I've created a monster - basic hunt group and call center

[mnealtx]

After setting up the 'hot loop' mentioned in my other post, management wants to automate our local Help Desk.

We have 5 techs on a day shift working 6 days/week with 7 day coverage (not every tech works every day). Nights, the number is forwarded to another shop for limited coverage.
Currently, they work from a bridged appearance for a help desk number that is advertised to the users. There have been complaints of unanswered help desk calls.

Goals:
Ability to queue customers when all techs are on calls.
Ability for techs to set 'away from desk' flag so their phone doesn't take queue calls.
Ability to alert management (via automated message or call transfer to management telephone) if all help desk phones set to 'away' status.
Night coverage message stating 'press 1 for x, press 2 for y or hold the line for z' for night coverage.

Switch: G3 V12, CM 2.2.
No EADS, BCMS login not mandatory. Cannot set BCMS logins.
Attendant, meetme, holiday and prompting vectoring only.

Testing:
Set up hunt group with ACD, queueing, AAS active. Calls queue when all phones in use, but cannot set 'away' flag on any phone. (Tried Aux-work pointed to hunt group number and hunt-ns, also send-calls <could not send calls back to hunt group number>)

Set up non-ACD hunt group, queueing. Calls queue when all phones in use, able to set 'away' flag on phone through hunt-ns button. Busy tone returned when all stations set 'away' status.

The non-ACD hunt group gives us 90% of what we're wanting to do. The only thing left is some way to contact management if all helpdesk phones are set to 'away' mode.

Any ideas if we can make this type of notification call?

 

[mnealtx]

May have found a solution...

When all hunt group extensions are set 'away', busy tone is returned. I set up a coverage path to route "busy" to a separate extension. Set the phones to 'away' (hunt-ns), dialed in and instead of the busy tone, got the ring to the programmed coverage extension.

Woohoo!!!

 

[mnealtx]

Thinking on this...if there *were* a way to automate the hunt group stuff (maybe escalate a call to the help desk supervisor if it isn't picked up in a certain number of rings), that would be cool, too!

 

[Stinney]

Hunt Group page 2, Redirect On No Answer

Set number of rings and redirect to VDN, then route from Vector to where you want.

- Stinney
"Scire ubi aliquid invenire possis, ea demum maxima pars eruditionis est"

"To know where to find anything is, after all, the greatest part of education"

 

[mnealtx]

I'll check into that, thanks!

 

[mnealtx]

It's a NON-ACD hunt group - no RONA vectoring.

 

[mnealtx]

I think I'm limited by license options.

I don't have BCMS logins.
I don't have EAD.
I don't have any advanced vectoring (only meet-me, attendant, prompting and holiday).

If I set up the hunt group as ACD, I can't log the phones in.
If I activate AAS, I can't log the phones *OUT* via Aux-work - and, if I have AAS active and set up RONA, any station that trips RONA will be taken out of the hunt group, which we don't want.

Current setup:
NON-ACD hunt group. Stations have a 'hunt-ns' button to remove station from hunt group (similar to aux-work). If all HG members are in night service mode, coverage path redirects calls to supervisor's number instead of returning a busy tone to the caller.

Next step: create a vector to deliver calls to the HG during working hours, and to an alternate location after working hours. This will give us 99% of what management is asking for. The only thing left that they want is to have a 'redirect to supervisor after 'x' rings', and I don't see any way to do that without advanced vectoring.

 

[mnealtx]

After trying to vector control the hunt group, the 'hunt-ns' button doesn't work.

Removed hunt-ns from all extensions, removed extensions from hunt group. Removed hunt group. Busyout/release extensions.

Added hunt group, extensions and hunt-ns buttons again, no change. Hunt-ns still doesn't work to take extensions out of hunt group.

Any ideas on what to do next?

 

[mnealtx]

Found a solution -

Was able to set Hunt Group to ACD and log phones in/out. Set RONA so that people away from desk are kicked out of queue and call goes to next station. When all stations kicked out by RONA, call routes to Help Desk supervisor (1st Cover) and then to *his* supervisor (2nd Cover).

Now, back to looking at just *how* much I can control via vector (probably not much) and setting up working hours/after hours options.

 

[Stinney]

I'm not sure of what your limitations are since you don't have any advanced vectoring options.

I believe that you first have to be able to change the hunt group vector setting to Y to be used in a vector. But then I believe that requires you to set the ACD and Skill settings to Y.

