An operating mode is a flexible call routing configuration that determines how calls are handled during different times and scenarios. For example:

1. Day mode- Normal business hours routing

2. Night mode- After-hours call handling

3. Holiday/Special closure mode - Routing during weekends or holidays

Operating mode types:

The following operating modes are designed to address specific scheduling and operational requirements:

• Scheduled mode:

  • Same hours every day

  • Different hours every day

  • Holiday-specific routing

• Non-scheduled mode– Standard operation without specific time constraints. If a schedule is defined for the customer, the nonscheduled mode becomes active outside the scheduled hours.

Benefits

Call routing based on modes provides the following capabilities to enhance call management efficiency and ensure a seamless customer experience:

• Flexibility: Customize call routing to match your business needs.

• Efficiency: Automatically route calls to the right department.

• Professionalism: Ensure calls are always handled appropriately.

Setting up operating modes

To create an operating mode:

1. Sign in to Control Hub.

2. Go to Calling > Features > Operating Mode.

3. Click Add new.

4. Choose Organization or Location level to create a mode.

   If selecting Location, search for or select the location from the list.

5. Enter the mode name and click Next.

6. If the operating mode includes a schedule, toggle on Define Schedule and select a schedule type from the list.

   • Schedule as Same hours every day - Select this option from the dropdown list and check the box next to Monday-Friday or Sat & Sun. Specify the time range, and select All day if applicable.

   • Schedule as different hours every day - Select this option from the dropdown list and check the box next to the days of the week. Specify the time range, and select All day if applicable.

   • Schedule as Holiday - Select this option from the dropdown list and enter the holiday name, recurrence, and duration. Select All day if applicable.

   When switching to recurrence Yearly, the duration start and end date is the same and the all day toggle is on by default.

   Select Next. The new holiday is saved to the table. You can add multiple holiday entries by clicking Add new holiday. Hover over the holiday and click to edit the holiday, or to delete it.

7. Click Next. The Forward destination page appears. Enter the destination, and check the box send to voicemail if applicable. Or, select Do not forward and click Next.

8. Review the settings for the new operating mode.

   Schedule type operating mode can’t be changed once the mode is created.

9. Click Create.

Location admin restrictions

Location level administrators can create, update, and delete modes for their location.

Assigning mode based forwarding to features

Call routing based on modes is enabled by assigning modes to a feature like Call Queue, which has the associated number for which the call routing needs to be modified.

To assign features of mode-based routing:

1. Sign in to Control Hub.

2. Go to Calling > Call Queues.

3. Select a call queue from the list and click Call forwarding.

4. Toggle Call forwarding and select Forward calls by modes.

5. Select an existing mode.

6. If the mode is scheduled, the Normal operation toggle is selected by default.

7. Select an option: default phone number, different phone number, or do not forward. Specify a destination if choosing any option other than do not forward. Toggle send to voicemail if applicable.

8. Click Save. The new mode appears in the call forwarding list.

   Select the normal operation toggle.

9. Click Add operating mode to add additional modes.

10. Select to edit the mode or to delete it.

Location admin restrictions

The following restrictions apply to location admins:

• A location admin can manage modes for features in their location, including viewing, assigning, editing, and unassigning.

• The existing bulk management for Customer Experience Essentials, Auto Attendants, Call Queues, and Hunt Groups doesn't support call forwarding.

Assign mode management capabilities to a user

• An authorized user can manage call routing of numbers that are assigned to a managed feature like Call Queue, if the forward calls by modes option is enabled for the feature.

• If an admin later disables forward calls by modes on a managed feature, by either disabling call forwarding entirely or switching to a different call forwarding mode such as selective call forwarding, the feature remains in the list but is flagged as having mode-based forwarding disabled.

• The features are presented to the user for mode management in User Hub and on supported MPP and PhoneOS devices in the same order as assigned.

  Users must manually reorder the managed features by deleting and readding features through the Control Hub or replacing the list of managed features using bulk management.

• Only up to the first 5 features in the list are available for user management on MPP and PhoneOS devices while all are available for user management in User Hub.

