IP Library › Granted Patent US 10,440,179
Granted Patent B2
US 10,440,179 · App. 14/860,330 · Granted Oct 8, 2019

Tracking and preventing mute abuse by contact center agents

Inventor: Rodney A. Thomson (Westminster, CO)
Assignee: Avaya Inc.
H04M3/5175H04M3/428H04M3/42221
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 10,440,179
App. No.
14/860,330
Granted
Oct 8, 2019
Kind
B2
Abstract

A method and apparatus to detect and prevent mute abuse by contact center agents provided by an application with an event listener in a contact center communication system are described along with various methods and mechanisms for administering the same. Based on predefined thresholds, the event listener can detect and notify a contact center supervisor and/or a systems administrator when certain mute timing thresholds are not met and/or mute timing thresholds are exceeded. If the exceptions provided by the event listener suggest that an agent is deliberately circumventing a metrics scoring system and/or avoiding work by placing a caller on mute rather than accepting and addressing a work item, service observing monitoring, logging, and disciplinary action can occur.

Claims (30)

1. A method, comprising:

setting a threshold value associated with a minimum amount of time required for a call answered in a contact center, wherein the threshold value associated with the minimum amount of time required for the call answered in the contact center is used to identify a potential abuse of a mute feature;

monitoring one or more calls in the contact center;

determining whether answered calls among the one or more monitored calls comprise a duration at least equal to the threshold value; and

for answered calls among the one or more monitored calls having a duration that is less than the threshold value, reporting the potential abuse of the mute feature.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein reporting the potential abuse of the mute feature is also based on how quickly and how long the call having the duration that is less than the threshold value is muted.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein reporting the potential abuse of the mute feature is also based on whether the call having the duration that is less than the threshold value is terminated right before or immediately after being unmuted.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more monitored calls correspond to calls having a predefined skill.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein reporting abuse of the mute feature comprises sending a message to at least one supervisor of a contact center agent that answered a call having the duration that is less than the threshold value.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein, in response to the sent message, a service observing is initiated for a next call or a listener is activated to monitor, in real-time, the call having the duration that is less than the threshold value.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein reporting abuse of the mute feature comprises generating a report that identifies a contact center agent that answered the call having the duration that is less than the threshold value along with the duration of the answered call.

8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising recording the answered call and including the recording as part of the reporting of potential abuse of the mute feature.

9. A contact center, comprising:

a telecommunication component that is connected to a communication network of the contact center, thereby enabling the telecommunication component to send and receive information regarding calls in the contact center; and

an event listener that monitors one or more calls in the contact center, determines whether answered calls among the one or more monitored calls comprise a duration at least equal to a threshold value and wherein the threshold value is associated with a minimum amount of time required for the answered calls to identify a potential abuse of a mute feature by a contact center agent, and, for answered calls among the one or more monitored calls having a duration that is less than the threshold value, reports the potential abuse of the mute feature by the contact center agent.

10. The contact center of claim 9 , wherein the one or more monitored calls correspond to calls directed to a predetermined contact center agent.

11. The contact center of claim 9 , further comprising:

a recording contact center component that records the one or more answered calls and includes the recordings as part of the reporting of potential abuse of the mute feature.

12. The contact center of claim 9 , further comprising:

an application that sends a message to at least one supervisor of the contact center agent that answered a call having the duration that is less than the threshold value and generates a report that identifies the contact center agent that answered the call having the duration that is less than the threshold value along with the duration of the answered call.

13. The contact center of claim 12 , wherein the message comprises a text message.

14. A communication system, comprising:

an event listener deployed at a telecommunication component of a contact center, wherein the event listener determines whether answered calls among one or more monitored calls comprise a duration at least equal to a threshold value and wherein the threshold value is associated with a minimum amount of time required for the answered calls to identify a potential abuse of a mute feature by a contact center agent, and, for answered calls having a duration that is less than the threshold value, reports the potential abuse of the mute feature by the contact center agent.

15. The communication system of claim 14 , wherein the one or more monitored calls correspond to calls directed to a predetermined contact center agent, and wherein the one or more monitored calls correspond to calls received during a predetermined time frame.

16. The communication system of claim 14 , wherein reporting abuse of the mute feature comprises sending a message to at least one supervisor of the contact center agent that answered a call having the duration that is less than the threshold value.

