Call Groups and Call Queues in Microsoft Teams

Overview

This article is designed to provide an overview on call groups and call queues in Microsoft Teams.

What's the difference?

Call groups and call queues act in a similar fashion to one another but there are some major differences.

Call groups

Call groups are user-assigned groups of Teams users that can receive calls on behalf of the group creator. The group can consist of up to 25 other Teams users and call behaviors can be set for each group member. To share calls with others, a user creates a call group and adds the users they want to share their calls with. Then they choose a simultaneous ring or forward setting.

Call queues

Call queues provide a method of routing callers to departments and people in your organization and are set up and defined through the help of Telecom Services. Calls are distributed one at a time to the people in the queue (who are known as agents). Call queues provide:

  • Initial greeting
  • Voicemail messages
  • Call handling for business hours, after-hours, holidays and other closures
  • Call queue behavior
    • Hold music
    • Call routing to agents (call all available agents, serial, round robin, longest idle)
    • Call handling options for queue overflow, call timeout and no agents are available and/or logged in

How to create and manage a call group

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When you are wanting to forward your calls so someone else is notified (via Also Ring or Simultaneous Ring), you can choose the group members that you want and how they are notified.

1. Call Settings with Call answering rules highlighted, 2. Enhanced version of call answering rules with Call group highlighted, 3. Search for the new call group member, 4. Set the order of notification then Save.

  1. Go into the Settings menu, select Calls, then go to the Call answering rules section
  2. Choose either the Also ring or If unanswered menu, then select Call group.
  3. A new window appears. You can choose from anyone within the Global Address List but you cannot add external phone numbers.
  4. Once your group members are set, you can choose whether to have them notified at the same time or according to their listed order—click Save to proceed.

Now that your group is set, this will be your forwarding group if you choose it from either menu.

If you wish to remove any member(s) of your call group, highlight the person(s) you wish to remove and click the X to the right of their name and description. If you wish to delete the group entirely, click the X to the right of each group member, then select Save to save any changes.

Click on the X to remove the call group member.

Call groups are managed separately from also ring and simultaneous calls. It can be assigned to also ring or ring simultaneously once it's created.

Creating a call group

  1. Go into the Settings menu, select Calls, then go to the Manage call group section
  2. Select Add a call group
  3. A new window appears. You can enter their name or phone number in the Add a call group member field. You cannot add external phone numbers.
    Manage call group with add member field highlighted
  4. Once your group members are set, you can choose whether to have them notified at the same time or according to their listed order—click Save to proceed.

Assigning a call group

  1. Go into the Settings menu, select Calls, then go to the Call handling and forwarding section.
  2. Choose the When you can't answer a call menu, then select Redirect to a call group. It will save automatically once assigned.

Managing a call group

Call order

  • You can set the notification for your call group to ring in order as listed or simultaneously by selecting the desired option in the Ring: menu above the group member list.
    Manage call group with Ring menu highlighted.

Delete group members

  • If you wish to remove any member(s) of your call group, click the trash can icon to the right of their name.
    Manage call group with trash can icons highlighted

If you wish to delete the group entirely, click the trash can to the right of each group member.

How to create and manage a call queue

Creating a queue

The creation process is undertaken by Telecom Services. If you wish to have a new call queue created, please have your department phone coordinator submit a ticket using the Voice Services Support form.

Considerations

The following settings can only be adjusted by Telecom Services. Please have the call queue owner or department phone coordinator submit change requests via the Voice Services Support form:

  • Call handling for business hours, after-hours, holidays and other closures
  • Changing dates and times for business hours, holidays and partial closures
  • Call handling options for when a call times out, the call queue is maxed or no agents are available and/or logged in
  • Assigning authorized users (authorized users can change the initial greeting, voicemail, after-hours, holiday and other closure messages and music on hold)
Please Note: accounts need a phone number assigned before they can participate in a call queue. Please have your department phone coordinator submit a ticket using the Voice Service Support form to add a number to an account.

Department/role, graduate employee, student employee, temporary employee, associate and courtesy accounts need to have Teams calling licensing manually added before they can participate in a call queue. Please have the call queue owner or department phone coordinator submit a ticket to have Teams calling licensing added using the Voice Services Support form. Teams calling is included with the Microsoft 365 license assigned to FTE accounts.

The student affiliation is not eligible for Teams calling licensing. Student accounts will need one of the eligible affiliation/account types listed above. There is no charge for adding Teams calling licensing to student accounts. 

The emeritus affiliation is not eligible for Teams calling licensing. Please add one of the eligible affiliation/account types listed above. If none of the eligible affiliation/account types will be added to the account, but Teams calling is still needed, the department will need to purchase a Teams calling license.

The retired affiliation is not eligible for Teams calling licensing. Please add one of the eligible affiliation/account types listed above. If none of the eligible affiliation/account types will be added to the account, but Teams calling is still needed, the department will need to request an expection to have Teams calling added to the account and purchase a Teams calling license.

Managing a queue

If you're a call queue owner, you can modify the owners and members of the call queue team.

Warning! Owners have the ability to delete the team.  Please DO NOT delete the team for the call queue as this will break call flow for the associated phone number and it will no longer work.

Adding a new team member

  1. Open Microsoft Teams and go to the Teams tab, then go the team you wish to manage.
  2. Select More Options ... then select Add member.
    Add Member option
  3. Enter the name or email address of the person you wish to add, then select Add.
  4. Select Close.
  5. In the Members tab, expand the Members and guests section to see the new member.

People that you add to a team will receive an email letting them know they are now a member, and the team will appear in their Teams list. 

Please be aware that it can take up to eight hours for the new call queue member to get full call queue functionality.

Removing a team member

  1. Open Microsoft Teams and go to the Teams tab, then go the team you wish to manage.
  2. Select More Options ... then select Manage Team,
  3. In the Members tab, expand the Members and guests section.
  4. Select the X icon to the right of the person's name to remove them from the team.

Please be aware that it can take up to eight hours for the user to be fully removed from the call queue. To stop queue calls from ringing in Teams the user can toggle off the call queue in Settings - Calls.

Adding a new team owner

  1. Open Microsoft Teams and go to the Teams tab, then go the team you wish to manage.
  2. Select More Options ... then select Manage Team. A list of the owners and members will be displayed in the Members tab.
  3. Select the Add member button.
  4. Enter the name or email address of the person you wish to add, then select Add.
  5. Select Owner in the drop-down menu to the right of the person's name.
  6. Select Close.

The team will appear in the teams list of the new owner.

Removing a team owner

  1. Open Microsoft Teams and go to the Teams tab, then go the team you wish to manage.
  2. Select More Options ... then select Manage Team. A list of the owners and members will be displayed in the Members tab.
  3. Change the person's role from Owner to Member.
    1. Select Member in the drop-down menu to the right of the person's name.
  4. Expand the Members and guests section.
  5. Select the X icon to the right of the person's name to remove them from the team.

Please be aware that it can take up to eight hours for the member to be fully removed from the call queue. To stop queue calls from ringing in Teams the user can toggle off the call queue in Settings - Calls.

Note: Only owners can modify the owners and members of a Teams group. If an owner isn't available to edit the group please have your department phone coordinator submit a ticket using the Voice Services Support form.
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