U.S. patent application number 17/195032 was filed with the patent office on 2021-06-24 for techniques for behavioral pairing in a dispatch center system.
This patent application is currently assigned to Afiniti, Ltd.. The applicant listed for this patent is Afiniti, Ltd.. Invention is credited to Robert Gardner DUNN.
Application Number | 20210192424 17/195032 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 1000005444151 |
Filed Date | 2021-06-24 |
United States Patent
Application |
20210192424 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
DUNN; Robert Gardner |
June 24, 2021 |
TECHNIQUES FOR BEHAVIORAL PAIRING IN A DISPATCH CENTER SYSTEM
Abstract
Techniques for behavioral pairing in a dispatch center system
are disclosed. In one particular embodiment, the techniques may be
realized as a method for behavioral pairing in a dispatch center
system comprising determining, by at least one computer processor
communicatively coupled to and configured to operate in the
dispatch center system, a dispatch request for a customer;
determining, by the at least one computer processor, a plurality of
field agents available to service the customer's dispatch request;
determining, by the at least one computer processor, a model of
preferred field agent-customer pairings based at least in part on
historical field agent-customer interaction outcome data;
selecting, by the at least one computer processor, one of the
plurality of field agents based on the model; and outputting, by
the at least one computer processor, the selection to facilitate
dispatching the selected field agent to the customer.
Inventors: |
DUNN; Robert Gardner;
(Glasgow, GB) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Afiniti, Ltd. |
Hamilton |
|
BM |
|
|
Assignee: |
Afiniti, Ltd.
Hamilton
BM
|
Family ID: |
1000005444151 |
Appl. No.: |
17/195032 |
Filed: |
March 8, 2021 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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15480034 |
Apr 5, 2017 |
10970658 |
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17195032 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 10/063112 20130101;
G06Q 10/04 20130101; G06Q 10/067 20130101 |
International
Class: |
G06Q 10/06 20060101
G06Q010/06; G06Q 10/04 20060101 G06Q010/04 |
Claims
1. A method for behavioral pairing in a dispatch center system
comprising: determining, by at least one computer processor
communicatively coupled to and configured to operate in the
dispatch center system, a dispatch request for a customer;
determining, by the at least one computer processor, a plurality of
field agents available to service the customer's dispatch request;
determining, by the at least one computer processor, a model of
preferred field agent-customer pairings based at least in part on
historical field agent-customer interaction outcome data;
selecting, by the at least one computer processor, one of the
plurality of field agents based on the model; and outputting, by
the at least one computer processor, the selection to facilitate
dispatching the selected field agent to the customer.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the dispatch request comprises at
least one requested dispatch time, and wherein determining the
plurality of field agents available to service the customer's
dispatch request is constrained based on the at least one requested
dispatch time.
3. The method of claim 1, further comprising selecting, by the at
least one computer processor, at least one suggested dispatch time,
wherein the selected field agent is available during the at least
one suggested dispatch time.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the selected field agent is
dispatched immediately or as soon as practicable after the
selection.
5. The method of claim 1, further comprising: recording, by the at
least one computer processor, results for a first plurality of
field-agent customer interactions paired using a behavioral pairing
strategy; recording, by the at least one computer processor,
results for a second plurality of field-agent customer interactions
paired using a FIFO pairing strategy; and outputting, by the at
least one computer processor, a measure of relative performance
between the behavioral pairing strategy and the FIFO pairing
strategy based on the recorded results for the first and second
pluralities of field-agent customer interactions.
6. The method of claim 5, further comprising updating, by the at
least one computer processor, the model based at least in part on
one or more of: the results for the first plurality of field-agent
customer interactions, the results for the second plurality of
field-agent customer interactions, and the measure of relative
performance.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the model is based on a diagonal
strategy.
8. A system for behavioral pairing in a dispatch center system
comprising: at least one computer processor communicatively coupled
to and configured to operate in the dispatch center system, wherein
the at least one computer processor is further configured to:
determine a dispatch request for a customer; determine a plurality
of field agents available to service the customer's dispatch
request; determine a model of preferred field agent-customer
pairings based at least in part on historical field agent-customer
interaction outcome data; select one of the plurality of field
agents based on the model; and output the selection to facilitate
dispatching the selected field agent to the customer.
9. The system of claim 8, wherein the dispatch request comprises at
least one requested dispatch time, and wherein determining the
plurality of field agents available to service the customer's
dispatch request is constrained based on the at least one requested
dispatch time.
