in server pools. The server assignor compares a composite preference value for a work type against each server'"'"'s threshold value for the work type. When the server assignor determines that the composite preference value is greater than or equal to a server'"'"'s threshold value, then the server assignor indicates that the server may be included in the server pool for that work type. Each server has preference values and threshold values for different kinds of work. The magnitude of a preference value represents an affinity for the work type. The server'"'"'s threshold value represents a reluctance to perform work having that work type. The server does not normally receive work for which the preference value is less than the threshold value, unless the server assignor determines that the composite preference value exceeds the server'"'"'s threshold value for that work type. The server assignor and corresponding server assignment method may compute the composite preference value from a number of user-selectable inputs and utilize a number of user-selectable functions.
113 Citations
30 Claims
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1. A method for servicing work items in a contact center, comprising:
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(a) selecting, by one or more processors, a first agent and a first work type and/or a first work item of the first work type; (b) determining, by the one or more processors, a state of the contact center; (c) based on the determined state of the contact center, selecting, by the one or more processors, a composite preference value function from among a plurality of differing composite preference value functions, each composite preference value function being a function of a dynamic preference value and an agent preference value; (d) determining, by the one or more processors, a composite preference value using the selected composite preference value function, wherein the determined composite preference value is a number and is associated with at least one of (i) the first work type, (ii) the first agent, and (iii) the first work item; and (e) based on a comparison of the determined composite preference value with a threshold value, assigning, by the one or more processors, the first agent to service contacts of the first work type and/or the first work item. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 29, 30)
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15. A system, comprising:
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a processor enabled agent assignor operable to select a first agent and a first work type and/or a first work item of the first work type, determine, based on a determined state of the contact center, a composite preference value using a selected composite preference value function, wherein the selected composite preference value function is a function of a dynamic preference value and an agent preference value, and, based on the determined composite preference value, assign the first agent to service contacts of the first work type and/or the first work item, wherein the determined composite preference value is a number and is associated with at least one of (i) the first work type, (ii) the first agent, and (iii) the first work item; and a preference evaluator operable to determine and select a state of the contact center from among a plurality of differing states and, based on the selected state, select the composite preference value function from among a plurality of differing composite preference value functions, each composite preference value function being a function of a dynamic preference value and an agent preference value. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28)
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Specification