Management system for using speech analytics to enhance contact center agent conformance

• US 9,225,833 B1
• Filed: 07/24/2013
• Issued: 12/29/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 07/24/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alvaria Cayman
• Original Assignee: Noble Systems Corporation
• Inventors: Koster, Karl H., Ouimette, Jason P., Blackwell, Jennifer L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Aubaidi, Rasha Al
• Application Number:
  US13/949,467
• Time in Patent Office: 888 Days
• Field of Search: 379/26.06, 379/266.07, 379/88.01, 37926501-2661
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 2015/088 Word spotting
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42221 Conversation recording systems at the subscriber's set H04M1/656
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5175 Call or contact centers supervision arrangements

Abstract

A call center compliance system is used to ensure that agents adhere to call center policies and applicable regulations when handling calls. A call handler processing a call between an agent and a remote party bridges on a speech analytics component. A keyword set is used by the speech analytics component to analyze the remote party'"'"'s or the agent'"'"'s speech. If a keyword is detected, an event notification is provided from the speech analytics component to the call handler. A logic script executing in the call handler defines what actions are to occur in response to receiving the event notification. The call handler can provide information to the agent, record a violation, or await further event notifications. In one embodiment, detection of a first keyword in a first keyword set spoken by a remote party causes the agent'"'"'s speech to be monitored using a second keyword set.

Claims

1. A system for enforcing compliance by an agent in a call center comprising:

a call handler and a speech analytics component, wherein

the call handler is configured to process a first call leg to a remote party, a second call leg to the agent, and a third call leg to the speech analytics component, and the call handler comprises an application programming interface and a first processor executing a call processing logic script configured to;

receive a first event notification at the application programming interface from the speech analytics component, the first event notification signifying detection of a first keyword from a first keyword set in speech from the remote party associated with the third call leg,

receive a second event notification at the application programming interface from the speech analytics component after receiving the first event notification, the second event notification signifying detection of a second keyword from a second keyword set in speech from the agent associated with the third call leg, and

perform an action indicated by the call processing logic script in conjunction with receiving the second event notification and the first event notification; and

wherein

the speech analytics component comprises a second processor configured to receive the third call leg from the call handler and execute a control logic script configured to;

analyze the speech from the remote party on the third call leg using the first keyword set,

transmit the first event notification to the application programming interface if the first keyword from the first keyword set is detected in the speech from the remote party,

analyze the speech from the agent on the third call leg using the second keyword set, and

transmit the second event notification to the application programming interface if the second keyword from the second keyword set is detected in the speech from the agent.

2. The system of claim 1,

wherein call processing logic script is further configured to start a timer after receiving the first event notification, and

the call processing logic script is configured to perform a second action if the second event notification is not received before the expiry of the timer.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the second action results in bridging a supervisor of the agent onto the call.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the control logic script in the speech analytics component is configured to apply the second keyword set for analyzing the speech of the agent in response to a command from the call handler transmitted in response to detection of the first keyword occurring in the speech of the remote party.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the action comprises recording a compliance condition to a file associated with the agent.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the first processor is configured to:

record a non-compliance condition associated with the agent if the second event notification is not received during the call.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the action comprises providing text to be displayed on a computer used by the agent and the first processor is further configured to:

perform a second action defined by the call processing logic script in response to receiving the second event notification.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the second action comprises transmitting a text message to a supervisor of the agent informing the supervisor of a non-compliance condition involving the agent.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the first keyword set comprises a group of “

credit card”

, “

pay”

, and “

payment”

.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the action comprises invoking an application resulting in information displayed on a computer used by the agent for processing credit card payments.

11. A method for configuring an agent compliance enforcement system for managing agent compliance on a call between an agent and a remote party, comprising:

defining a first keyword set and a second keyword set, wherein the first keyword set is to be applied by a speech analytics component to speech from the remote party and the second keyword set is to be applied by the speech analytics component to speech from the agent;

defining a call processing logic script for execution by a processor in a call handler, the call processing logic script configured to;

receive a first event notification from the speech analytics component reflecting detection of a first keyword from the first keyword set in the speech from the remote party,

receive a second event notification from the speech analytics component after receiving the first event notification, reflecting detection of a second keyword from the second keyword set in the speech from the agent, and

initiate an action based on receipt of the second event notification and the first event notification;

defining a control logic script for execution in the speech analytics component, the control logic script configured to cause a second processor to;

use the first keyword set to analyze the speech from the remote party and transmit the first event notification to the call handler after detection of the first keyword from the first keyword set in the speech from the remote party, and

after transmitting the first event notification, use the second keyword set to analyze the speech from the agent and transmit the second event notification to the call handler after detection of the second keyword from the second keyword set in the speech from the agent.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

receiving a call leg at the speech analytics component;

analyzing the speech from the remote party by the speech analytics component using the first keyword set;

transmitting the first event notification to the call handler by the speech analytics component;

analyzing the speech from the agent by the speech analytics component using the second keyword set; and

performing the action by the call handler, the action comprising recording compliance related data in a file associated with the agent in conjunction with the call.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein

the first event notification reflects a request from the remote party to enter a telephone number of the remote party in a do-not-call list, and

the second event notification reflects the agent confirming entry of the telephone number in the do-not-call list.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein

the first event notification reflects a request from the remote party to cease calls to a telephone number, and

the second event notification reflects the agent confirming the telephone number.

15. The method of claim 11 wherein the second event notification comprises an identification of the second keyword set and a reference of the call leg.

16. A computer-readable non-transitory medium storing instructions that when executed by a processor comprising an integrated circuit microprocessor in a call handler, cause the processor to:

process a first event notification received as an electronic message at an interface transmitted from a speech analytics component, the first event notification signifying detection by the speech analytics component of a first keyword from a first keyword set in speech from a remote party during a conversation with an agent on a call in a call center;

start a timer after receiving the first event notification;

determine the timer has expired;

determine a second event notification from the speech analytics component is not received prior to the timer having expired, wherein the second event notification signifies detection of a second keyword from a second keyword set in speech from the agent;

write data to a file after the timer has expired reflecting a non-compliance status of the agent with respect to a call center policy; and

cause an icon to be displayed on a screen of a workstation computer used by the agent, the icon representing a compliance status of the agent for the call.

17. The computer-readable non-transitory medium of claim 16, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to display further information regarding the compliance status in response to the agent selecting the icon.

18. The computer-readable non-transitory medium of claim 16, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

update an agent compliance score based on failure to receive the second event notification prior to expiry of the timer.

19. The computer-readable non-transitory medium of claim 16, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to transmit a text message to a supervisor of the agent, the text message indicating non-compliance of the agent to the call center policy.