US20020175943A1 - Monitoring system client with call center layout and design capabilities - Google Patents

Abstract

A monitoring system monitors calling activity within a call center. The monitoring system includes a client program that may be run on a workstation. The monitoring system also includes a computerized tool for building a model of the call center's physical layout. The client program displays a graphical user interface that contains status information about agents in the call center and statistics regarding calling activity within the call center. The graphical user interface may depict a model of all or a portion of the call center's physical layout. A builder prepares a computerized model of the call center using the call center layout tool. The builder may use the call center layout tool to update the computerized model of the call center. Information about agents, supervisors, and business clients may be obtained from the graphical user interface.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
• This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/940,549, “Monitoring System Client For A Call Center,” filed Sep. 30, 1997, now pending.[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD
• The present invention relates generally to telecommunications systems and, more particularly, to a computerized call center layout tool for use with a call center monitoring system.[0002]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
• A typical call center includes a number of agents who field inbound telephone calls and place outbound telephone calls. Each agent has an associated station that includes a personal computer or workstation, a phone pad and a head set. The agent may place outbound sales calls or field inbound calls (such as 800 number calls) from potential customers. The agents are organized into groups, and the agents have supervisors, who are responsible for supervising the agents. Each agent may receive or place calls for different business clients.[0003]
• One of the difficulties encountered in such a call center is the difficulty of monitoring the phone activity of the agents. It is difficult for a supervisor to obtain useful information about the activities of agents in a timely fashion. Such a lack of information makes it difficult for a supervisor to properly manage the agents and increase the profitability of the call center. In general, a supervisor must perform manual analysis and calculation to obtain useful data regarding agent performance. The frequency with which the physical layout within a call center changes and the high turnover rates among the agents within a call center further complicate a supervisor's analytical activities. Additionally, it is difficult to construct the layout of the call center whether the call center layout is being revised or newly established. Further, it is difficult for a call center manager to monitor activities of related agents, adjacent stations, etc.[0004]
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
• The invention addresses the limitations of the prior art by providing a computerized call center layout tool that facilitates constructing and updating a computerized model representing a call center's physical and logical structures. A computerized monitoring system utilizes the computerized call center model in monitoring the call center's agents. The monitoring system may display status information and statistics regarding agent activity superimposed over a graphical depiction of the call center model.[0005]
• The call center layout tool provides a first tool set, comprising a graphically depicted toolbox including icons. The icons in the first tool set represent call center components such as agent workstations and cubicles. The call center layout tool provides a second tool set that permits a call center layout builder to access rapidly and to position intuitively the call center components on a map. Using the first and second tool sets, the builder constructs or updates a model of the call center's physical and logical structures. The call center layout tool provides a third tool set that allows the builder to link the call center physical and logical structures together to complete the call center model. While layout design tools exist, for example, drag and drop drawing programs by Visio Corporation, such programs fail to provide logical structures, as well as links to other data, excluding statistical data.[0006]
• The call center layout tool enables multiple builders to construct a call center model cooperatively and to construct the call center model from remote locations. The call center layout tool allows builders to perform a data integrity check on the call center model using a call center data repository that includes call center information such as data regarding call center agents. The call center layout tool further allows builders to save call center models and update the call center model as changes occur within the call center.[0007]
• The monitoring system enables a supervisor to view information regarding all of the agents under supervision. The monitoring system may use the call center model to graphically display status and statistical data regarding call center agents. The supervisor may elect to alter the present arrangement of agents in the call center based upon agent performance information received from the monitoring system. The call center layout tool allows the supervisor to update the call center model to reflect changes in the call center.[0008]
• The invention further provides a method for constructing a computerized model of a structure. A first graphical workspace is displayed upon which a builder may construct or update a computerized physical model of at least a portion of the structure. A second graphical workspace is displayed upon which a builder may construct or update a computerized logical model of at least a portion of the structure. The computerized logical model represents logical relationships within the structure. A first tool set is generated and displayed comprising at least one component of the structure. A second tool set configured to place and to manipulate at least one component on the first and second graphical workspaces is generated and displayed for construction of the computerized physical model of the structure and the computerized logical model of the structure. The computerized physical model of the structure and the computerized logical model of the structure are linked to form the computerized model. The resulting computerized model is formatted for display.[0009]
• In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a method for constructing a call center is provided. In this method, a first computerized model is built representing physical structures in the call center. The first computerized model includes call center components such as agent stations. A second computerized model is built representing logical relationships within the call center. The second computerized model includes identification data for call center agents. The first and second computerized models are linked together to form a computerized call center model.[0010]
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
• A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described below relative to the following figures.[0011]
• FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a portion of a telecommunications system that is suitable for practicing a preferred embodiment of the present invention.[0012]
• FIG. 2 provides an illustrative embodiment of the call center layout tool of the invention.[0013]
• FIG. 3 depicts a transport object linking together two call center models.[0014]
• FIG. 4 depicts a series of agent detail objects used to construct a detailed mode map.[0015]
• FIG. 5 is a block diagram that illustrates the supervisor/control workstation of FIG. 1 in more detail.[0016]
