Although many of the calling features available with iPBX Hosted Communications Service apply directly to individual users, some features relate to groups within the enterprise. It is through these group features that you fine tune your communications system to complement and enhance the way you do business. And, because iPBX provides so many options, should your business model change as you grow, iPBX can be reconfigured to reflect your new organizational needs.

Extension Dialing
Extension dialing between users in a group may be configured using 2-6 digits. The extension configuration may be increased at any time, but, once created, cannot be decreased.

Department Support
In order for your phone system and resultant billing to conform to the way your business is organized, departments can be established within the system setup. For example, all user bundles, phones and usage for a select group of users can be configured and billed as a "department" within the enterprise. This same support for departments can allow multiple sites to be considered as departments within a group. This, then, provides for extension dialing between sites, but generates separate billing for each location. Dialing between sites does not require any additional digit dialing to indicate location. Users simply dial extensions the same way for calls to a user across the office or across town.

Group Calling Line ID Delivery
When this feature is selected, a user's individual caller ID name and number can be overridden to display the group name and/or number instead. This feature can be defined on a per-user basis.

Hunt Group
A Hunt Group allows users within a specified sub-group to handle incoming calls received by either a specific phone number or extension. Hunt Groups can distribute calls according the any of the following schemes:

• Circular: Incoming calls hunt through agents in a fixed order beginning with the user who follows the agent who received the last call. If the search reaches the end of the list, it loops back to the top and continues until all agents have been tried.
• Regular: Incoming calls are distributed to agents in a fixed order, always beginning with the person at the top of the list.
• Simultaneous: Incoming calls alert all agents at the same time and the first agent to answer, handles the call.
• Uniform: Incoming calls hunt through all agents in order, starting with the agent who has been idle the longest and ending with the agent who most recently handled a call.
• Weighted Call Distribution: Calls are assigned to idle agents based on percentages you assign on the Hunt Group's Profile - Weighted Call Distribution page.

Incoming Calling Plan
Restrict incoming calls to the group or departments in the group. The following types of calls can be blocked: Calls From Within Group, Calls From Outside Group, Collect Calls, and call types represented by customizable digit strings the system matches against outside numbers (for example, particular area or country codes).

Inventory Report
Generate a report on the resources used within the group. Reported in ASCII comma-separated (CSV) format, the report is e-mailed to the address provided on the Inventory Report page as a file attachment, and can be displayed in a separate window in the ASCII CSV format.

Music on Hold
Upload licensed or royalty-free audio or video files (.wav or .mov file) containing music or advertising onto the system to be played for callers on hold. This service can be used in conjunction with the Call Hold and Call Park services. Music On Hold for Call Centers is enabled and selected separately for each Call Center.

Outgoing Calling Plan
Restrict the types of calls that users in a group or departments can make.

Series Completion
Similar to a hunt group, Series Completion distributes incoming calls to a pre-defined group of users in a pre-defined order. Similar to the way a key system works, the series completion number must be a dedicated number without a user/device assigned to it.

Account/Authorization Codes
Account/Authorization Codes can apply to all calls, or all toll calls, excluding local and toll-free calling. Codes can be 2-14 digits in length.

• Account Codes: Prompts users to enter account codes for tracking outgoing calls. Account codes are included in billing reports. The system checks that codes contain the required number of digits, but does not validate against the account code list.
• Authorization Codes: Allows users to make calls only after providing valid, pre-defined authorization codes. Service does not override any restrictions set in the Outgoing Calling Plan of the user, department, or group.

Auto Attendant
The iPBX Auto Attendant serves as an automated receptionist that answers the phone and provides a personalized message to callers. Callers have the option to connect to the operator, dial by name or extension, or connect to configurable extensions.

A group can have multiple Auto Attendants configured, either individually or integrated into a multi-level Auto Attendant. For example, the main Auto Attendant for the enterprise can be configured to seamlessly route to an Auto Attendant for a particular department or location.

Call Accounting
An optional service for iPBX, Call Accounting can provide valuable information on how voice services are utilized within an organization. Individual reports, supported by the underlying call records, can be requested for the enterprise, group, department, or call center. Reports are sent by e-mail to one or more designated contacts on a weekly basis.

Call Center
Automatically process incoming calls received by a single phone number by distributing them to a group of users or agents. Call Center includes enhanced features such as agent log in and log out, call queuing, and overflow control. It also provides detailed statistical reporting to assess and improve Call Center performance.

Hosted Call Recording
This web-based, hosted application requires no additional hardware or software.  It is easy to use and administer, yet flexible enough to meet the most stringent regulatory requirements.

Call Pickup
The Call Pickup service allows users to answer a call that is ringing at another extension within their call pickup group by dialing a feature access code. More than one phone within the group is ringing, the phone that has been ringing the longest is the one that gets answered. Once a call is picked up from another extension, the extension that was ringing is free to receive other calls.

Intercept Group
The Intercept Group service blocks phone service to an entire group, while providing callers with informative announcements and/or alternate routing options.

Instant Group Call
The Group Administrator creates multiple groups of users and assigns a call number to each group. When the number is called, each member of the group is rung, and as they answer, they are joined into a multi-way conference. The members of the Instant Call Group may be members of the same group or enterprise, or can include external users. Up to 20 members can be added to each Instant Call Group.