Tutorial / Cram Notes
A call queue is essentially a virtual line that callers wait in until a team member is available to answer their call. Within Microsoft Teams, call queues come with several options that allow for customization to fit various business needs. These options include greetings, music on hold, routing methods, and overflow settings.
Setting up a Call Queue
To set up a call queue in Microsoft Teams, you need to have administrative privileges. Follow these steps to create a new call queue:
- Open the Microsoft Teams admin center.
- Navigate to Voice > Call queues.
- Click on “Add” to create a new call queue.
- Provide a name for your call queue.
- Configure the greeting message that callers will hear.
- Choose the hold music or upload a custom audio file.
- Set up call answering settings such as maximum wait time and call distribution methods.
Configuring Call Distribution
Understanding and configuring the call distribution method is crucial as it determines how calls are routed to available team members. There are several methods available:
- Attendant routing: The calls are presented to all agents at the same time and the first to pick up gets the call.
- Serial routing: Calls are sent to agents in a specific order.
- Round robin: Calls are distributed to available agents evenly.
Each method has its own use case and can be chosen based on the team’s size and how call loads should be distributed.
Assigning Team Members
Once the call queue is created, you need to add team members or agents who will be handling the calls.
- Navigate to the “Agents” section of your call queue settings.
- Select members or groups to add as agents in the queue.
Managing Overflow and Timers
Overflow settings help manage what happens when calls go unanswered or the queue is full:
- When the maximum number of calls in the queue is reached: Decide what happens next—whether calls go to voicemail, another queue, or a different destination.
- When the call times out: Choose the maximum wait time for callers before redirecting to voicemail or any other specified action.
Example Scenario: Customer Support Queue
Imagine a business that operates a customer support hotline. They set up a call queue with attendant routing to ensure that the first available support representative can take the call. The queue is set to play a comforting tune while customers wait and informs them about an estimated waiting time based on current call volume. The business sets a maximum wait time of 5 minutes, after which the call is redirected to a voicemail system where the customer can leave a message.
Monitoring and Reporting
After setting up your call queue, you can monitor its performance through analytics and reporting tools available in the Teams admin center:
- Real-time analytics: Provides insights into live call queue performance.
- Historical reporting: Tracks past call queue performance metrics.
Adjustments and Best Practices
Over time, it may be necessary to adjust the call queue configurations to optimize for changes in call volume or staffing. Best practices suggest regularly reviewing call patterns and agent availability to make data-driven adjustments in call distribution methods, maximum wait times, and staffing levels.
Conclusion
Managing call queues in Microsoft Teams involves a thoughtful balance of technical setup and ongoing adjustments. By leveraging the platform’s tools and features, businesses can tailor their call queues to provide an efficient and customer-friendly call handling process. With Microsoft Teams, the complexity of managing high call volume is simplified, allowing for better customer service and improved team productivity.
Practice Test with Explanation
True or False: Call queues in Microsoft Teams can only be managed by global administrators.
- A) True
- B) False
B) False
Team owners and members with the appropriate permissions, as well as Teams service administrators, can manage call queues, not only global administrators.
In Microsoft Teams, what is the maximum number of agents that can be added to a single call queue?
- A) 50
- B) 100
- C) 200
- D) There is no limit
C) 200
As of the knowledge cutoff date, a call queue can support up to 200 agents.
Which one of the following can be used as a greeting when setting up a call queue in Microsoft Teams?
- A) Text message
- B) Audio file
- C) Video file
- D) An email
B) Audio file
Call queues support custom greetings that can be uploaded as audio files.
Multiple Select: Which routing methods are available for calls in the Microsoft Teams call queues?
- A) Attendant routing
- B) Serial routing
- C) Round robin
- D) Longest idle
A) Attendant routing, C) Round robin, D) Longest idle
Routing options in Teams call queues include attendant, round robin, and longest idle. There is no “serial routing” option.
True or False: It is mandatory to assign a Resource Account to a call queue in Microsoft Teams.