If you can do this, you could route the RONA back into a vector to requeue the call at a higher level. You could also check if any agents are available. If they all RONA then none will be available. However, if they are all on calls then they are also all unavailable. So it's hard to manage this way. You probably don't want to just throw the call off to a supervisor without giving the call a chance to queue and wait for an available agent when they are all on calls and it's not a RONA situation.

- Stinney
"Scire ubi aliquid invenire possis, ea demum maxima pars eruditionis est"

"To know where to find anything is, after all, the greatest part of education"

 

[mnealtx]

Hello, Stinney - thanks for the reply.

I'm not sure what was messing up before, but I'm now able to log phones in/out of the hunt group (as in the post immediately above your reply). I've set up log in/out, auto-in and aux work buttons on the phones. All works fine.

I'm having to work around not having basic vectoring commands. In short, I'm having to use 3 vectors to do what I'd be able to accomplish in one with basic vectoring.

I'm still working on announcements and options for the after work leg of the vectoring and testing the ACD stuff under vector control to make sure it works like we want it to.

Current setup: ACD (non EAS) hunt group, queue and vector controlled.

Vector 2 is an attendant vector to route the callers to the hunt group.
1. Wait-time 0 sec hearing ringback
2. goto vector 3 if holiday in table 1
3. #goto vector 3 if time of day is all 1901 to 0759.
4. #goto vector 3 if time of day is sun 1701 to mon 0759 (Office is open 0800-1900 Mon-Sat, 0800-1700 Sun)(tested, works, commented out while testing further)
5. queue-to hunt group 4 priority l
6. announcement 3171 (All technicians are currently busy. Please hold the line and your call will be answered in the order received)
7. wait-time 90 seconds hearing music
8. announcement 3172 (All technicians are still busy. Please continue to hold)
9. goto step 7 if unconditionally
10. stop

Vector 3 is a prompting vector for after hours calls. I'm still working on it, currently have it going to a couple of numbers here in the office as we're still working out after hours options.
1. wait-time 0 seconds hearing ringback
2. Collect 1 digit after announcement "x" (still working the announcement - options and such)
3. route-to number "1234" if digit = 1 (this works)
4. route-to number "2345" if digit = 2 (this works)
5. goto vector 4 if unconditionally
6. stop

Vector 4 is another attendant vector, provides feedback and disconnect if no digits are entered in vector 3 (only way I could find to provide disconnect)
1. disconnect after announcement "x" (still working this announcement, too - provide normal working hours and a request to call back the next day)(this works, though)
2. stop

Problems:
If a call is in queue and the last available tech goes to aux or logs off, the call hangs in queue. I'd like the call to go to supervisor at that point.
RONA: I don't have RONA set to anything on the hunt group, just a 3 rings setting before a station goes to RONA. Under vector, when the last tech goes RONA, the call just rings and rings. Like above, would like it to cover to a supervisor phone at that point.

I don't have any capability to check for available techs on the hunt group to solve the problem (check split)...any other workarounds?

Other than the above, anyone see any issues with the vectors?

 

[mnealtx]

More testing....

Looks like going non-vector controlled gives me the supervisory coverage I need.

Set hunt group non-vector (just ACD and queue).
Coverage path set to cover to supervisor phone if busy. (Hunt group coverage path field)
Announcements set at 2 seconds and 15 seconds (for testing - will change 2nd announcement to longer period for actual use)
RONA set to 3 rings.

Changed vector 2 as follows:
1. Wait-time 0 sec hearing ringback
2. goto step 7 if holiday in table 1
3. goto step 7 if time of day is all 1901 to 0759.
4. goto step 7 if time of day is sun 1701 to mon 0759 (Office is open 0800-1900 Mon-Sat, 0800-1700 Sun)(tested, works, commented out while testing further)
5. route-to number 'xxxx' (hunt group number) with cov y if unconditionally
6. stop
7. collect 1 digit while hearing announcement "XX" (test of 'we closed, hit 'x' for 'y' message)
8. route-to number '1234' if digit = 1
9. route-to number '2345' if digit = 2
10. goto vector 4 if unconditionally
11. stop

Vector 4 is still an announcement of hours and a request to call back during office hours, then disconnect.

So... I was able to combine vectors 2 and 3 (mostly) and only have to use vector 4 for the disconnect treatment

Results:
Calls queue when stations off hook.
If no stations active in hunt group (aux-work, RONA or logged out), calls cover to supervisor via cover path.
If last station in hunt group is on call and goes aux-work while on call, queued call still rings station when it goes on hook.

Does anyone see any glaring issues with the vectors as written? Points where it could break?