• FIG. 6 depicts an object architecture that is suitable for practicing the preferred embodiment of the monitoring system of the invention.[0017]
• FIG. 7 shows a screen shot of a window produced by the monitoring system client that contains a complete call center view.[0018]
• FIG. 8 depicts a pop-up window that displays information about a business client.[0019]
• FIG. 9 depicts hot spots for navigating to display a bay view or pod view.[0020]
• FIG. 10 is a screen shot that depicts a window produced by the monitoring system client where a bay view is displayed that contains call statistics.[0021]
• FIG. 11 is a screen shot that depicts a window produced by the monitoring system client where business client information is displayed that contains call statistics.[0022]
• FIG. 12 is a screen shot that depicts a window produced by the monitoring system client that contains a pod view.[0023]
• FIG. 13 is a screen shot that shows a window produced by the monitoring system client wherein a supervisor view is displayed.[0024]
• FIG. 14 depicts a pop-up window that displays agent information.[0025]
• FIG. 15 depicts network ports for the call center layout tool.[0026]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
• The preferred embodiment of the present invention provides a monitoring system for a call center. The monitoring system includes a call center layout tool for building and updating computerized models of the call center's physical layout and agent stations and a client application program that displays information regarding agent activity and call statistics on an intuitive user interface. The user interface depicts a computerized call center model, which has been built using the call center layout tool, and displays with the computerized call center model useful information about agents and calling activity. The client application program may provide different views of the computerized call center model. In particular, the client application program may display the entire call center, a single bay of the call center, or a single pod of the call center.[0027]
• A builder constructs a computerized call center model using the call center layout tool. The builder may be the call center monitor or any knowledgeable person having the appropriate authorization for accessing the call center layout tool. The call center layout tool provides the call center builder with a palette of graphical icons representing call center resources. These call center resources, which will be further described below, include agent stations, walls, and transports. By selecting icons and placing them on a map, the builder may create a computerized call center model that mirrors the physical layout of the monitored call center and its agent stations. The call system monitor may then monitor the real-time performance of the call center by viewing the graphical display of the call center model.[0028]
• The user interface of the related client application program displays information regarding each agent, including agent name, average handling time (AHT), average work time (AWT) and average talk time (ATT). Information regarding how many calls an agent has handled relative to a particular business client is also maintained. Graphical information is displayed to indicate whether an agent is available, unavailable, working on a call, or is in an error or unknown state. This graphical information may be overlaid on the computerized call center model that has been developed by the call center layout tool.[0029]
• The client application program also displays statistical information regarding call types. For example, the statistical information may be displayed that specifies the number of outbound calls, the number of internal calls (i.e., within the call center) and the number of inbound calls currently being handled. Statistical information may also be displayed regarding calls on a per business client basis. Statistics regarding how many calls were received for each type of business client that is being serviced by the call center may also be displayed. The statistics may be displayed in graphical format to provide a visual tool for analyzing activity within the call center. The statistical information may also be displayed in conjunction with the computerized call center model.[0030]
• FIG. 1 is a block diagram that illustrates a portion of a telecommunications network that is suitable for practicing a preferred embodiment of the invention. The telecommunications network includes a[0031]call center10 that is connected to a public switched telephone network (PSTN)12 via avoice trunk14. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that thecall center10 may also be alternately connected to other types of networks from which calls may originate. Thecall center10 includes an automatic call distributor (ACD)16 or other switching mechanism for distributing incoming calls within the call center. TheACD16 is connected via avoice trunk18 toagent stations20. Theseagent stations20 include a workstation or personal computer, a phone pad and a head set. Agents are stationed at thestations20 and the agents utilize the resources contained therein to process calls. TheACD16 is also connected via avoice trunk22 to a voice response unit (VRU)24. TheVRU24 automates call processing. TheVRU24 may be used to collect information such as account numbers, credit card numbers and service requests from a caller. TheVRU24 is connected to a computer/telephone integration (CTI)server30 via adata link26. TheCTI server30 extracts call data from theACD16. In particular, theCTI server30 abstracts raw call data from theACD16 into useful statistical data. TheCTI server30 also distributes data in the form of events. TheCTI server30 may run as a separate process on a dedicated computer system. A suitable CTI server is the T Server produced by Genesys Labs of San Bruno, Calif. TheCTI server30 is connected to theACD16 viadata link28 and is connected to theagent stations20 viadata link32.
• CTI monitoring server (CTIMS)[0032]36 is connected to theCTI server30 viadata link34. TheCTIMS36 may be implemented on a dedicated computer or on a shared computer. TheCTIMS36 compiles statistical data that is collected from theCTI server30 into useful data for presentation and management at the supervisor/control workstations38. This data is utilized by the client application program of the preferred embodiment of the present invention, as will be described in more detail below. TheCTIMS36 registers with theCTI server30 to receive all events that are output by theCTI server30. Examples of events that are output by theCTI server30 include events indicating calls received, calls routed, calls answered, and calls disconnected. TheCTIMS36 categorizes the events into groups, such as by agent, by supervisor, by call type, by business type and the like. TheCTIMS36 also calculates certain statistics such as average call handling times. A suitable implementation of CTIMS is described in copending application entitled, “Computer/Telephony Interface Monitoring Server,” U.S. application Ser. No. 08/940,547, which is explicitly incorporated by reference herein.
• The[0033]CTIMS36 is connected to an automated resource management system (ARMS)44 viadata link46. TheARMS44 provides management of resource data for the call center. TheARMS44 is largely a database on a server that comprises interfaces for access byCTIMS36 and supervisor/control workstations38.
• A call center builder uses a call[0034]center layout tool50 to construct a computerized model of the physical layout of the call center. The callcenter layout tool50, which may be a PC-based computer program, sends data representing the call center model to thesupervisor control workstation38 throughdata link51. The callcenter layout tool50 may also send data to theARMS44 and receive data from theARMS44 alonglink51. In some embodiments of the invention, the callcenter layout tool50 may linkagent station20 data from theARMS44 to the computerized call center model.
