CONDUCTOR Overview

A storm contact centre routes incoming contacts to their destinations using the following elements:

• Access points
• Services
• Queues and hunt groups
• Users

Each incoming contact enters the contact centre through an access point and is then routed to a service. The service processes the interaction before passing it to a storm user (agent) via a queue or to users in a hunt group.

The CONDUCTOR screen, as shown above, intuitively represents this journey through the storm elements. The white lines are the connections between elements showing traffic route design from access points on the left of the screen to groups of users on the right. 

In the illustration above, a contact who dials the number 02079460241 is routed to a service called 'Main IVR'. This service then routes the contact to one of three queues (Customer Service, General Holidays, or Summer Holidays) where they wait until their call is answered by a storm user. Similarly, a contact who dials the number 02079460240 is routed to a service called 'Sales', which then routes the contact to the Sales hunt group. A contact who sends an email to 'IT@monumental.com' is routed to the service named 'IT Support' before being routed on to the 'IT Support' queue. A contact who sends a text to 838001 is routed directly to a user.

The elements are described below.

Access Points

An access point is an entry point that is used by a contact to enter the storm platform and can be any of the following types:

Access points are unique to your organisation and are set up by Content Guru when your system is provisioned. You connect an access point directly to a user or to the service that you want to run when traffic hits the access point (for example, when a caller dials one of your telephone numbers or sends an email to one of your email addresses).

See also Connect Access Points to Services and Users.

Services

A service contains the logic for processing a contact's communication that has arrived via the connected access point. The processing typically results in the contact being routed to a destination such as a queue or hunt group. For example, a service may be designed to play an introduction prompt to the caller prompting them for a DTMF keypress and then routing the caller to the queue indicated by their choice. Services that are used in this fashion are often referred to as an interactive voice response (IVR) services.

You create and edit services using SERVICE DESIGNER, a powerful service design tool that is hosted by CONDUCTOR. Shown below is simple script service as seen in the SERVICE DESIGNER. For information about creating inbound services in SERVICE DESIGNER, see the storm FLOW User Guide. storm FLOW is the standalone version of the SERVICE DESIGNER.

You can create audio prompts for your services using the CONDUCTOR application's integrated text-to-speech converter and then assigning the audio to your services in SERVICE DESIGNER. Alternatively, you can upload external audio prompts and music from external sources. 

See also Create Services.

Queues

Many of your storm services will route contacts to queues, where each contact they will wait and listen to audio until they are answered by a storm user who is assigned to service the queue. 

You create and edit queues in the CONDUCTOR configuration panel. You can improve the experience of your customers by creating audio prompts using the CONDUCTOR application's integrated text-to-speech converter and then assigning the audio to your queues. Alternatively, you can use external audio prompts and music that have been created outside CONDUCTOR. 

You can also assign user completion codes to queues. A completion code is an item of text that is selected by a user in storm DTA (also referred to as the agent desktop) at the end of an interaction to indicate its overall outcome. Examples of completion codes are 'Purchased policy', and 'Cancelled policy'. You create a set of completion codes as a form and then assign the form to a queue. The codes are then displayed to users in DTA when they have serviced that queue.

See also Create Queues, Create Voice Media, Upload Audio Prompts, and Create User Completion Codes.

Hunt Groups

Some of your storm services may route contacts to a hunt group of storm users. When a caller is routed to a hunt group, the telephony devices of all users in the group ring at the same time (parallel ringing) until the call is answered by a group member, the call times out (call not answered within 60 seconds), or the caller hangs up.

You create and edit hunt groups in the CONDUCTOR configuration panel. Hunt group elements appear in the Queues section of the CONDUCTOR screen.

See also Create Hunt Groups.

Users

A storm user is an individual who is able to answer incoming communications routed to queues and hunt groups, or directly to the user.

You can control the assignment of displayed users (UC users and CONTACT agents) to your access points, queues and hunt groups.

Note: only CONTACT agents can service queues. If you want supervisors to service queues and handle communications, contact your local support representative.

CONDUCTOR tells you how many UC User, CONTACT Agent, and Supervisor licences are available in your current deployment. 

See also Check User Licences, Create Users, and Change User Assignment to Queues and Hunt Groups.