10. The system of claim 8, wherein the at least one computer
processor is further configured to select at least one suggested
dispatch time, wherein the selected field agent is available during
the at least one suggested dispatch time.
11. The system of claim 8, wherein the selected field agent is
dispatched immediately or as soon as practicable after the
selection.
12. The system of claim 8, wherein the at least one computer
processor is further configured to: record results for a first
plurality of field-agent customer interactions paired using a
behavioral pairing strategy; record results for a second plurality
of field-agent customer interactions paired using a FIFO pairing
strategy; and output a measure of relative performance between the
behavioral pairing strategy and the FIFO pairing strategy based on
the recorded results for the first and second pluralities of
field-agent customer interactions.
13. The system of claim 12, wherein the at least one computer
processor is further configured to update the model based at least
in part on one or more of: the results for the first plurality of
field-agent customer interactions, the results for the second
plurality of field-agent customer interactions, and the measure of
relative performance.
14. The system of claim 8, wherein the model is based on a diagonal
strategy.
15. An article of manufacture for behavioral pairing in a dispatch
center 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 communicatively coupled to and
configured to operate in the dispatch center system and thereby
cause the at least one computer processor to operate so as to:
determine a dispatch request for a customer; determine a plurality
of field agents available to service the customer's dispatch
request; determine a model of preferred field agent-customer
pairings based at least in part on historical field agent-customer
interaction outcome data; select one of the plurality of field
agents based on the model; and output the selection to facilitate
dispatching the selected field agent to the customer.
16. The article of manufacture of claim 15, wherein the dispatch
request comprises at least one requested dispatch time, and wherein
determining the plurality of field agents available to service the
customer's dispatch request is constrained based on the at least
one requested dispatch time.
17. The article of manufacture of claim 15, wherein the
instructions further cause the at least one computer processor to
operate so as to select at least one suggested dispatch time,
wherein the selected field agent is available during the at least
one suggested dispatch time.
18. The article of manufacture of claim 15, wherein the selected
field agent is dispatched immediately or as soon as practicable
after the selection.
19. The article of manufacture of claim 15, wherein the
instructions further cause the at least one computer processor to
operate so as to: record results for a first plurality of
field-agent customer interactions paired using a behavioral pairing
strategy; record results for a second plurality of field-agent
customer interactions paired using a FIFO pairing strategy; and
output a measure of relative performance between the behavioral
pairing strategy and the FIFO pairing strategy based on the
recorded results for the first and second pluralities of
field-agent customer interactions.
20. The article of manufacture of claim 19, wherein the
instructions further cause the at least one computer processor to
operate so as to update the model based at least in part on one or
more of: the results for the first plurality of field-agent
customer interactions, the results for the second plurality of
field-agent customer interactions, and the measure of relative
performance.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application is a continuation of U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 15/480,034, filed Apr. 5, 2017, which is
hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety as if fully set
forth herein.
FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE
[0002] This disclosure generally relates to pairing dispatched
field agents with customers through dispatch centers and, more
particularly, to techniques for behavioral pairing in a dispatch
center system.
BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE
[0003] A typical dispatch center algorithmically assigns customers
requesting service to field agents available for assignment to
those customers. The dispatch center may include a contact center
for receiving customer requests (e.g., telephone calls, Internet
chat sessions or forms, emails, text messages). The field agents
may perform a variety of tasks in various sectors, such as cable
installation for a telecommunications company, claim adjusting for
an insurance company, etc.
[0004] In some typical dispatch centers, customers are assigned to
field agents ordered based on which field agent has been waiting
the longest for a new dispatch, appointment availability, location,
etc. Field agents and/or customers may be assigned to each other on
a first-come, first-served basis. This strategy may be referred to
as a "first-in, first-out", "FIFO", or "round-robin" strategy.
[0005] In some advanced contact centers, contacts (e.g., callers)
are paired with agents (e.g., phone agents) using a "behavioral
pairing," or a "BP" strategy, under which contacts and agents may
be deliberately (preferentially) paired in a fashion that enables
the assignment of subsequent contact-agent pairs such that when the
benefits of all the assignments under a BP strategy are totaled
they may exceed those of FIFO and other strategies such as
performance-based routing ("PBR") strategies. BP is designed to
encourage balanced utilization of agents within a skill queue while
nevertheless simultaneously improving overall contact center
performance beyond what FIFO or PBR methods will allow. This is a
remarkable achievement inasmuch as BP acts on the same contacts and
same agents as FIFO or PBR methods, utilizes agents approximately
evenly as FIFO provides, and yet improves overall contact center
performance. BP is described in, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 9,300,802,
which is incorporated by reference herein. Additional information
about these and other features regarding the pairing or matching
modules (sometimes also referred to as "SATMAP", "routing system",
"routing engine", etc.) is described in, for example, U.S. Pat. No.
