CSM Configuration · Topic 2 of 4
Routing and Assignment
CIS-CSM routing and assignment: matching rules, assignment rules, and Advanced Work Assignment queues, service channels, capacity, presence and skills.
- 5 min
- A matching rule has case conditions and resource conditions; resource matching is Simple, Advanced or Scripted.
- An assignment rule only fires when the case is not already assigned.
- An assignment rule created from a matching rule is independent; changes do not synchronize.
What it is
Routing decides which team handles a case, and assignment decides which agent works it. Matching rules and assignment rules set the assignment group or agent on the case record. Advanced Work Assignment (AWA) routes the case into a queue and pushes it to an available agent's inbox in CSM Configurable Workspace.
If cases only need to land with the right group, rules are enough. If work must be pushed to agents by availability, capacity and skills, use AWA.
How it works
Matching rules
A matching rule has two sets of conditions. The first identifies the case attributes, such as account, product or priority. The second identifies the agent resources best suited to cases with those attributes.
| Resource matching method | How it finds agents |
|---|---|
| Simple | Pick named users from a list |
| Advanced | Build conditions that filter agents, for example by role, group, skills, workload or availability |
| Scripted | A script returns the agents, for unusual logic |
Reverse matching uses the same rules the other way round, matching cases to an agent.
Assignment rules
An assignment rule sets the Assignment group or Assigned to field when its conditions are met, but only if the case is not already assigned. You can create an assignment rule from the related link on the Matching Rule form.
After that, the matching rule and assignment rule are independent records. Changing one does not update the other, so both must be maintained.
Advanced Work Assignment
Each case or chat that AWA handles is a work item.
| AWA component | What it does |
|---|---|
| Service channel | The type of work, with agent capacity and utilization conditions; the base system offers channels for cases, chats, incidents and walk-up centers |
| Queue | Holds one type of work item for a service channel; routing conditions decide which work items enter it |
| Assignment group | The agents who serve a queue, with optional capacity overrides |
| Assignment rule | How work is pushed within the group: Most Capacity or Last Assigned |
| Capacity | How many work items an agent can work at once on a channel; a universal capacity can cap all channels |
| Presence | Whether the agent is available, busy or offline; only available agents receive work |
| Skills | Optional; when defined, AWA prefers agents with the skills the work needs |
| Inbox | Where the agent accepts or rejects pushed work in the workspace |
AWA picks work from the highest priority queue, finds eligible agents by presence, capacity, skills and shifts where defined, and offers the item to the best match.
Capacity frees up when the agent completes or transfers work.
Choosing between them
| Requirement | Best fit |
|---|---|
| Cases for an account must reach its support group | Assignment rule |
| Find the best agents for a case by skill or workload, without pushing work | Matching rule with advanced resource conditions |
| Push cases and chats to available agents without a manager assigning them | AWA |
| Route premium customer cases ahead of others | AWA queue with routing conditions and a higher queue priority |
AWA service channels that CSM uses include Case, Chat and Walk-up, each with its own agent capacity.
Who owns it
Administrators create the rules, service channels and queues. Managers with sn_customerservice_manager oversee agent groups and can override work. Agents set their presence and accept work from the inbox.
How the exam asks about this
- "Chats must go only to agents who are online and not already at their limit." AWA chat service channel with agent capacity and presence.
- "Cases from one account must always go to the account's dedicated support group." An assignment rule on account, often created from a matching rule.
- "Agents with the Spanish language skill should receive Spanish cases first." AWA with skills defined, or a matching rule with advanced resource conditions on skills.
What to remember for the exam
- A matching rule has case conditions and resource conditions; resource matching is Simple, Advanced or Scripted.
- An assignment rule only fires when the case is not already assigned.
- An assignment rule created from a matching rule is independent; changes do not synchronize.
- AWA routes work items into queues, then pushes them to eligible agents in the workspace inbox.
- AWA assignment rules are Most Capacity or Last Assigned; presence, capacity and optional skills decide eligibility.
- CSM can use AWA service channels for Case, Chat and Walk-up work.
AWA does not push work to an agent whose presence is offline or busy, however skilled they are. If a question says work is waiting in a queue while agents are logged in, check presence and capacity first.
Common mistakes
Using AWA when the requirement is only group routing. If cases just need to reach the right group, assignment rules are simpler to maintain. AWA adds channels, queues, presence and capacity that someone must manage.
Expecting matching rule edits to change assignment. The assignment rule created from a matching rule is a separate record. Editing the matching rule conditions leaves the assignment rule as it was.
Forgetting capacity. A queue can be correct and agents online, but if every agent is at capacity on that channel nobody receives new work.
Check yourself
What two sets of conditions does a CSM matching rule define?
Conditions that identify the case attributes, and conditions that identify the agent resources best suited to those cases. Resources are found by Simple, Advanced or Scripted matching.
When does an assignment rule not change a case?
When the case is already assigned. Assignment rules only apply to unassigned records.
What decides whether AWA pushes a work item to a particular agent?
The agent must be in the queue's assignment group, be available by presence, have spare capacity on that channel, and match the skills if skills are defined. The assignment rule, Most Capacity or Last Assigned, then picks among eligible agents.
Topic 2 of 4 in CSM Configuration
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