• It should be appreciated that[0035]data links26,32,34,40,42,48, and51 may all be implemented as local area network (LAN) connections. A suitable LAN is an Ethernet LAN.
• FIG. 2 provides an illustrative embodiment of the call[0036]center layout tool50 of the invention. The callcenter layout tool50 operates as a graphical user interface (GUI) application in this embodiment and provides a “What-You-See-Is-What-You-Get” (WYSIWYG) design tool for graphically constructing a computerized model of a call center. The computerized call center model may then be displayed on the supervisor/control workstation38 in conjunction with the call center agent monitoring program described below. The call center layout tool's graphical design environment utilizes well-known graphical techniques such as drag-and-drop, rubber-banding, and stretchable controls (adjusting window size) as tools for modeling a call center. The callcenter layout tool50 provides the builder with a multiple document interface (MDI) for concurrent modeling of an unlimited number of call centers.
• As shown in FIG. 2, the call[0037]center layout tool50 provides ascreen display201 that is used by a builder to construct acall center model219. The builder selects icons from anicon palette202 and places them on amap203. Theicon palette202 comprises a first tool set that provides the builder with the components needed for constructing thecall center model219. The first tool set provides icons representing call center components, such as acube204, awall205, atransport207, and anagent detail icon208.
• A cube icon, such as the[0038]cube204, represents call center agent cubicles or workstations. When the builder selects thecube icon204, the callcenter layout tool50 enters a “cube mode” that allows the builder to place multiple cube objects209 on themap203. In the cube mode, the builder may place and manipulate the cube objects209 by accessing an appropriate key, such as a mouse button. The builder's ability to place and manipulate call center components, such as thecube object209, comprises a second tool set within the callcenter layout tool50.
• When the builder first places a[0039]cube object209 on themap203, thecube object209 has no assigned properties. If the builder accesses an appropriate key, such as a right mouse key, the builder receives a message stating “no properties assigned” for thecube object209. The builder may assign or modify properties of thecube object209 at this time or later. Once properties have been assigned to thecube object209, then when the builder accesses the appropriate key, the cube object's properties will be displayed. A cube object's properties include a logical workstation number (LWN) for the agent workstation. As described in detail below, the call center monitoring system uses the LWN to link statistics from theCTIMS36 and properties from theARMS44 for a givenAgent Station20 with thecube object209 that represents anAgent Station20. The call center layout tool's ability to link thecall center model219 with other call center properties, such as agent properties, comprises a third tool set.
• The builder may place and manipulate a[0040]wall object210 in a manner similar to that which the builder emplaces thecube object209. When the builder selectswall icon205, the builder enters into a “wall mode” and may drawwalls210 on themap203. Wall objects210 represent barriers in the call center and have no assigned properties, so the builder's task ends once he has satisfactorily placed thewall object210 on themap203.
• The builder uses a[0041]transport icon207 to link two different call center models. When the builder selects thetransport icon207, the builder enters into the “transport mode” and may place a transport object on themap203 by accessing an appropriate key, such as a mouse button. The transport mode will be discussed below.
• The builder selects an[0042]agent detail icon208 for themap203 in the same way as the other icons. When the builder selects theagent detail icon208, the builder enters into the “agent detail mode.” In the agent detail mode, the builder then assigns an LWN as a property to an agent detail object, as will be discussed below.
• The builder uses a reposition[0043]icon206 for moving a previously placed call center object to a new location on themap203. When the builder selects the repositionicon206, the builder enters into the “reposition mode” in which the builder may reposition any object on themap203 by selecting it and dragging it to a new position. In the reposition mode, the builder may also select an object then engage an appropriate key, such as a right mouse button, in order to display the object's properties.
• As shown in FIG. 2, the screen display of the call[0044]center layout tool50 presents the builder with additional tools for constructing thecall center model219. The builder may use adata lock icon211 to specify that another builder has authorization for changing themap203 while excluding other potential builders. The callcenter layout tool50 provides the builder with a security mechanism which includes access rights for both editing and creating thecall center model219. Builders without the appropriate access rights may not alter thecall center model219.
• The builder uses an[0045]agent icon212 to search through theARMS44 database to locate a particular agent's name or to locate a specific LWN. The callcenter layout tool50 also provides the builder with an option for automatically checking theARMS44 database to locate updates to acall center model219, or document files, subsequent to the loading of a particular call center model.
• The builder uses a[0046]pencil icon213 to modify the shape of a call center component, such as thewall210. Thepencil icon213 enables the builder to accurately represent irregular shapes within a call center's physical layout such as a curve. In a similar manner, ahammer icon214 may be used for making small modifications to a call center component, such as thewall icon210. For example, thehammer icon214 may be utilized by the builder to represent a small indentation in an otherwise smooth wall in the call center.
• The builder may use a[0047]map icon215 as a means for locating which portion of a large call center model is presently being displayed on themap203. Thus, for very large call center models, the builder may only see a portion of thecall center model219 on themap203 at any one time, but may visually reference themap icon215 to determine which portion of thecall center model219 is presently displayed in themap203.
• A[0048]multi-function knife icon216 may be utilized by the builder to modify various settings in the callcenter layout tool50. For example, the builder may use theknife icon216 to engage a “snap-to-grid” setting. The builder may also use theknife icon216 to engage other functionality, such as a context-sensitive help function. The context-sensitive help function provides the builder with information about each of the icons and other tools provided for the builder's use in constructing thecall center model219.
• The builder uses a[0049]flashlight icon217 to illuminate or highlight a portion of themap203. For example, the builder may wish to highlight the location of a call center manager's location. The builder may use acamera icon218 to make a computerized snapshot of thecall center model219. The callcenter layout tool50 stores the snapshot as a bit mapped object in one embodiment. The builder may print out the computerized snapshot to compare the computerizedcall center model219 against the physical call center or may send copies of the snapshot to call center management or other supervisory personnel.
• When the builder has completed the[0050]call center model219 on themap203, he assigns thecall center model219 to an actual call center by selecting a call center name from a list box. The callcenter layout tool50 then stores thecall center model219 as a document file on the supervisor/control workstation38.
