Techniques for behavioral pairing in a multistage task assignment system

1. A computer implemented method for behavioral pairing in a multistage task assignment system comprising:

determining, by at least one task assignment module communicatively coupled to and configured to perform behavioral pairing operations in the multistage task assignment system, one or more characteristics of a task, wherein each of the at least one task assignment module comprises at least one switch for pairing tasks with agents at each stage of the multistage task assignment system;

selecting, by the at least one task assignment module and based at least on the one or more characteristics of the task, a sequence of agents from a plurality of available sequences of agents using a behavioral pairing strategy, wherein the sequence of agents has a lower expected performance than a second sequence of agents from the plurality of available sequences of agents; and

pairing, by the at least one task assignment module, the task with the sequence of agents, wherein the pairing comprises establishing, in a switch of the at least one task assignment module, a communications connection between the task and each of the agents in the sequence based at least in part upon the behavioral pairing strategy.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the multistage task assignment system is a contact center system.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the multistage task assignment system is a prescription medication fulfillment system.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein selecting the sequence of agents comprises improving a performance of the multistage task assignment system.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the behavioral pairing strategy is implemented by a task assignment strategy module coupled to the multistage task assignment system.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the sequence of agents has a lower expected performance than the second sequence of agents over a short period of time but a higher expected overall performance over a longer period of time.

7. The method of claim 1 , selecting the sequence of agents comprises optimizing the multistage task assignment system to reduce an average total handle time for the task over multiple stages.

8. A computer implemented system for behavioral pairing in a multistage task assignment system comprising:

at least one task assignment module communicatively coupled to and configured to perform behavioral pairing operations in the multistage task assignment system, wherein each of the at least one task assignment module comprises at least one switch for pairing tasks with agents at each stage of the multistage task assignment system, wherein the at least one task assignment module is further configured to:

determine one or more characteristics of a task;

select, based at least on the one or more characteristics of the task, a sequence of agents from a plurality of available sequences of agents using a behavioral pairing strategy, wherein the sequence of agents has a lower expected performance than a second sequence of agents from the plurality of available sequences of agents; and

pair the task with the sequence of agents, wherein the pairing comprises establishing, in a switch of the at least one task assignment module, a communications connection between the task and each of the agents in the sequence based at least in part upon the behavioral pairing strategy.

9. The system of claim 8 , wherein the multistage task assignment system is a contact center system.

10. The system of claim 8 , wherein the multistage task assignment system is a prescription medication fulfillment system.

11. The system of claim 8 , wherein the at least one task assignment module is further configured to determine the sequence of agents to improve a performance of the multistage task assignment system.

12. The system of claim 8 , wherein the behavioral pairing strategy is implemented by a task assignment strategy module coupled to the multistage task assignment system.

13. The system of claim 8 , wherein the sequence of agents has a lower expected performance than the second sequence of agents over a short period of time but a higher expected overall performance over a longer period of time.

14. The system of claim 8 , wherein the at least one task assignment module is further configured to select the sequence of agents to optimize the multistage task assignment system to reduce average total handle time for a task over multiple stages.

15. An article of manufacture for behavioral pairing in a multistage task assignment system comprising:

a non-transitory processor readable medium; and

instructions stored on the medium;

wherein the instructions are configured to be readable from the medium by at least one computer processor in a task assignment module communicatively coupled to and configured to perform behavioral pairing operations in the multistage task assignment system, wherein each task assignment module comprises at least one switch for pairing tasks with agents at each stage of the multistage task assignment system, and thereby cause the at least one task assignment module to operate so as to:

determine one or more characteristics of a task;

select, based at least on the one or more characteristics of the task, a sequence of agents from a plurality of available sequences of agents using a behavioral pairing strategy, wherein the sequence of agents has a lower expected performance than a second sequence of agents from the plurality of available sequences of agents; and

pair the task with the sequence of agents, wherein the pairing comprises establishing, in a switch of the at least one task assignment module, a communications connection between the task and each of the agents in the sequence based at least in part upon the behavioral pairing strategy.

16. The article of manufacture of claim 15 , wherein the multistage task assignment system is a contact center system.

17. The article of manufacture of claim 15 , wherein the multistage task assignment system is a prescription medication fulfillment system.

18. The article of manufacture of claim 15 , the instructions are further configured to cause the at least one task assignment module to operate so as to determine the sequence of agents to improve a performance of the multistage task assignment system.

19. The article of manufacture of claim 15 , wherein the behavioral pairing strategy is implemented by a task assignment strategy module coupled to the multistage task assignment system.

20. The article of manufacture of claim 15 , wherein the sequence of agents has a lower expected performance than the second sequence of agents over a short period of time but a higher expected overall performance over a longer period of time.

21. The article of manufacture of claim 15 , wherein the instructions are further configured to cause the at least one task assignment module to operate so as to select the sequence of agents to optimize the multistage task assignment system to reduce average total handle time for a task over multiple stages.