Presence-Aware BPM

January 30, 2006

Recently I've been investigating human-computer-interaction aspects of presence controls in multi-modal communications.

That's a mouthful, I know. What I'm really trying to get at is, when a user has to cope with multiple communication devices and environments (instant messaging, email, mobile voice, conventional voice, VoIP, etc.), how does the user tweak the controls to let the system know�who is allowed to get in touch through which device at what times and in what situations?

I was looking into this idea of "presence controls," when I came across an interesting page on Singularity's web site: "Who's there? Presence Enabled BPM." This page presents an interesting�scenario�showing how presence controls can enable better customer service in a call center setting.

Singularity has developed a Singularity Process Platform for business process management incorporating Microsoft's Live Communications Server. Using the Live Communications presence controls in an instant-messaging environment, the Singularity platform can determine in advance whether a worker is available to accept a task before routing the work to that person.

Here's a schematic showing where the Singularity platform sits in this process:

Singularity describes "presence-enabled" business-process management this way:

"Routing work to an absent colleague or to the wrong location wastes valuable cycle-time, and in some cases can lose a customer’s business. Workers can be out-of-office, at a different location, using a different device. Workers who are physically separated by geography and time-zone have no visibility of their colleagues’ availability or ‘presence’ Knowing a person’s presence is particularly important if a time-sensitive decision has to be made."

Singularity's example scenario describes how a presence-aware BPM system might help cope with a situation in a credit-card call center. A customer calls in to their credit-card issuer, asking for an increase in their credit limit for an emergency situation. The scenario demonstrates how presence controls help the call center agent to route the request quickly to an available supervisor, using instant messaging. The scenario is illustrated, showing screen shots from Singularity's application.

AB -- 1/30/06