Patent ID: 7787609

Claim:
In a contact center, the contact center comprising at least one work item queue, at least one agent queue for servicing the at least one work item queue, the at least one agent queue being associated with a plurality of agents, a method for servicing contacts, comprising: a processor determining whether an agent is available to service a selected work item; if an agent is available, the processor assigning the selected work item to the agent; if the agent is not available, the processor determining that the selected work item is to be serviced by a selected expert, the selected expert being a third party that is different from the plurality of agents; the processor determining presence information associated with the selected expert, the presence information indicating a current availability of the selected expert for receiving a contact; the processor determining that the selected expert is currently available to receive a contact; the processor inviting the selected expert to service the work item; and the processor determining if the selected expert has accepted the invitation, wherein determining if the selected expert has accepted the invitation comprises: the processor receiving a conditional acceptance of the invitation from the selected expert, the conditional acceptance indicating that the selected expert will be available to service the contact at a stated period of time and on a specified media type, the processor querying a customer associated with the work item whether or not the customer may wait the stated period of time for the work item to be serviced; and the processor applying the following rules: when the customer is willing to wait, the processor directing the work item to the selected expert for servicing; and when the customer is unwilling to wait, the processor not directing the work item to the selected expert for servicing.