Advanced Calling Scenarios
Call Queue
Call queue routes callers to people in your organization who help with issues or questions. Calls are distributed one at a time to agents in the queue.
Who Configures
Administrators through ServiceNow. Configure call queue.
Experience
Call queue is very similar to a call group but contains additional routing features. A call comes into a helpdesk call queue that’s configured for the longest idle. The call rings the attendant who has been idle the longest. The call queue is configured to hold up to ten calls with a maximum wait time of five minutes. If a caller sits in the queue for longer than five minutes, they are routed to the helpdesk voicemail. An administrator configures the call queue to route overflows or timeouts to auto-attendants, other call queues, external numbers, or internal numbers.
Auto-Attendant
Callers navigate a menu system to speak to the right department, call queue, person, or operator. Auto-attendants allow for scheduling of call routing based on business hours and holidays.
Who Configures
Administrators through ServiceNow. Configure auto-attendant.
Experience
A call comes into a department’s front desk during business hours. The caller is presented with a custom voice greeting and several menu options. Auto-attendants allow routing to other auto-attendants, call queues, internal numbers, external numbers, and group voice mail. The caller presses three and is routed to the helpdesk call queue. If the caller had called after hours, the front desk has the auto-attendant configured to go directly to voicemail.
Caller ID Policies
Caller ID policies are used to display an alternate phone number for Teams users in your organization or block an incoming number from being displayed.
Who Configures
Administrators through ServiceNow. Configure caller ID policies.
Experience
A helpdesk attendant has a caller ID policy set to use the main helpdesk phone number. When the helpdesk attendant makes an outbound call, the caller ID shows the main helpdesk number. A counseling office does not want a counselor’s number to show in caller ID and assigns a caller ID policy set to be anonymous to the user. When the counselor places an outbound call, the recipient’s caller ID displays as anonymous.
Office 365 Group Voicemail
Auto-attendants route calls to an Office 365 group for voicemail.
Who Configures
Anyone can create an Office 365 group and assign it to the voicemail option in an auto-attendant.
Experience
A call comes into an auto-attendant after hours, and the after-hours routing is set to an Office 365 group voicemail. The caller leaves a voicemail that is distributed to the Office 365 group members or accessed in the Office 365 group mailbox.
Call Park
Call park and retrieve lets a user places a call on hold in the Teams service that is retrieved using a unique code that is generated with the call is parked.
Who Configures
Administrators through ServiceNow. Configure call park.
Experience
An incoming call is received by a receptionist and parked, generating a unique code. The receptionist notifies the recipient of the parked call and provides the unique code. The recipient goes to Calls > Parked Calls and types in the code to retrieve the call.
Detailed Calling Scenarios
Service Account with a Simultaneous Call Group Ring
Benefits
- Only requires one calling plan and one phone number.
- Allows call group routing.
- Easily managed by users or local IT.
Cons
- No auto attendant features.
- Basic group call routing features.
Scenarios
- Inbound calls: Calls to the account are distributed to the call group.
- Peer-to-peer calls: All members of the call group make peer-to-peer Teams calls.
- Outbound dialing: Delegates with calling plans dial out as the service account, or users authenticate as the service account and dial out.
- Service account: One phone number with a calling plan.
- Call group members: A phone number and calling plan are required for outbound dialing.
Auto-Attendant Routed to Service Account with Call Group Attached
Benefits
- Interactive calling menus.
- Business hours, after hours, and holiday calling options.
- Custom voice greetings.
- Call groups easily managed by users or local IT.
Cons
- Requires caller ID policy to dial out as the auto-attendant number.
- Requires administrative configuration for auto attendant options.
Scenarios
- Inbound calls: Calls to the auto-attendant route to the configured internal recipient, external number, voicemail, and/or call group. Calls to the service account are distributed to the call group
- Peer-to-peer calls: All members of the call group make peer-to-peer Teams calls.
- Outbound dialing: Delegates with calling plans dial out as the service account, or users authenticate as the service account and dial out. A caller ID policy is required to dial out as an auto-attendant number.
- Auto-attendant: Requires one phone number and a virtual phone system license. Calling plan license required for external dialing.
- Service account: Requires A5 license. A phone number and a calling plan required for outbound dialing.
- Call group members: A phone number and calling plan required for outbound dialing.
Auto-Attendant Route to Call Queue Route to Call Queue Agents
Benefits
- Interactive calling menus.
- Business hours, after hours, and holiday calling options.
- Custom voice greetings.
- Call queues have additional features over call groups including additional routing options, queue management options, custom greetings, and custom music on hold.
Cons
- Requires caller ID policy to dial out as the auto-attendant number.
- Requires administrative configuration for auto-attendant and call queue options.
Scenarios
Inbound calls: Calls to the auto-attendant route to the configured internal recipient, external number, voicemail, and call queue. The setting distributes calls to the service account to the call group based on call routing selection. Overflow or timeout routes calls to a person in the organization, call queue or auto-attendant, voicemail, or disconnect.
- Peer-to-peer calls: All members of the call group make peer-to-peer Teams calls.
- Outbound dialing: Attendants with calling plans dial out. A caller ID policy required to dial out as an auto-attendant number.
- Auto attendant: Requires one phone number and a virtual phone system license. A calling plan license required for external dialing.
- Call queue: Requires a virtual phone system license.
- Call queue agents: Requires A5 license. A phone number and a calling plan required for outbound dialing.