8,879,715, which is incorporated by reference herein. However, even
these advanced contact centers using BP dispatch field agents to
customers using a suboptimal strategy such as FIFO. Field agents
have numerous opportunities to deliver value to customers on behalf
of their companies, such as customer satisfaction, up-selling and
cross-selling, job completion time, etc., and under a FIFO pairing
strategy, field agents will not be paired with customers so as to
optimize dispatch center performance.
[0006] For example, in the television provider industry, a field
technician may be dispatched to a customer residence to install or
repair access to content via satellite, fiber optics, coaxial
cable, etc. During the customer interaction, the field technician
may have an opportunity to develop a rapport with the customer,
thereby improving customer satisfaction with the installation or
repair experience. The field technician may also have an
opportunity to assess the customer's other needs and inform the
customer about additional products or services (e.g., premium
channel subscriptions, warranties, screen wipes, sound bars),
generating additional up-sell or cross-sell revenue along with
increased customer satisfaction. Therefore, determining a preferred
pairing between a field agent and a customer may increase the
likelihood of an optimal field agent-customer interaction over a
typical FIFO pairing strategy.
[0007] In view of the foregoing, it may be understood that there is
a need for a system that enables improving the efficiency and
performance of dispatch pairing strategies that are distend to
choose among multiple possible dispatch pairings such as a BP
strategy.
SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE
[0008] Techniques for behavioral pairing in a dispatch center
system are disclosed. In one particular embodiment, the techniques
may be realized as a method for behavioral pairing in a dispatch
center system comprising determining, by at least one computer
processor communicatively coupled to and configured to operate in
the dispatch center system, a dispatch request for a customer;
determining, by the at least one computer processor, a plurality of
field agents available to service the customer's dispatch request;
determining, by the at least one computer processor, a model of
preferred field agent-customer pairings based at least in part on
historical field agent-customer interaction outcome data;
selecting, by the at least one computer processor, one of the
plurality of field agents based on the model; and outputting, by
the at least one computer processor, the selection to facilitate
dispatching the selected field agent to the customer.
[0009] In accordance with other aspects of this particular
embodiment, the dispatch request comprises at least one requested
dispatch time, and determining the plurality of field agents
available to service the customer's dispatch request is constrained
based on the at least one requested dispatch time.
[0010] In accordance with other aspects of this particular
embodiment, the techniques may further comprise selecting, by the
at least one computer processor, at least one suggested dispatch
time, wherein the selected field agent is available during the at
least one suggested dispatch time.
[0011] In accordance with other aspects of this particular
embodiment, the selected field agent may be dispatched immediately
or as soon as practicable after the selection.
[0012] In accordance with other aspects of this particular
embodiment, the techniques may further comprise recording, by the
at least one computer processor, results for a first plurality of
field-agent customer interactions paired using a behavioral pairing
strategy; recording, by the at least one computer processor,
results for a second plurality of field-agent customer interactions
paired using a FIFO pairing strategy; and outputting, by the at
least one computer processor, a measure of relative performance
between the behavioral pairing strategy and the FIFO pairing
strategy based on the recorded results for the first and second
pluralities of field-agent customer interactions.
[0013] In accordance with other aspects of this particular
embodiment, the techniques may further comprise updating, by the at
least one computer processor, the model based at least in part on
one or more of: the results for the first plurality of field-agent
customer interactions, the results for the second plurality of
field-agent customer interactions, and the measure of relative
performance.
[0014] In accordance with other aspects of this particular
embodiment, the model may be based on a diagonal strategy.
[0015] In another particular embodiment, the techniques may be
realized as a system for behavioral pairing in a dispatch center
system comprising at least one computer processor communicatively
coupled to and configured to operate in the dispatch center system,
wherein the at least one computer processor is further configured
to perform the steps in the above-discussed method.
[0016] In another particular embodiment, the techniques may be
realized as an article of manufacture for behavioral pairing in a
dispatch center 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 communicatively coupled to and
configured to operate in the dispatch center system and thereby
cause the at least one computer processor to operate to perform the
steps in the above-discussed method.