• The builder may next select an “apply to production database” option provided by the call[0051]center layout tool50. This option causes the callcenter layout tool50 to copy the document file to theARMS44 database and perform a data integrity check. The data integrity check matches the call center to which the document file is assigned to a table of LWNs for the call center stored in theARMS44. The integrity check ensures the validity of all LWNs assigned tocubes209 in the document file for the call center and also ensures that the builder has assigned each LWN for the call center to acube209 in the document file.
• Microsoft Visual C++ 4.2 and the Microsoft Foundation Classes (MFC) have been used to encode the software for the call[0052]center layout tool50. The MFC architecture simplifies incorporation of advanced Windows features such as print preview, floating dockable toolbars, context-sensitive help and property pages. Of course, the callcenter layout tool50 may be built using any one of a variety of programming systems known to those skilled in the computer modeling arts.
• One embodiment of the call[0053]center layout tool50 operates on all 32-bit Microsoft operating systems, such as Windows 95, Windows NT 3.51, and Windows NT 4.0. An Intersolve Oracle V7.0 ODBC driver provides the callcenter layout tool50 with access to theARMS database44. The callcenter layout tool50 may be designed to operate on any computing system known to those skilled in the art of computer programming. An exemplary embodiment of the callcenter layout tool50 may be constructed without third party OLE controls.
• In an alternate embodiment, the call[0054]center layout tool50 uses MFC TCP/IP sockets to allow one or more distributed builders to simultaneously edit the same call center model, with each builder viewing the actions of the other builders in real time. For example, a call center may be cooperatively constructed by builders representing each of the call center's initial customers. Thus, each builder may contribute to the construction of one call center model. In another alternate embodiment, the builder may remotely access the callcenter layout tool50 to construct a new call center model or to update an existing call center model. As shown in FIG. 15, remote access to the callcenter layout tool50 may be provided through a mechanism such asnetwork ports1501.
• FIG. 3 depicts a transport object linking two call center models together. When the builder selects the[0055]transport icon207, the builder enters into the “transport mode” and may place atransport object301 on themap203 by accessing an appropriate key, such as a mouse button. Transport objects301 represent both physical and logical connections between parts of a call center. For example, thetransport object301 may represent physical connections between portions of a call center, such as a stairway or passageway. On the other hand, thetransport object301 may represent a logical connection between portions of a call center, such as two portions of a call center that are both dedicated to a single customer. The transport object's main property is a destination map, or the location of another call center model to be linked to thecall center model219 on themap203. The builder accesses a transportobject property window302 through an appropriate key such as a right mouse key.
• The builder stores call center models in a document file. After placing the[0056]transport object301 on themap203, the builder then assigns to the transportobject property window302 the name of another destination map, which may represent another call center, another floor of the same call center, another section of the same call center floor, a detailed mode map, or any other type of map. In an exemplary embodiment, the destination map assignment property for the transportobject property window302 comprises a pointer to the document file that comprises the other call center model. Thus, thetransport object301 creates a pointer between the document file for thecall center model219 on themap203 and the document file for another call center model. As will be discussed later, a user may view the other call center model by accessing appropriate keys, such as a double click on a mouse.
• The builder may construct call center models on[0057]several maps203 and then link those call center models together with transport objects301. Themap203 may include multiple links through transport objects301. This procedure may be helpful when the call center supervisor has two groups of agents located in two different call centers that both serve the same customer. In this situation, the call center supervisor may view performance data for both groups of agents together by utilizing atransport object301 that links the two call center models together.
• FIG. 4 depicts a series of agent detail objects used to construct a[0058]detailed mode map403. The builder selects anagent detail icon208 in the same way as the other icons. When the builder selects theagent detail icon208, the builder enters into the “agent detail mode” and may then place anagent detail object401 on themap203 by accessing an appropriate key, such as a mouse button. Agent detail objects401 comprise information pertaining to specific agents within the call center.
• To enter information for an agent represented by a particular[0059]agent detail object401, the builder accesses an appropriate key, such as a right mouse click, which invokes anagent detail window402. The builder may enter an agent's name and assign an LWN as a property of theagent detail object401 by entering the appropriate information in theagent detail window402. The builder may place agent detail objects401 on themap203 and assign LWNs to those objects in addition to placing cubes, such ascubes209 of FIG. 2, on themap203 to represent agents. By placing agent detail objects401 on themap203, the builder constructs thedetailed mode map403 for the call center. Thedetailed mode map403 includes logical information regarding the call center, such as agent status information, and complements the physical call center information in thecall center model219. The builder may then link the physicalcall center model219 to thedetailed mode map403 using atransport207.
• The[0060]detailed mode map403 is discussed in greater detail below with reference to FIG. 10. In general, when a user accesses an appropriate key, such as a right mouse click, theagent detail icon401 displays performance statistics for its respective LWN, such average handling time (AHT), average work time (AWT), and average talk time (ATT). TheARMS44 prepares these statistics and includes the name of the agent presently assigned to the LWN.
• FIG. 5 depicts the format of a suitable supervisor/[0061]control workstation38 for practicing the preferred embodiment of he present invention. The supervisor/control workstations38 are the personal computers or workstations that are used by the agent supervisors. Theworkstation38 includes a central processing unit (CPU)53 for overseeing operation of the workstation. Theworkstation38 may also include a number of peripheral devices, including akeyboard52, amouse54 and avideo display56. Amodem58 may be included for enabling theworkstation38 to communicate with remote computing resources over conventional telephone lines. Anetwork adapter60 may be included to enable theworkstation38 to be connected to a local area network. Theworkstation38 includes bothprimary memory64 andsecondary storage62. Theprimary memory64 may hold a number of different types of data and programs. These programs may include anoperating system66 and aclient application program68 that is responsible for providing a graphical user interface (GUI) to the user of theworkstation38 to display information regarding call center activity. Theapplication program68 retrieves the computerized call center model, such as the call center model shown in FIG. 2, and overlays additional call center information on this model. Theclient application program68 is known as the monitoring system client. The secondary storage may holddata70 that is used by the monitoring system client.
• Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the[0062]call center10 may have a different configuration than that depicted in FIG. 1. Those skilled in the art will also appreciate that the workstation depicted in FIG. 5 is intended to be merely illustrative and not limiting of the invention. The invention may be practiced with different call center configurations and workstation configurations.
• In an alternate embodiment, the call[0063]center design tool50 may be included as an optional series of commands on theclient application program68.
• Before reviewing operation of the[0064]monitoring system client68 in more detail, it is useful to review how calls are processed by the call center. Initially, a call originates from thePSTN12 and is sent over thevoice trunk14 to theACD16. TheACD16 decides where the call should be sent. The call is routed overvoice trunk22 to theVRU24. TheVRU24 includes voice messages for obtaining information from the caller. As was mentioned above, theVRU24 may collect information such as account numbers, credit card numbers and service requests. The gathered information is passed over the data link26 to theCTI server30. TheCTI server30, in turn, passes the data to theagent workstation20 that will be servicing the call. TheACD16 then switches the call to theagent station20 that is to handle the call. An application may be run on the agent workstation to provide a screen pop with the information that has been collected by theVRU24 so that the agent at theagent station20 has the collected information available. The agent accepts the call and processes it accordingly. Additional information about the caller may be retrieved fromARMS44.
• As was mentioned above, the[0065]ACD16 outputs information regarding the routing and processing of calls over data link28 to theCTI server30. TheCTI server30 outputs events that are received byCTIMS36 overdata link34. These events are processed and categorized byCTIMS36 and sent over data link40 to themonitoring system client68. Themonitoring system client68 uses this information to generate the GUI on thevideo display56 to help the supervisor monitor activity within the call center. The GUI will be described in more detail below.
• It should be appreciated that the[0066]monitoring system client68 receives two types of information from theCTIMS36. Sockets, such as found in the UNIX operating system, are used for interprocess communication between themonitoring system client68 andCTIMS36. A separate socket is provided for each type of information. The first type of information is state change information that indicates a change in the state of an agent. An agent may generally be in one of the following states: unavailable, available, call work, on call, error or unknown. When the agent is in an unavailable state, the agent is not available for processing calls. When the agent is in an available state, the agent is not currently processing a call and is available to process calls. When the agent is in the on call state, the agent is handling a call. When the agent is in the call work state, the agent is done handling a call but is working on the call data. When the agent is in an error state, an error has occurred. An agent also may be in an unknown state. The system also monitors call type. Examples of call type are outbound call, conference call, internal call or business call (wherein the business is known).
• When an agent changes states (e.g., completes a call),[0067]CTIMS36 sends an event that specifies the change in state. For example, if an agent changes from being unavailable to available,CTIMS36 generates an event that is sent to themonitoring system client68.
• The[0068]CTIMS36 also provides a second type of information: statistical information. This statistical information is used by themonitoring system client68 and is displayed as part of the GUI produced by the monitoring system client. For purposes of efficiency, the statistical information is not continuously fed to theworkstation38; rather, themonitoring system client68 polls CTIMS36 on a periodic basis (such as every 5 seconds) to receive updated statistical information from the CTIMS. Themonitoring system client68 includes code for receiving the statistics and updating information accordingly.
• The monitoring system adopts an object-oriented architecture. FIG. 6 illustrates a number of the object classes that are utilized within this architecture. Business objects are provided for each business client that is being serviced by the call center. The business objects are of the[0069]business object class74. Agent objects are created for each agent within the call center. The agent objects are of theagent object class76 and hold information regarding specific agents in the call center. The agent objects may hold information regarding the identity of the agent, the supervisor of the agent, telephone information for the agent, statistical information regarding the agent, state information regarding the agent and the identity of businesses for which the agent may process calls. Information regarding supervisors of agents is stored in the objects of thesupervisor object class78. Each call center may have an associated center object of thecenter object class82.
• The[0070]group object class80 is provided and serves as an abstract base class from which classes can be derived to maintain statistical information pertaining to a defined group of agents. Each group may have an associated object of thegroup object type80. Each center object holds information regarding the associated call center.
• The[0071]CTIMonitor object class84 is for objects that are responsible for receiving and broadcasting information from and to theCTI server30. This information may include agent user IDs and passwords, directory numbers assigned to agents and phone pads used by agents. Theconfig object class88 is for objects that maintain configuration information. Each socket has an associated instance of the IS (“intelligence service”)object class89. These sockets are used to communicate with instances of the monitoring system client that are of the UA (“user agent”)object class91.
• The[0072]ARMS44 maintains information regarding the agents, supervisors, and business information. TheARMS44 may also include call center model information, such as that shown in FIG. 2. As was mentioned above, this information is encapsulated into objects of different object classes. In particular, agent information is encapsulated into instances of theagent object type76, information regarding supervisors is encapsulated into instances of thesupervisor object type78 and business information is encapsulated into objects of thebusiness object type74. TheCTIMS36 maintains information about these objects and passes this information along with the statistical data to themonitoring system client68 around on the supervisor/control workstations38.
• The[0073]monitoring system client68 generates a GUI that depicts a portion or all of the call center model. The callcenter layout tool50 has prepared the display of the call center shown. Themonitoring system client68 may retrieve information regarding the computerized call center model. Themonitoring system client68 is also aware of what agents are currently processing calls in the call center and where the agents are stationed based upon information retrieved from theARMS44. Themonitoring system client68 additionally maintains statistical information regarding agents, supervisors and business segments. This information is utilized by themonitoring system client68 to display appropriate information in the GUI.
