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On the interaction between retrials and sizing of call centers

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  • Aguir, M. Salah
  • Aksin, O. Zeynep
  • Karaesmen, Fikri
  • Dallery, Yves

Abstract

This paper models a call center as a Markovian queue with multiple servers, where customer impatience, and retrials are modeled explicitly. The model is analyzed as a continuous time Markov chain. The retrial phenomenon is explored numerically using a real example, to demonstrate the magnitude it can take and to understand its sensitivity to various system parameters. The model is then used to assess the impact of disregarding existing retrials in the staffing of a call center. It is shown that ignoring retrials can lead to under-staffing or over-staffing with respect to the optimal, depending on the forecasting assumptions being made.

Suggested Citation

  • Aguir, M. Salah & Aksin, O. Zeynep & Karaesmen, Fikri & Dallery, Yves, 2008. "On the interaction between retrials and sizing of call centers," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 191(2), pages 398-408, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ejores:v:191:y:2008:i:2:p:398-408
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Andreas Brandt & Manfred Brandt, 1999. "On a Two-Queue Priority System with Impatience and its Application to a Call Center," Methodology and Computing in Applied Probability, Springer, vol. 1(2), pages 191-210, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. B. Krishna Kumar & R. Sankar & R. Navaneetha Krishnan & R. Rukmani, 2022. "Performance Analysis of Multi-processor Two-Stage Tandem Call Center Retrial Queues with Non-Reliable Processors," Methodology and Computing in Applied Probability, Springer, vol. 24(1), pages 95-142, March.
    2. Shiliang Cui & Xuanming Su & Senthil Veeraraghavan, 2019. "A Model of Rational Retrials in Queues," Operations Research, INFORMS, vol. 67(6), pages 1699-1718, November.
    3. Miao Yu & Yu Zhao & Chunguang Chang & Liangliang Sun, 2023. "Fluid models for customer service web chat systems with interactive automated service," Flexible Services and Manufacturing Journal, Springer, vol. 35(2), pages 572-598, June.
    4. Ding, S. & Koole, G. & van der Mei, R.D., 2015. "On the estimation of the true demand in call centers with redials and reconnects," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 246(1), pages 250-262.
    5. Defraeye, Mieke & Van Nieuwenhuyse, Inneke, 2016. "Staffing and scheduling under nonstationary demand for service: A literature review," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 4-25.
    6. B. Krishna Kumar & R. Sankar & R. Navaneetha Krishnan & R. Rukmani, 2023. "Multiserver call center retrial queue under Bernoulli vacation schedule with two-way communication and orbital search," Telecommunication Systems: Modelling, Analysis, Design and Management, Springer, vol. 84(1), pages 23-51, September.
    7. Aktekin, Tevfik, 2014. "Call center service process analysis: Bayesian parametric and semi-parametric mixture modeling," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 234(3), pages 709-719.

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