[0017] The present disclosure will now be described in more detail
with reference to particular embodiments thereof as shown in the
accompanying drawings. While the present disclosure is described
below with reference to particular embodiments, it should be
understood that the present disclosure is not limited thereto.
Those of ordinary skill in the art having access to the teachings
herein will recognize additional implementations, modifications,
and embodiments, as well as other fields of use, which are within
the scope of the present disclosure as described herein, and with
respect to which the present disclosure may be of significant
utility.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0018] To facilitate a fuller understanding of the present
disclosure, reference is now made to the accompanying drawings, in
which like elements are referenced with like numerals. These
drawings should not be construed as limiting the present
disclosure, but are intended to be illustrative only.
[0019] FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a dispatch center system
according to embodiments of the present disclosure.
[0020] FIG. 2 shows an example of a BP dispatching method according
to embodiments of the present disclosure.
[0021] FIG. 3 depicts an example of a dispatch benchmarking method
according to embodiments of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0022] FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a dispatch center system 100
according to embodiments of the present disclosure. The description
herein describes network elements, computers, and/or components of
a system and method for simulating dispatch center systems that may
include one or more modules. As used herein, the term "module" may
be understood to refer to computing software, firmware, hardware,
and/or various combinations thereof. Modules, however, are not to
be interpreted as software which is not implemented on hardware,
firmware, or recorded on a processor readable recordable storage
medium (i.e., modules are not software per se). It is noted that
the modules are exemplary. The modules may be combined, integrated,
separated, and/or duplicated to support various applications. Also,
a function described herein as being performed at a particular
module may be performed at one or more other modules and/or by one
or more other devices instead of or in addition to the function
performed at the particular module. Further, the modules may be
implemented across multiple devices and/or other components local
or remote to one another. Additionally, the modules may be moved
from one device and added to another device, and/or may be included
in both devices.
[0023] As shown in FIG. 1, the dispatch center system 100 may
include a central dispatch 110. The central dispatch 110 may
receive incoming customer requests (e.g., requests from callers) or
support outbound connections to customers via a telecommunications
network (not shown). The central dispatch 110 may include customer
request routing hardware and software for helping to route customer
requests among one or more dispatch centers, or to one or more
PBX/ACDs or other queuing or switching components, including other
Internet-based, cloud-based, or otherwise networked agent-customer
hardware or software-based dispatch center solutions.
[0024] The central dispatch 110 may not be necessary such as if
there is only one dispatch center, or if there is only one PBX/ACD
routing component, in the dispatch center system 100. If more than
one dispatch center is part of the dispatch center system 100, each
dispatch center may include at least one local dispatch (e.g.,
local dispatches 120A and 120B). The local dispatches 120A and 120B
may be communicatively coupled to the central dispatch 110. In
embodiments, various topologies of routing and network components
may be configured to implement the dispatch center system.
[0025] Each local dispatch for each dispatch center may be
communicatively coupled to a plurality (or "pool") of field agents.
Each dispatch center may support a certain number of field agents
to be available for scheduling during a given time. At any given
time, a field agent may be available and waiting to be dispatched
to a contact (e.g., for immediate dispatch, or for an open
appointment time at a future date and time), or the field agent may
be unavailable for any of a number of reasons, such as already
having been dispatched--or scheduled for a future dispatch--to
another customer. The dispatch center may also account for
additional field agent activities such as travel time to and from
the customer, and performing certain post-dispatch functions such
as logging information about the dispatch, or taking breaks.
[0026] In the example of FIG. 1, the central dispatch 110 routes
customer requests to one of two local dispatches via local dispatch
120A and local dispatch 120B, respectively. Each of the local
dispatches 120A and 120B are shown with two field agents each.
Field agents 130A and 130B may be assigned or otherwise delegated
to local dispatch 120A, and field agents 130C and 130D may be
assigned or otherwise delegated to local dispatch 120B.
