Terminologies: 40 terms

A contractual undertaking between a client and service provider to execute a business function at an agreed rate. This agreement is termed an account because it is often treated as a business entity with end-to-end financial and performance reporting.

Definition: After Call Work (ACW) refers to the time an agent spends on tasks related to a customer interaction after the call has ended. It includes activities such as updating customer records, completing call notes, sending follow-up emails, or any other post-call tasks necessary to wrap up the interaction. The ACW state makes the agent

The process of intangible assets such as trademarks, leases, and licenses, losing their value and usefulness over time. In anticipation of this, the replacement costs are accrued over the lifespan of the asset. This ensures these can be replaced once they are no longer functional. Acronym/ Synonyms:

Part of the telephony system that is used answer customer calls, identify their reasons for calling, route their calls to the appropriate departments, queue the calls if no representatives are available, and finally distribute queued calls once the next representative becomes free. ACD systems may also be configured to provide information, updates, and automated assistance

A range of telephony states that are used by representatives to be unavailable for the next queued transaction or customer. Auxiliary states usage reasons may include breaks, meetings, training activities, and completing projects or assignments. Acronyms/ Synonyms: Aux, Aux states

Definition: The “Available” state refers to the status of call center agents or customer service representatives when they are ready and actively available to handle incoming customer interactions. It indicates that agents are prepared, logged into the system, and equipped to accept and engage with customers through various communication channels such as phone calls, live

The ability to charge for work done according to a contract or statement of work (SOW). Billable work may include manhours staffed, transactions processed, time spent working, or other results produced. Acronyms/ Synonyms: Billability

Resources trained to handle transactions or customers from more than one delivery channel. These may include any combination of voice, email, chat, social media, and back-office work types. Blended resources improve the ability to meet SLA and TAT targets for transitions waiting in the queue. Acronyms/ Synonyms: Blended Agents

Clauses in the statement of work that allows the Service Provider to earn additional revenue (bonus), or experience reductions in billing (penalty), based on the quality of the work done for the Client. Bonus/ penalty conditions often correlate with Client business objectives and may indicate satisfaction levels. Acronyms/ Synonyms: Bonus, Penalty

A contingency plan developed by a company to ensure production, customer support, and other business objectives can continue or be restored quickly in the event of an emergency or act of nature. The process may include keeping key functions in different locations, not likely to suffer from any one incident, provisioning redundancies for utilities, and