6.4 Skills

Overview

In this section, you will learn how to configure and manage a skill service.

The skill service is using the ACD in exactly the same way the queue service does. It does, however, use a different method when it comes to configuring agents and then selecting them when a call comes in.

There are two main differences between a queue and skill service:

  • Skill weight works in exactly the opposite way as the penalty weight

  • Agents cannot remove themselves from the skill service.

Since all the other settings are exactly the same as with queues, this section will only describe the options different to those in queue services.

In this view, you can:

  • Add a new entry

  • Select one, several or all entries and delete them

  • Edit, clone, delete or edit an entry or copy it to a clipboard (you can also edit an entry by double-clicking on it)

  • Select how many entries you want to have on the page

  • Search for a skill

TIP

You have the option of cloning a skill if you want to duplicate the skill with the same or similar settings.

Skill level

In contrast to a queue, where you penalise agents to lower their preference for being called, in the skill service, agents with the highest skill level will be called first. For example, you would configure the skill in such a way that people with the most skill for a particular service will be called before people with less skills.

The default value for the skill level is 1, with the maximum value is 10.

By defining a different skill level for each member of the service, we can help control the preference for where callers are delivered, yet still ensure that other agents will be available to answer calls if the preferred agent is unavailable.

Please bear in mind that:

  • In most cases, the ACD will not attempt to deliver calls to agents with lower skills whilst agents with a higher skill are available, even if these agents have not answered the call

  • If the ACD has started to deliver calls to agents with a lower skill, but an agent with a higher skill becomes available, it will stop and try the highest skilled agents again.

Subscribing/unsubscribing from a skill service

Bear in mind that phone extensions can be a member of multiple skill services.

Adding a phone extension to a skill service can be done via:

  • Skills

  • Phone extensions

Unlike the queue services, phone extensions / end users cannot add or remove themselves from a skill service. The will need to login or logout from their skill set.

There is currently only one method available for end users to subscribe or unsubscribe from their skill set:

  • Using function codes (star codes).

The system doesn’t actually remove the agent from the list and will remember the skill level that was configured via the Admin Portal. When the agents unsubscribe from the service, it means they are still listed under it, but are no longer receiving calls. Please note that the agent can still stay logged into their device but unsubscribe from the skill.

Agents will only be able to subscribe or unsubscribe from their entire skill set and won’t be able to pick which skill service they’re a member of.

Under Extension > Phones > Skills, you can see what skills an agent is a member of. An administrator can toggle the button on to make an agent an active member of the skill, or toggle it off, in which case the agent won't receive any calls even when subscribed to a skill. Logged in as agent for skill set subscribes the agent into the skill set. So, if an agent has unsubscribed from a skill using a star code, an administrator can subscribe the agent using this option.