• The GUI generated by the[0074]monitoring system client68 may display a number of different views of the call center model created by the callcenter layout tool50. The call center is composed of a number of bays. Each bay typically includes two pods, and each pod includes a number of agent stations. The GUI may display an entire call center view, a bay view, or a pod view. Each of these views displays a different respective portion of the call center. These views allow a supervisor to view the entire call center or to focus on particular portions of the call center that are of interest.
• FIG. 7 depicts an[0075]example window90 that is generated by themonitoring system client68. Thewindow90 includes astatistics section92 that displays statistics regarding calling activity and acall center section94 that has a graphic layout taken from the computerized call center model. Agent stations are depicted asrectangular buttons100 in FIG. 7. Each button may display an icon that indicates the agent state, call type or business type. For example,rectangle110 holds an icon that provides a visual cue that the agent is unavailable.Rectangle111 holds a letter (e.g., “O”) that indicates that an outbound call is being processed by the agent at the associated agent station.Rectangle112 holds an icon that indicates that the business client for which the agent is servicing a call. In general, if an agent is in the available state, the unavailable state or the error/unknown states, the icon associated with that state is displayed in the rectangle associated with the agent. If the agent is placing an outbound call, an internal call or an unknown call, the letter associated with that type of call is displayed in the rectangle for the agent. If the agent is processing a call that is associated with a given business, the icon for the business will be displayed in the rectangle for the agent. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that other types of activatable user interface elements, other than buttons, may be used to depict agent stations.
• The[0076]statistics section92 of thewindow90 holds various statistics regarding calling activity within the current view. The state table114 of thestatistic section92 specifies the number of agents that are currently available, unavailable, processing calls or in an error or unknown state. The percentage of these totals is also displayed. Thecall type area116 displays statistics by call type. The number of outbound calls, the number of internal calls, the number of unknown calls and the number of consulting calls are all totaled and displayed within thecall type area116.
• The[0077]business type area118 of thestatistics section92 displays information regarding calls by business type. The icon associated with the business client and the name of the business client are displayed along with the total number of calls processed for the business, the current number of calls being processed for the business and percentages.
• Summary statistics may also be displayed in the[0078]statistics section92. For example,statistics117 regarding the number of agents currently logged on in the call center andstatistics119 indicating the number of agents that are currently processing calls may be displayed.
• [0079]Window90 may also include asection124 that holds call center statistics such as the number of abandoned calls, the number of ghost calls, the number of hang-ups and the number of calls handled.Graphical information122 may also be displayed that shows the percentage of agents that are either on call, unavailable, available or call work.
• The[0080]window90 includes a menu bar that holds anentry120 to access a view menu. The view menu enables a user to alter the view displayed within thewindow90. As will be described in more detail below, the user may request the displaying of a call center view, a bay view, a pod view or a supervisor view.
• The[0081]monitoring system client68 also enables certain pop-up windows to be displayed. One of these pop-up windows is a window regarding information that is particular to a given business client. If a user positions a mouse cursor over the entry for the business type within thestatistic section92 and clicks, a pop-up window for the business client is displayed. FIG. 8 shows an example of such a pop-upwindow126. The pop-upwindow126 holds information that identifies the business client and holds summary statistics regarding calls processed for that business type. These summary statistics may include the number of agents on call for the business calls in the queue that are waiting for an agent, abandoned calls, ghost calls, hang-up calls, handled calls and available agents.
• As was mentioned above, a user may activate the view menu to change to the view displayed within the[0082]window90. The user may also change the view by positioning a mouse cursor at locations within a section of the view displayed within thewindow90 and clicking a mouse button. FIG. 9 identifies the hot spots within the depiction of the call center that may be used to change the view from a call center view to a bay view or a pod view. FIG. 9 shows the depiction of abay132 and indicates that positioning a mouse cursor in proximity to the area pointed to byarrow134 and clicking results in a bay view being displayed within thewindow90. If, however, a user positions a mouse cursor to point to the hot spots indicated byarrows136A or136B and clicks, a pod view for the pod associated with a respective hot spot is displayed within thewindow90.
• FIG. 10 shows an example of a bay view. The bay view may either hold statistical information or business client information. In FIG. 10, the bay view holds statistical information. As can be seen in FIG. 10, the entire call center model is not displayed within the[0083]window90 but rather only asingle bay140 is depicted within thewindow90. Thestatistics section92 holds information only as to activity relative to the bay that is shown.Information142 regarding each agent within the bay is shown. This information includes thename150 of the agent and anicon152 on a button that indicates either the state of the agent, the call type or the business type. This icon is like that found for agents in the call center view. A set ofstatistics154 is also displayed for each agent. The statistics include the average handling time (AHT), which specifies the time it takes on average for an agent to handle (i.e., fully process) a call. Thestatistics154 also include the average work time (AWT), which identifies the time at which the agent is processing the call but not talking, and the average talk time (ATT), which specifies the average amount of time that the agent is talking on a call. The AHT is the sum of the AWT and ATT.
• [0084]Graphical data148 depicting the percentage of agents that are on call, unavailable, available or in an error state is depicted within the bay view. The bay view also includes acondensed view144 of the call center. Thebay146 currently being displayed is highlighted in thecondensed view144 to indicate position of the bay within the call center. A “Business”button156 may be displayed and activated to change the view to show business segment information for the bay rather than call statistics for the bay.
• FIG. 11 depicts an example of an instance wherein the business client information is shown for a bay view.[0085]Graphical data148 and acondensed view144 of the call center layout are still displayed. Similarly, thestatistics section92 holds statistical information regarding calling activity for the bay. The information that is displayed per agent, however, differs. Thename170 of the agent is still displayed but only information regarding business clients are displayed. In particular, an icon identifying a business client and the associated number of calls that have been processed for the business client are displayed. For example,icon166 is associated with the first business and the display shown in FIG. 11 indicates that nine calls have been processed by the given agent for that business.Icon168 is associated with a different business and the display indicates that only a single call has been processed by the agent for that business. Thewindow90 may include a “CallStats”button164 that may be activated to show call statistics information for the bay view rather than business client information.