- A) True
- B) False
A) True
A Resource Account is required for a call queue to receive calls in Microsoft Teams.
When configuring a call queue, which of the following options is NOT available for call overflow handling?
- A) Forward to voicemail
- B) Forward to another call queue
- C) Disconnect the call
- D) Send a text message to the caller
D) Send a text message to the caller
There is no option to send a text message to the caller in the call overflow handling settings.
True or False: When creating a call queue, you can choose to show the caller’s name to agents if the caller is in the same organization.
- A) True
- B) False
A) True
The option to display the caller’s name to agents for internal callers in the same organization is available when configuring a call queue.
Which type of licensing is necessary for agents participating in a call queue in Microsoft Teams?
- A) Microsoft Teams Exploratory
- B) Office 365 E3 or higher
- C) Microsoft 365 Business Basic
- D) Skype for Business Online (Plan 2)
B) Office 365 E3 or higher
Agents need an Office 365 E3 license or higher, paired with the Phone System add-on, to participate in a call queue.
True or False: Historical reports for call queues are not available in Microsoft Teams.
- A) True
- B) False
B) False
Microsoft Teams provides historical reports for call queues to track performance and usage.
What can be done to ensure calls are not presented to agents who are already on a call in a call queue?
- A) Use presence-based routing
- B) Disable call forwarding
- C) Increase the call timeout threshold
- D) Assign more agents to the call queue
A) Use presence-based routing
Presence-based routing takes into account an agent’s current Teams presence status, such as ‘Busy’ or ‘Do Not Disturb’, to prevent calls from being presented to agents who are on another call.
Interview Questions
What is a call queue in Microsoft Teams?
A call queue is a feature of Microsoft Teams Phone System that allows calls to be routed to a group of people.
What are the benefits of using call queues?
Call queues can help ensure that calls are answered promptly and routed to the right person or team. They can also provide a better customer experience by reducing wait times and improving call handling.
How do I create a call queue in Microsoft Teams?
To create a call queue, go to the Microsoft Teams admin center, select “Voice” from the left navigation menu, and then select “Call queues”. Click on the “Add” button and follow the prompts to configure your call queue settings.
What settings can I configure for a call queue?
You can configure settings such as the display name, description, welcome greeting, music on hold, and routing methods.
What routing methods are available for call queues?
You can route calls to the next available agent, a specific agent, a round-robin distribution, or a balanced distribution based on the number of calls each agent has answered.
How do I add agents to a call queue?
To add agents to a call queue, go to the call queue settings and select “Agents” from the left navigation menu. Click on the “Add” button and choose the users or groups that you want to add as agents.
Can I set up call queue hours of operation?
Yes, you can set up call queue hours of operation by going to the call queue settings and selecting “Hours of operation” from the left navigation menu. You can specify the days and hours when the call queue should be active, and configure different greetings and routing options for different hours of the day.
How do I monitor call queues and track performance?
You can monitor call queues and track performance by going to the call queue settings and selecting “Analytics & reports” from the left navigation menu. You can view detailed reports on call volume, queue length, and agent performance, and use this data to optimize your call queue settings and improve your customer service.
What are some best practices for setting up and managing call queues?
Some best practices for setting up and managing call queues include defining clear goals and objectives, testing your call queue settings before going live, training your agents on how to use the call queue, and regularly reviewing and adjusting your call queue settings based on performance data.
Can I use third-party tools to enhance my call queue capabilities?
Yes, there are many third-party tools and integrations available that can enhance your call queue capabilities, such as CRM integrations, speech analytics, and quality monitoring tools.
Great post! Understanding call queues was quite complex until I read this.
How do you manage overflow in call queues?
I had a hard time figuring out how to set up a call queue.
Thanks for this detailed guide!
The blog post helped me a lot in managing multiple call queues for different departments.
Can call queues be monitored in real-time?
Do call queue agents need any special licenses?
The call queue customization options are quite limited.