Agent State
The agent’s state represents the status of the agent from the switch’s perspective. The switch tracks this state for each configured agent even when they are not actively logged into the switch. Not all switches support all the states described below or some states are implied by being in other states. For example, many switches don’t have a separate Logged In state, but the agent is considered logged in if not in the Logged Out state.
The way agent state is tracked can also be different between switch vendors. The most common difference is whether agent state is managed globally for each agent or an agent has independent states for each interaction channel they have. A global state applies to all channels evenly and is tracked at the agent level. Independent states allow the agent to be Ready for phone calls but Not Ready for emails and chats. Each channel has its own state. The MediaBar simplifies this difference by managing agent state globally even for independent style switches. When the agent changes state with the MediaBar, the state for all channels is changed simultaneously without the agent having to change each channel manually.
Logged Out
The agent does not have an active session with the switch. This is the base state for an agent while not interacting with the switch.
Log Out Reason
Some switches require a reason for logging out. When a reason is required, the agent must select reason before they can complete the logout process. The reason is tracked until the agent logs into the system again.
Logged In
The agent has connected to and successfully authenticated with the switch. As mentioned above, the Logged In state isn’t always represented as a separate state. For switches that do have a separate Logged In state, they also support channel activation and deactivation. Please see Channel for more information.
Auto-In
A common switch configuration option that controls what happens when an agent initially logs into the switch (or activates a channel). When enabled, the agent will automatically be placed into the Ready state after a successful login. When disabled, the agent will start in a Not Ready state and must manually go Ready to receive their first interaction.
Ready
The agent is ready to receive the next interaction. The switch will only distribute interactions to agents in the Ready state (or Busy Ready for multimedia interactions depending on the Agent Capacity). This state is sometimes referred to colloquially as “Available” but should not be. Some switches support an “Available” state that has a very different meaning.
Not Ready
The agent is not ready to receive the next interaction but remains logged in to the switch. This is often coupled with a Not Ready Reason to indicate why the agent isn’t servicing interactions during this time.
Not Ready Reason (Aux Code)
When an agent goes not ready, they must provide a reason. This is usually something like Break or Lunch. The time spent in this state is typically tracked by the call center manager to ensure agents are meeting their scheduling requirements.
Busy
Busy is a state modifier that can be applied to Ready and Not Ready. It indicates the agent is busy handling an interaction. The Ready and Not Ready portion of the state indicates which state the agent will be in once the interaction has ended. Not all switches use the Busy modifier to track this and place the agent in a special form of Not Ready while handling the interaction and track a pending state for what will happen after the interaction ends.
Busy Ready
Busy Not Ready
After Call Work (ACW)
Some switches support providing time after the previous interaction has ended and the next interaction being delivered that can be used by the agent to finish their work. This state can be time-boxed to last a set amount of time before the agent is automatically placed into their pending states.