[0027] The dispatch center system 100 may also be communicatively
coupled to an integrated service from, for example, a third party
vendor. In the example of FIG. 1, dispatch BP module 140 may be
communicatively coupled to one or more dispatches in the dispatch
center system 100, such as central dispatch 110, local dispatch
120A, or local dispatch 120B. In some embodiments, central or local
dispatches of the dispatch center system 100 may be communicatively
coupled to multiple dispatch BP modules. In some embodiments,
dispatch BP module 140 may be embedded within a component of a
dispatch center system (e.g., embedded in or otherwise integrated
with a dispatch center component, or a "BP dispatch center"). The
dispatch BP module 140 may receive information from a dispatch
component (e.g., local dispatch 120A) about field agents assigned
to the dispatch (e.g., field agents 130A and 130B) and about
incoming customer requests via another dispatch component (e.g.,
central dispatch 110) or, in some embodiments, from a network
(e.g., the Internet or a telecommunications network) (not
shown).
[0028] A dispatch center may include multiple pairing modules
(e.g., a dispatch BP module and a dispatch FIFO module) (not
shown), and one or more pairing modules may be provided by one or
more different vendors. In some embodiments, one or more pairing
modules may be components of dispatch BP module 140 or one or more
dispatch components such as central dispatch 110 or local
dispatches 120A and 120B. In some embodiments, a dispatch BP module
may determine which pairing module may handle pairing for a
particular customer or other contact. For example, the dispatch BP
module may alternate between enabling pairing via the dispatch BP
module and enabling pairing with the dispatch FIFO module. In other
embodiments, one pairing module (e.g., the dispatch BP module) may
be configured to emulate other pairing strategies. For example, a
dispatch BP module, or a dispatch BP component integrated with
dispatch BP components in the dispatch BP module, may determine
whether the dispatch BP module may use BP or emulated FIFO pairing
for a particular customer request. In this case, "BP on" may refer
to times when the dispatch BP module is applying the BP strategy,
and "BP off" may refer to other times when the dispatch BP module
is applying a different pairing strategy (e.g., FIFO).
[0029] In some embodiments, regardless of whether pairing
strategies are handled by separate modules, or if some pairing
strategies are emulated within a single pairing module, the single
pairing module may be configured to monitor and store information
about pairings made under any or all pairing strategies. For
example, a dispatch BP module may observe and record data about
FIFO pairings made by a FIFO module, or the BP module may observe
and record data about emulated FIFO pairings made by a BP module
operating in FIFO emulation mode.
[0030] FIG. 2 shows an example of a BP dispatching method 200
according to embodiments of the present disclosure. BP dispatching
method 200 may begin at block 210.
[0031] At block 210, at least one customer dispatch request may be
determined. For example, a customer may call a call center, and the
call center agent may assess the customer's needs and determine
that a field agent should be dispatched to provide technical
service to the customer. In some embodiments, an interactive voice
response (IVR) system or other automated computer system may assess
the customer's needs and/or determine the at least one customer
dispatch request. After--or in parallel with--determining the at
least one customer dispatch request, BP dispatching method 200 may
proceed to block 220.
[0032] At block 220, available field agents may be determined. In
some embodiments, available field agents may be limited to those
field agents that are available for immediate (or otherwise
near-term) dispatch to the customer. In other embodiments,
available field agents may be limited to those field agents that
are available during the requested dates or time windows requested
by the customer, or to those field agents that are available during
dates or time windows suggested by the dispatcher (e.g., a call
center agent). In other embodiments, the available field agents may
be any or all of the agents assigned or otherwise delegated to a
particular dispatch center or dispatch queue (e.g., local
dispatch), regardless of potential scheduling constraints. After
determining available field agents, BP dispatching method 200 may
proceed to block 230.
[0033] At block 230, a dispatch BP model of preferred field
agent-customer pairings may be determined, based at least in part
on an analysis of historical field agent-customer interaction
outcome data. In some embodiments, historical outcome data,
customer attribute data (e.g., customer relationship management or
CRM data), and/or third-party data may be analyzed, and a
computer-generated model of preferred field agent-customer pairings
may be generated. In some embodiments, the dispatch BP model may be
based on a diagonal strategy for BP. In some embodiments, the
dispatch BP model may be used to increase the overall performance
of the dispatch center system while targeting a balanced
utilization of field agents. After determining the dispatch BP
model, BP dispatching method 200 may proceed to block 240.
[0034] At block 240, one of the field agents determined at block
220 may be selected for pairing to a customer whose request was
determined at block 210 based on the dispatch BP model determined
at block 230. In some embodiments, such as those in which the
available field agents may be any or all of the agents assigned or
otherwise delegated to a particular dispatch center or dispatch
queue (e.g., local dispatch), regardless of potential scheduling
constraints, the BP dispatching method 200 may suggest specific
dates or time windows to the customer during which one or more
preferred field agents would be available.
