Other Supporting Solutions
This topic describes other Genesys applications that enable and support Outbound Contact. They include the following solutions:
Framework 8.x
Outbound Contact 8.x is built on Framework 8.x, which includes DB Server, Configuration Server, the Management Layer, T-Server, and Stat Server.
DB Server
Outbound Contact relies on the DB Server for access to data in the Calling List database tables, any Do Not Call list, and any other additional lists that are stored in the database.
Configuration Server
Outbound Contact is configured through the Configuration Layer of Framework. More specifically, you use Genesys Administrator to configure the components (applications and configuration objects) that enable Outbound Contact. OCS reads the configurations from the Configuration Server in order to perform its operations. Outbound Contact supports dynamic reconfiguration—that is, you can make changes to Outbound objects (such as Calling List, Table Access, and Campaign objects) in Genesys Administrator or Outbound Contact Wizard without stopping and restarting Outbound Contact. Messages that notify the user of changes are displayed in Genesys Administrator. For information about configuring Outbound objects, see Manually Define Outbound Configuration Objects/Table Access Object.
Management Layer
The Management Layer of Framework includes Local Control Agent (LCA), Message Server, Log Database, Solution Control Server (SCS), and Solution Control Interface (SCI). LCA is used to start and stop applications. Message Server provides centralized processing and storage of every application's maintenance events. Log Database stores events as log records, so that they are available for further centralized processing. SCS is the central processing center of the Management Layer. SCI displays the status of all installed Genesys solutions and provides information about each active alarm condition.
T-Server
T-Server is the key element of Genesys computer-telephony integration (CTI) because it handles call traffic. Each T-Server is linked to a switch, which it monitors. T-Server is also a "messenger" that enables communication among Outbound Contact components. For details, see the "Communications Protocol" chapter in the Outbound Contact Reference Manual.
Network T-Server
Outbound Contact supports Network T-Servers in deployments that do not include CPD Server. To enable this functionality in Predictive dialing mode:
- The Service Number DN type, in addition to any applicable DNs of type ACD Queue and Route Point in Genesys Administrator must be identified on the appropriate place group or agent group.
- The Campaign object must specify the same Service Number DN as the Voice Transfer Destination within the place group or agent group that is specified on the Group tab.
Stat Server
Stat Server provides the data source for the CCPulse+ application. It also provides agent-state information to Outbound Contact Server so that it can dial effectively.
Optional Solution Integration
In addition to the Framework components, Outbound can work with the following Genesys solutions:
Genesys eServices (formerly, Multimedia)
Outbound Contact Calling List and Campaign management are now integrated with the Customer Information Management (CIM) platform. This feature extends the Outbound Contact Calling List and Campaign management to multimedia channels, and it improves agent efficiency by pushing preview records to agents without waiting for an agent request. Therefore, it enables the prioritization of outbound interactions with other interaction types for blending purposes. This dialing method can also be referred to as "proactive routing" or "push preview". The following figure illustrates how Outbound Contact integrates with the CIM platform.
The basic process for completing a proactive interaction is as follows:
- OCS submits a preview interaction request to Interaction Server.
- Interaction Server requests that Universal Routing Server execute a strategy to determine which agent to send the interaction to based on skill abilities. The agent must be logged in to Interaction Server and can still process other interactions during this process. The communication between the agent desktop and OCS is through Interaction Server in this scenario.
- The agent processes the preview record appropriately, transfers the call to another agent, or places the call back into the queue.
- Special strategy blocks enable the routing strategy to process the preview call interaction automatically without agent involvement.
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ESP Port
In the Push Preview dialing mode, Interaction Server must be specified in the Connections tab of the CampaignGroup object to establish a client-server relationship between OCS (as the client) and Interaction Server (as the server). However in order for OCS to process requests and responses from Interaction Server, OCS must be a server for Interaction Server and receive these responses on a special ESP-type port rather than its default listening port.