17. The communication system of claim 16 , wherein the message comprises a text message.

18. The communication system of claim 14 , further comprising:

a recording component at a telecommunication component of a contact center, wherein the recording component records and stores the one or more answered calls and includes the recordings as part of the reporting of potential abuse of the mute feature.

19. The communication system of claim 14 , wherein the wherein the one or more monitored calls correspond to calls having a predefined skill.

20. The communication system of claim 14 , wherein reporting abuse of the mute feature comprises generating a report by an application that identifies the contact center agent that answered the call having the duration that is less than the threshold value along with the duration of the answered call.

Assignments (12)
(SECURITY INTEREST) GRANTOR'S NAME CHANGE Recorded Sep 21, 2023
From: AVAYA INC.
To: AVAYA LLC
Reel/Frame 065019/0231 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST IN PATENTS (REEL/FRAME 53955/0436) Recorded May 18, 2023
From: WILMINGTON TRUST, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS NOTES COLLATERAL AGENT
To: AVAYA MANAGEMENT L.P.; AVAYA INC.; INTELLISIST, INC.; AVAYA INTEGRATED CABINET SOLUTIONS LLC
Reel/Frame 063705/0023 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST IN PATENTS (REEL/FRAME 61087/0386) Recorded May 18, 2023
From: WILMINGTON TRUST, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS NOTES COLLATERAL AGENT
To: AVAYA MANAGEMENT L.P.; AVAYA INC.; INTELLISIST, INC.; AVAYA INTEGRATED CABINET SOLUTIONS LLC
Reel/Frame 063690/0359 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST IN PATENTS (REEL/FRAME 045034/0001) Recorded May 18, 2023
From: GOLDMAN SACHS BANK USA., AS COLLATERAL AGENT
To: AVAYA INC.; INTELLISIST, INC.; AVAYA INTEGRATED CABINET SOLUTIONS LLC; OCTEL COMMUNICATIONS LLC; VPNET TECHNOLOGIES, INC.; ZANG, INC. (FORMER NAME OF AVAYA CLOUD INC.); HYPERQUALITY, INC.; HYPERQUALITY II, LLC; CAAS TECHNOLOGIES, LLC; AVAYA MANAGEMENT L.P.
Reel/Frame 063779/0622 →
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded May 4, 2023
From: AVAYA INC.; AVAYA MANAGEMENT L.P.; INTELLISIST, INC.
To: CITIBANK, N.A., AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 063542/0662 →
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded May 3, 2023
From: AVAYA MANAGEMENT L.P.; AVAYA INC.; INTELLISIST, INC.; KNOAHSOFT INC.
To: WILMINGTON SAVINGS FUND SOCIETY, FSB [COLLATERAL AGENT]
Reel/Frame 063742/0001 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST IN PATENTS AT REEL 45124/FRAME 0026 Recorded Apr 26, 2023
From: CITIBANK, N.A., AS COLLATERAL AGENT
To: AVAYA HOLDINGS CORP.; AVAYA INC.; AVAYA MANAGEMENT L.P.; AVAYA INTEGRATED CABINET SOLUTIONS LLC
Reel/Frame 063457/0001 →
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Aug 5, 2022
From: AVAYA INC.; INTELLISIST, INC.; AVAYA MANAGEMENT L.P.; AVAYA CABINET SOLUTIONS LLC
To: WILMINGTON TRUST, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 061087/0386 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Sep 25, 2020
From: AVAYA INC.; AVAYA MANAGEMENT L.P.; INTELLISIST, INC.; AVAYA INTEGRATED CABINET SOLUTIONS LLC
To: WILMINGTON TRUST, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
Reel/Frame 053955/0436 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Jan 23, 2018
From: AVAYA INC.; AVAYA INTEGRATED CABINET SOLUTIONS LLC; OCTEL COMMUNICATIONS LLC; VPNET TECHNOLOGIES, INC.; ZANG, INC.
To: CITIBANK, N.A., AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 045124/0026 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Jan 10, 2018
From: AVAYA INC.; AVAYA INTEGRATED CABINET SOLUTIONS LLC; OCTEL COMMUNICATIONS LLC; VPNET TECHNOLOGIES, INC.; ZANG, INC.
To: GOLDMAN SACHS BANK USA, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 045034/0001 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Sep 23, 2015
From: THOMSON, RODNEY A.
To: AVAYA INC.
Reel/Frame 036634/0081 →
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20170085711A1 · Mar 23, 2017
Cited By (1)
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