# Skills-Based Routing ### Overview Every call center agent has encountered irate customer situations. To reduce customer frustration, a contact center must resolve issues **quickly and accurately**. One of the most effective ways to achieve this is ensuring that calls are handled by agents with the **right skills**. This is where **skills-based routing** becomes essential. *** ### What Is Skills-Based Routing? **Skills-based routing** (also known as skill-based distribution) is a call routing strategy that assigns incoming calls to agents based on the skills most relevant to the customer’s needs. **Example:**\ Spanish-speaking customers are routed to agents who speak Spanish. PortSIP PBX supports Skills-Based Routing by automatically routing incoming queue calls to agents in the **highest-skill group first**. If no agents in that group are available (busy, unavailable, or logged out), the call is routed to agents in **lower skill groups**. This ensures: * Customers are handled by qualified agents * Call resolution times are reduced * Customer frustration is minimized *** ### Route Calls by Caller Language You can route calls by language using **Inbound Rules** based on the caller ID (CID) mask. #### Example Scenario DID number: **00442012345670** Create two inbound rules using the same DID but different CID masks: * **Rule 1** * CID mask: `0044**********` * DID mask: `442012345670` * Route to: **English Support Queue (8000)** * **Rule 2** * CID mask: `0033*********` * DID mask: `442012345670` * Route to: **French Support Queue (9000)** Assign English-speaking agents to queue **8000** and French-speaking agents to queue **9000**. **Result:** * Calls from the UK are routed to English-speaking agents * Calls from France are routed to French-speaking agents *** ### Route Calls by VIP Priority PortSIP PBX provides a **VIP Caller** feature to prioritize high-value customers. When a VIP call is detected: * The caller is placed at the **front of the queue** * The call is always handled with **highest priority** #### Configure VIP Callers 1. Navigate to **Contact Center > VIP Numbers**. 2. Click **Add**. 3. Configure the following fields: * **Enabled** – Turn VIP handling on or off * **VIP Number** – Enter the customer phone number * **Description** – Friendly name (for example, *Microsoft Team*) * **Validity Period** – Define how long the VIP entry remains active > ❗**Note**\ > The VIP list applies globally to **all queues within the tenant**. *** ### Exclusive Agent Routing Some callers—such as those from specialized industries—require agents with **specific domain expertise**. The **Exclusive Agent** feature allows you to assign one or more agents as **priority handlers** for specific callers. #### How Exclusive Agent Routing Works * When a call arrives from a configured caller number: * The call is routed to an exclusive agent with **highest priority** * If all exclusive agents are **busy, not ready, or signed out**: * The call is routed to other available agents in the queue > ❗**Limitation**\ > Exclusive Agent routing is **not supported** when the queue Ring Strategy is set to **Ring Simultaneously**. #### Configure Exclusive Agents 1. Navigate to **Contact Center > Exclusive Agent**. 2. Click **Add**. 3. Configure the following: * **Description** – For example, *XXX Bank* * **Caller Number** – Caller numbers eligible for exclusive handling * **Call Queue** – Select the queue and assign exclusive agents If the call does **not** match the configured caller numbers, the agent behaves as a normal queue agent. *** ### Route Calls by Agent Skill Level PortSIP PBX supports multiple **skill-based routing strategies** within call queues: * **Skill-Based Routing – Prioritized Hunt**\ Agents are rung serially in a configured order, starting with the highest skill group. * **Skill-Based Routing – Cyclic Hunt**\ Agents are rung serially, prioritizing the agent who has not been rung for the longest time, starting with the highest skill group. * **Skill-Based Routing – Least Worked Hunt**\ Agents are rung serially, prioritizing the agent who has answered the fewest calls, starting with the highest skill group. When adding agents to a queue, you assign a **skill level**: * Higher number = higher skill level
*** ### Last Called Agent Routing (LCA) **Last Called Agent Routing** routes repeat callers to the agent who last handled their call. #### How It Works 1. A customer calls the contact center. 2. The PBX stores the agent ID and call time. 3. When the same customer calls again: * The call is routed to the **same agent**, if available 4. If the agent is unavailable: * The call is routed to another suitable agent > ❗**Limitation**\ > LCA routing is **not supported** when the queue Ring Strategy is set to **Ring Simultaneously**. *** ### Harass Numbers (Spam Call Protection) Spam calls are a major issue for contact centers. PortSIP PBX provides **two layers** of protection. #### Global Number Blacklist * Calls from blacklisted numbers are **silently rejected** * Configure under **Blacklist and Codes > Number Blacklist** *** #### Harass Number (Queue-Specific Protection) Harass Numbers apply **only to Call Queues** and operate in two levels: **Level 1 Harass Number** * A warning prompt is played * Caller options: * Press **1** – Hang up * Press **2** – Continue the call **Level 2 Harass Number** * A warning prompt is played * The call is **automatically disconnected** after playback #### Configure Harass Numbers 1. Navigate to: * **Contact Center > Harass Number Level 1** * **Contact Center > Harass Number Level 2** 2. Open **Global Settings** 3. Enable or disable: * **Enable Level 1 Harass Number** * **Enable Level 2 Harass Number** 4. Upload the corresponding prompt files *** ### Best Practices * Use **skills-based routing** to reduce call transfers and improve first-call resolution * Combine **VIP routing** with **exclusive agents** for premium customers * Enable **LCA routing** to improve customer continuity * Use **harass number protection** to reduce spam without blocking legitimate callers * Avoid **Ring Simultaneously** when advanced routing logic is required