Skill types
The skill type defines the method used for forecasting that skill. There are different settings available for the different skill types, and the selected skill type affects how the resource calculation works.
The skill types can be divided into two main categories.
- Inbound telephony and Chat have service level requirements which indicate that the call must be handled shortly, for example, that 80% of all calls should be handled within 20s. These skill types use queuing theory models like Erlang A to calculate the forecasted need of resources.
- The other skill types, like Back office and Email, have service level requirements which indicate that the task can wait but should be handled within a certain time period, for example within 4 hours.
| Skill type | Description |
|---|---|
| Back office | Back office is mainly used when there are a number of tasks that need to be completed within a defined period, but it is not important exactly when. Back office is typically used for administrative work. |
| Chat | Chat is used for forecasting chat communication, where you normally can have more than one chat open at the same time. |
| Email is used to forecast handling of contacts via email. Emails are generally are not as time-sensitive as Inbound telephony and the work can be distributed over several intervals. | |
| Inbound telephony | Inbound telephony is typically used for telephony contacts, which are highly time-sensitive. This is useful when you need to meet strict service level goals with short response times. |
| Project | Project is primarily used for long-term tasks that do not need to be completed at any particular time. |
| Retail | Retail is used to forecast the resource need in stores. This type of contact is time-sensitive with customers waiting, similarly as inbound telephony contacts. |
| Time | Time is used when there is a defined number of hours of work to be completed during a period but where the tasks are not time-sensitive and do not need interval tracking. |