Create this additional port PortID—called ESP—on the Server Info tab of the OCS Application object. Use this ESP PortID instead of the default PortID, when you are configuring a connection to the OCS Application object on the Connections tab of the Interaction Server Application object. In effect, this makes OCS a server for Interaction Server and Interaction Server a client for OCS.
| Note: | This ESP PortID will be available as a connection in the Interaction Server Application object only after you configure PortID in the OCS Application object. |
Interaction Media Type
Interactions that are submitted to Interaction Server must contain a certain media type. By default, OCS creates interactions with the outboundpreview media type. However, OCS can assign other media types to interactions from particular calling list or to interactions that were created for the entire campaign. Refer to the interaction-media-type option on for more information.
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Genesys Voice Platform
Outbound Contact can integrate with Genesys Voice Platform (GVP) in order to run campaigns in the Power GVP or the Progressive GVP dialing mode.
Proactive Contact with GVP 7.6 Deployment
In a T-Server deployment that is running in the Power GVP dialing mode, OCS uses the Outbound Notification Manager (OBN) application as a connector to GVP to request that GVP dial records. The OBN Manager GVP application should be created in Genesys Administrator to provide its host and port information to OCS. This application must be specified on the Configuration tab/Connections section of the Campaign Group configuration object (in Genesys Administrator) to enable GVP integration. This configuration will enable basic connection capabilities.
If full connection abilities—including Advanced Disconnect Detection Protocol (ADDP) is required — this application also should be present on the Configuration tab/Connections section of the OCS application, where the ADDP connection protocol can be specified.
| Note: | For more information about how to configure the Campaign Group configuration object for the Power GVP dialing mode, see Campaign Group Object. |
When configured to enable connections, OBN opens a predefined port (for listening purposes) and then accepts requests from OCS in a client-server fashion.
Dialing Algorithm
In a GVP-assisted campaign, dialed outbound calls are dialed from GVP ports, and they can be completely processed and released by GVP. GVP issues information about call processing (such as call results and modified user data) to OBN Manager, which relays this information to OCS. OCS processes this information accordingly, applies any necessary treatments, and updates the records.
Do Not Call Records
OCS issues an EventOBNRecordStopProc message to OBN when it receives a DoNotCall request and determines that records are currently being processed by OBN. OBN immediately attempts to stop processing the specified record.
Calculating the Number of Records
The procedure that OCS uses to calculate the number of records (or chains) to retrieve from the database when a dialing session for a Campaign group is loaded, is similar for both Push Preview and Power GVP modes, but differs from traditional Predictive, Progressive, or Preview modes.
For the Power GVP dialing mode, when a dialing session is loaded for a Campaign Group object configured to use this dialing mode, OCS calculates the number of records for retrieval from the database as a percentage (specified in the Optimal Record Buffer Size dialog box) of the MaxQueueSize parameter for this Campaign Group. If more than one Calling List is used in the Campaign, the number of records retrieved from each Calling List is determined by the specified list weight.
OCS then submits the records to OBN Manager using the following criteria:
- The total number of dialing requests that are submitted is equal to the MaxQueueSize value for the Campaign Group.
- OCS retrieves records from the Calling List table in the database to replenish its buffer when the number of Calling List records in the OCS buffer is less than the number calculated as the percentage (specified in the Minimum Record Buffer Size dialog box) of the MaxQueueSize value for this Campaign Group.
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GVP 8.1 VoIP/SIP Server Deployment
For an description of this deployment, see Overview of the GVP VoIP/SIP Server Deployment.
Reporting
The Genesys Reporting solution contains tools for collecting historical and real time data, and for viewing and analyzing contact center performance. In Outbound Contact, the calculation of some real-time metrics is provided by the OCC Extension. All data that is required for the OCC Extension is directly submitted by OCS through the OCS DataStream protocol. For more information about the Genesys Reporting solution and the templates provided with Outbound Contact, see the Reporting Technical Reference Guide for the Genesys 7.2 Release.