[0035] The selected pairing may be outputted to another component
of the dispatch center system or otherwise displayed or used to
assign the field agent and schedule the dispatch. After outputting
the selected field agent-customer pairing, BP dispatching method
200 may end.
[0036] FIG. 3 depicts an example of a dispatch benchmarking method
300 according to embodiments of the present disclosure. At block
310, dispatch benchmarking method 300 may begin.
[0037] At block 310, results for a first plurality of field
agent-customer interactions paired using a first pairing strategy
of alternating pairing strategies may be recorded or otherwise
determined. For example, after a field technician finishes
installing cable television service in a customer's home, the
customer may be asked to rate the field technician's performance
and answer other questions regarding customer satisfaction. In
another example, a field technician may sell the customer
additional products or services during the interaction, such as a
warranty, a premium channel subscription, or a speaker system.
During or after the interaction, the field technician may submit or
otherwise record information about the sale. In another example,
information about the interaction outcome may be recorded
automatically, such as the amount of time the field technician
spent during the interaction.
[0038] In some embodiments, the alternating strategies may be BP
and a FIFO pairing strategy, and the first pairing strategy may be
BP. In these embodiments, each of the first plurality of field
agent-customer interactions may have been paired using BP and thus
have a likelihood of improving the overall performance of the
dispatch center compared with pairing using FIFO. In some
embodiments, pairing strategies may alternate according to periodic
cycling (e.g., cycling BP on and off). In some embodiments, the
dispatch center system may cycle among more than two pairing
strategies.
[0039] After--or in parallel with--determining results for a first
plurality of field agent-customer interactions paired using the
first pairing strategy, dispatch benchmarking method 300 may
proceed to block 320.
[0040] At block 320, results for a second plurality of field
agent-customer interactions paired using the second pairing
strategy of the alternating pairing strategies may be recorded or
otherwise determined. In some embodiments, the second pairing
strategy may be FIFO or another non-BP pairing strategy. In these
embodiments, each of the second plurality of field agent-customer
interactions may have been paired using FIFO (or another non-BP
pairing strategy) and thus likely have a worse overall performance
of the dispatch center compared with pairing using BP. After
determining results for the second plurality of field
agent-customer interactions paired using the second pairing
strategy, dispatch benchmarking method 300 may proceed to block
330.
[0041] At block 330, relative performance between the alternating
pairing strategies may be determined. For example, if the
alternating pairing strategies are BP and FIFO, dispatch
benchmarking method may compare the performance of the first
plurality of interactions with the performance of the second
plurality of interactions. The relative performance may represent a
performance gain achieved using BP instead of FIFO. In some
embodiments, such as those in which BP is provided by a third-party
vendor, payments to the third-party vendor may be calculated based
at least in part on the extent of performance gain actually
measured over a period of time that is attributable to BP.
[0042] At this point it should be noted that behavioral pairing in
a dispatch center system in accordance with the present disclosure
as described above may involve the processing of input data and the
generation of output data to some extent. This input data
processing and output data generation may be implemented in
hardware or software. For example, specific electronic components
may be employed in a behavioral pairing module or similar or
related circuitry for implementing the functions associated with
behavioral pairing in a dispatch center system in accordance with
the present disclosure as described above. Alternatively, one or
more processors operating in accordance with instructions may
implement the functions associated with behavioral pairing in a
dispatch center system in accordance with the present disclosure as
described above. If such is the case, it is within the scope of the
present disclosure that such instructions may be stored on one or
more non-transitory processor readable storage media (e.g., a
magnetic disk or other storage medium), or transmitted to one or
more processors via one or more signals embodied in one or more
carrier waves.
[0043] The present disclosure is not to be limited in scope by the
specific embodiments described herein. Indeed, other various
embodiments of and modifications to the present disclosure, in
addition to those described herein, will be apparent to those of
ordinary skill in the art from the foregoing description and
accompanying drawings. Thus, such other embodiments and
modifications are intended to fall within the scope of the present
disclosure. Further, although the present disclosure has been
described herein in the context of at least one particular
implementation in at least one particular environment for at least
one particular purpose, those of ordinary skill in the art will
recognize that its usefulness is not limited thereto and that the
present disclosure may be beneficially implemented in any number of
environments for any number of purposes. Accordingly, the claims
set forth below should be construed in view of the full breadth and
spirit of the present disclosure as described herein.
* * * * *