• As was mentioned above, the view may also show only a single pod (i.e., half of a bay). FIG. 12 depicts an instance wherein a pod view for a[0086]pod182 is displayed. The information is like that shown for the bay view but includes only information for the agents within the given pod. Thestatistics section92 holds information for the pod and thegraphical data148 is for the pod. Thecondensed view144 of the call center model shows a highlightedsection180 that is associated with the pod. As in the bay view, a user may choose to show call statistics information or business client information for the agents. A “Business”button184 may be activated to toggle to the business segment information for the pod.
• A supervisor view for a given supervisor may also be displayed (see FIG. 13). The supervisor view shows a[0087]statistic section92 that holds statistics for the agents under the supervisor. Agraphical section500 shows statistics regarding each of the agents. The information includes thename502 of the agent and aphone identifier503 for the agent. A table of call information is displayed that includes acolumn504 that may holdicons506 for the given business client, acolumn508 that identifies the total number of calls processed by the agent for the business and the average talk time (ATT) for the calls processed for the business.Totals512 for the table are displayed as well.Statistics514 regarding the average working time (AWT) are displayed along withstatistics516 for the average handling time (AHT). The percentage of time which the agent is unavailable518 is displayed along with the percentage of time the agent is available520.
• It should be appreciated that in any of the views, information regarding an agent may be obtained by positioning a mouse cursor over the button (i.e., rectangle) associated with an agent in the given view and activating the button by clicking a mouse button. FIG. 14 shows an example of an[0088]agent view window240. Thename241 of the agent is displayed in the title bar of thewindow240. Thesocial security number242 of the agent may be displayed along with aphone identifier244. The total time in which the agent has been logged in246 is displayed. The name of asupervisor248 is displayed as well. A table summarizing call processing for the agent by business segments is displayed. Eachrow250,252 and254 holds information about the associated business segment. The total number of calls and the average time to handle a call are displayed within the associated row. The total amount of time spent on handling calls for the business are also displayed.
• The[0089]window240 includes a table256 that summarizes how much time the agent has spent in a respective agent state. Thewindow240 also includes agraph258 that shows the number of calls processed by the agent by business segment and agraph260 that shows the time in which an agent has been in the respective agent states is included in thewindow240. Lastly, a “Close”button262 is provided to enable the pop-upwindow240 to be closed.
• The present invention has the benefit of enabling a supervisor or other party to view information regarding call processing activity within the call center. The supervisor may readily change the view as needed and information contained within the views is updated regularly to be ensured to be current. Moreover, the information is shown in a variety of different formats that are useful to a supervisor.[0090]
• While the present invention has been described with reference to a preferred embodiment thereof, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various changes in form and detail may be made without departing from the intended scope of the present invention as defined in the appended claims. For example, the user interface may differ from that shown in the figures. Moreover, the monitoring system client may be run on agents workstations or other workstations that differ from the supervisor/control workstations. Still further, the monitoring system client may be run at a remote computer outside of the call center.[0091]
• The computerized call center layout tool of the invention may be applied in connection with systems and methods for call center monitoring. As already stated hereinabove, the present application is a continuation-in-part from a patent application entitled, “Monitoring System Client For A Call Center,” of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/940,549, filed Sep. 30, 1997, and assigned to a common assignee. In addition, a suitable implementation of the CTIMS used in accordance with the invention is described in copending application entitled, “Computer/Telephony Interface Monitoring Server,” U.S. application Ser. No. 08/940,547.[0092]
• Further aspects of the present invention are described in the following copending patent applications, each of which is assigned to a common assignee: U.S. application Ser. No. 08/940,546, “Monitoring System For Telephony Resource In A Call Center,” filed Sep. 30, 1997; U.S. application Ser. No. 08/934,167, “Desktop Telephony Application Program For A Call Center Agent,” filed on Sep. 19, 1997; U.S. application Ser. No. 08/934,166, “Telephony Server Application Program Interface (API),” filed on Sep. 19, 1997; U.S. application Ser. No. 08/940,548, “Automated Resource Management System (ARMS) For Call Center,” filed on Sep. 30, 1997; U.S. 0.30 application Ser. No. 08/933,767, “Configurable Application Program For Call Center Sales and Services,” filed on Sep. 19, 1997; U.S. application Ser. No. ______, “Data Archiving Of Call Data In Call Center,” filed on ______, and U.S. application Ser. No. ______, “Failover Mechanism For Computer/Telephony Integration Monitoring Server,” filed on ______.[0093]
• Although specific embodiments of, and examples for, the invention are described herein for illustrative purposes, various equivalent modifications are possible within the scope of the invention, as will be recognized by those skilled in the relevant art. The teachings provided herein of the invention may be applied to other modeling systems, not necessarily the exemplary computerized call center layout tool for call center monitoring systems described above. Various exemplary computing systems, and accordingly, various other system configurations can be employed under the invention.[0094]
• The embodiments of the invention disclosed herein have been discussed with regard to computerized call center installations, such as those using large centralized computing systems. However, the invention finds equal applicability in other computing systems, such as small, portable computerized graphics tablets and other hand-held computing devices.[0095]
• All of the above U.S. patents and applications are incorporated herein by reference. While the invention focuses on modeling physical elements within a telephone call center, the invention can similarly operate with regard to modeling physical elements within other types of structures, including other types of building structures and mechanical devices.[0096]
• These and other changes can be made to the invention in light of the above detailed description. In general, in the following claims, the terms used should not be construed to limit the invention to the specific embodiments disclosed in the specification and the claims, but should be construed to include all computerized layout tools and computerized design tools that operate under the claims to provide a method for guiding a builder through the process of constructing a computerized model of a structure, providing rapid access to data associated with objects in the structure, and linking objects between structures. Accordingly, the invention is not limited by the disclosure, but instead its scope is to be determined entirely by the following claims.[0097]