To set a user’s mode switch permissions:

1. Sign in to Control Hub.

2. Go to Users and select a user.

3. Click on Calling and select Mode Management under Call handling.

4. Search for features by name, number, or extension to add them and allow the user to manage mode-based forwarding of the specified features.

5. Click to delete a feature, or click Remove All to remove all the features for the specified user.
6. The new features appear in the list. Use to filter the features.

Perform a bulk mode switch

An administrator or office manager can select multiple features or departments to perform a bulk or batch mode switch. This applies the same applicable mode to all selected features.

1. Click > Calling > Features.
2. Select the features and click Switch mode.
3. Select the common mode you want to switch for the selected features.

   In batch switch mode, you can only revert to normal manually.

4. Click Switch mode.

Provision mode management on user-assigned devices

To apply the default layout:

1. Sign in to Control Hub.

2. Go to Calling > Service Settings > Line Key Templates.

3. Select Reset Line key template to reset configurations for matching devices to their default templates. This will also override any custom line key settings.

4. Enter the locations and devices. Select Refine search by Tags or Refine search by Advisories to search by these methods. Check the boxes as needed.

   

5. Click Next. The configuration layout of the selected devices will be set to default layout once applied. Changes take effect once devices are synced.

6. Select Reset to default.

To apply a custom layout:

1. Select the apply custom layout icon to find and apply a template to all matching devices.

2. Enter the locations and devices. Select Refine search by tags or refine search by advisories to search by these methods. Check the boxes as needed.

   If the default layout from current device layout is selected, the mode management check box is disabled. If All is selected, the mode management check box is enabled.

3. Click Next. The configuration layout of the selected devices will be set to custom layout once applied. Changes take effect once devices are synced.

4. Select Apply custom layout.

To edit a template:

1. Click .

2. The line key assignments and their order appear. Expand each dropdown to select the line key assignments.

3. Select Mode Management and click Save.

To assign Mode Management to devices individually:

1. Go to Devices and select a device.

2. Click Manage next to Configure Layout.

3. Program the line keys with primary, shared lines, or Calling functions and save the changes to override current configurations. Select Custom Layout. Use the dropdown list to select Mode Management for the line keys.

4. Check the Preview Layout box to view the line configurations in preview mode. This is how they appear on the device once provisioned.

5. Click Save.

Limitations

• A maximum of 100 organization-level operating modes can be configured.

• A maximum of 100 location-level operating modes per location can be configured.

• Up to 150 holiday configurations is supported.

• 8831 and 8832 device models aren’t supported.

• The key expansion module isn’t supported.

• Mode management line keys aren't supported on workspace devices.

Configure a mode-based forwarding on the electrician office’s main line

The electrician’s office main line is assigned to a Call Queue with mode-based forwarding configured.

1. Go to Services > Calling > Features and select Call Queue.

   

2. Under Call Forwarding, enable Forward calls by modes.

   

   Day, Lunch, Night, Holiday, and Weekend modes are added in sequence. Since Day mode and Lunch mode have overlapping schedules, Lunch mode is prioritized higher that Day mode.

   Day mode doesn’t have any forward destination defined, so calls will be routed to the agents in the Call Queue

3. Assign a Mode manager.

   Go to Calling > Users and select Mode Management. Locate and choose the Call Queue (or the features which the number for which the call routing needs to be modified), then click Save.

   

4. Modify the device’s line key template.

   If a device is assigned to the Mode Manager, update the line-key template and assign Mode Management to the appropriate nonprimary line key.

   To perform this, access the associated device, choose Configure Layout, and select the Custom Layout option. Pick the custom template you previously created with Mode Management and click Apply.

   Alternatively, you can choose Mode Management from the dropdown list. Click Save and Apply configuration for the changes to take effect.

   

Modifying operating modes from the desk phone

Scenario 1

The current operating mode is set to Holiday and Weekend. However, due to a heavy workload, the electrician's office has returned early from the weekend. As a result, the office manager has set the mode to Day mode.

Scenario 2

The employees at the electrician's office are still on their lunch break, as it’s taking longer than expected. Hence they want to extend it by an hour. The office manager extends the existing lunch break by an hour.