Claims (35)

1. An authoring tool for aiding a builder in the preparation of a call center, comprising:

a graphical workspace upon which to construct a computerized model of the call center;

a first set of computerized tools representing call center components; and

a second set of computerized tools configured to place and to manipulate, selectively, the call center components on the graphical workspace to create the computerized model of the call center.

2. The authoring tool ofclaim 1 wherein the call center components comprise agent stations, walls, and transports between the agent stations, and wherein the first set of computerized tools displays the call center components as graphical icons on an icon palette.

3. The authoring tool ofclaim 1 wherein the second set of computerized tools includes tools for copying, moving, and manipulating graphical icons representing call center components.

4. The authoring tool ofclaim 1, further comprising a saving tool to store the computerized model in a data repository.

5. The authoring tool ofclaim 1 wherein the computerized model may be stored in a data repository and wherein the authoring tool further comprises an update tool permitting updates to the computerized model to reflect changes in the call center.

6. The authoring tool ofclaim 1, further comprising a third set of computerized tools for matching call center properties with call center components, wherein call center properties include a logical workstation number for an agent workstation within the call center.

7. The authoring tool ofclaim 1, further comprising a storing tool for storing the computerized model in a data repository in a format suitable for access by a system for monitoring calling activity within the call center.

8. The authoring tool ofclaim 1 wherein the call center components include a transport between the computerized model and another computerized model and the first set of computerized tools displays the transport as a transport icon, and wherein the authoring tool further comprises a linking tool that provides a pointer that links a first document file containing the computerized model with a second document file containing the another computerized model.

9. The authoring tool ofclaim 1, further comprising a third set of computerized tools configured to link call center properties with computerized information representing agents assigned to the call center.

10. The authoring tool ofclaim 1 wherein the authoring tool is configured for access by another program.

11. The authoring tool ofclaim 1, further comprising a security tool that restricts use of the first set of computerized tools and the second set of computerized tools without a proper authorization.

12. The authoring tool ofclaim 1, further comprising a searching tool configured to search through a call center database to locate records for agents assigned to the call center.

13. The authoring tool ofclaim 1 wherein the authoring tool provides a What-You-See-Is-What-You-Get (WYSIWYG) output based on selected input.

14. The authoring tool ofclaim 1, further comprising another graphical workspace configured for preparation of another computerized model representing logical characteristics of the call center; wherein the another computerized model may be linked to the computerized model.

15. The authoring tool ofclaim 1, further comprising a context sensitive help tool.

16. The authoring tool ofclaim 1 wherein more than one builder may concurrently access the first and second set of computerized tools to create cooperatively the computerized model representing the call center.

17. The authoring tool ofclaim 1, further comprising a TCP/IP socket for remotely accessing the authoring tool.

18. The authoring tool ofclaim 1, further comprising a retrieval tool configured to retrieve a prepared computerized model representing a call center and edit the prepared computerized model using the first set of computerized tools and the second set of computerized tools.

19. In a computer system, a method of modeling a call center, comprising the computer-implemented steps of:

displaying a graphical workspace upon which to construct a computerized model of the call center;

providing a first computerized tool set having call center components;

providing a second computerized tool set for manipulating the call center components; and

receiving instructions for positioning and manipulating the call center components on the graphical workspace to construct the computerized model of the call center.

20. The computer-implemented method ofclaim 19 wherein the call center components comprise agent stations, walls, and transports between the agent stations, wherein providing the first computerized tool set includes presenting the call center components as graphical icons on an icon palette.

21. The computer-implemented method ofclaim 19 wherein providing the second computerized tool set includes providing tools for copying, moving, and manipulating graphical icons representing call center components.

22. The computer-implemented method ofclaim 19, further comprising a step for storing the computerized model in a data repository and a step for allowing updates to the computerized model to reflect changes in the call center.

23. The computer-implemented method ofclaim 19, further comprising providing a third computerized tool set configured for matching call center properties with call center components, wherein call center properties include a logical workstation number for a workstation within the call center.

24. The computer-implemented method ofclaim 19 wherein the call center components include a transport that links the computerized model with another computerized model, and wherein the computer-implemented method further comprises the steps of:

receiving the instructions to place a transport between the computerized model and the another computerized model; and

placing a pointer between a first document file representing the computerized model and a second document file representing the another computerized model.

25. In a computer system, a computer-readable medium holding computer-executable instructions for performing a method for creating a call center, comprising:

displaying a graphical workspace upon which to construct a computerized call center physical model;

generating and displaying a first tool set containing call center components, wherein the call center components include walls and agent cubes; and

generating and displaying a second tool set configured for placement and manipulation of the call center components on the graphical workspace to create the computerized call center physical model.

26. The computer-readable medium ofclaim 25, further comprising:

displaying another graphical workspace upon which to construct a computerized call center logical model; and

linking the computerized call center physical model to the computerized call center logical model to form the computerized model of the call center,

wherein the first tool set includes logical call center components and the second tool set permits entry of data into the logical call center components.

27. The computer-readable medium ofclaim 25, further comprising:

performing a data integrity check which examines the computerized call center physical model and call center agent data to determine if the computerized model of the call center is suitable for receiving statistical data pertaining to activity within the call center.

28. The computer-readable medium ofclaim 25 wherein the second tool set includes tools for copying, moving, and manipulating graphical icons representing call center components.

29. The computer-readable medium ofclaim 25 wherein the computerized call center physical model may be stored in a data repository.

30. A method for constructing a call center, comprising:

building a first computerized model representing physical structures in the call center, wherein the first computerized model includes call center components such as agent stations;

building a second computerized model representing logical relationships within the call center, wherein the second computerized model includes identification data for call center agents; and

linking the first and second computerized models together to form a computerized call center model.

31. A method for constructing a computerized model of a structure comprising:

displaying a first graphical workspace upon which to construct a computerized physical model of at least a portion of the structure;

displaying a second graphical workspace upon which to construct a computerized logical model of at least a portion of the structure, wherein the computerized logical model represents logical relationships;

generating and displaying a first tool set containing at least one component of the structure;

generating and displaying a second tool set configured to place and to manipulate the at least one component on the first and second graphical workspaces to construct the computerized physical model of the structure and the computerized logical model of the structure;

linking the computerized physical model of the structure and the computerized logical model of the structure to form the computerized model; and

formatting the computerized model for display.

32. The method ofclaim 31, further comprising

generating and displaying a third tool set configured to perform a data integrity check by comparing the computerized physical model of the structure and the computerized logical model of the structure.

33. The method ofclaim 31, wherein the computerized logical model represents logical relationships within the structure.

34. The method ofclaim 31, wherein the structure is a call center.

35. The method ofclaim 31, wherein at least one of the components of the structure is an agent station.

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