Action Plans and Virtual Operators

The Virtual Operator (VO) represents a new paradigm in alarm processing, where AI-assisted decision-making works alongside human operators to enhance response efficiency. The Virtual Operator is designed to handle the nuanced, initial triage phase of event processing; making intelligent decisions within clearly defined organizational boundaries.

Understanding the Virtual Operator's Role

Not a Replacement, But a Specialized Tool

A common misconception is that the Virtual Operator should answer the same questions your human operators answer. In practice, this approach rarely aligns with organizational trust boundaries or operational efficiency.

Instead, the Virtual Operator excels when given specific, well-defined tasks that your organization is comfortable delegating to AI. This typically means:

• Initial event assessment and information gathering
• Preliminary verification steps
• Routine classification decisions
• Standard response protocols for low-risk scenarios

Your human operators then handle the complex decision-making, stakeholder communication, and situations requiring human judgment.

The Event Lifecycle with Virtual Operator

Immediate Response

The Virtual Operator typically picks up events immediately upon arrival in the queue. This means:

1. Zero wait time for initial triage
2. Immediate preliminary assessment based on available data
3. Rapid escalation to human operators when needed

This immediate engagement ensures that every event receives attention the moment it enters your system, even during peak periods or off-hours.

Information Flow

As the Virtual Operator processes an event, all actions, decisions, and gathered information are logged in the Audit Trail, just as they would be for a human operator. This creates a complete record that human operators can review when they join the event, ensuring seamless handoff and continuity.

Establishing AI Trust Boundaries

Organizational Control Through Guidelines

The Virtual Operator cannot simply "take control and do what it wants." Every action the VO takes must be explicitly authorized through Guidelines configured on the AI Setup page in SureView Suite.

These Guidelines define:

• Which Action Plan Steps the VO is permitted to complete
• When the VO should change event Priority
• Under what conditions the VO can close events
• What Closure Codes are appropriate for AI-driven closures (either pre-selected or VO-determined)

This architecture ensures that the Virtual Operator operates strictly within your organization's comfort zone, making only the decisions you've explicitly authorized.

Defining Clear Pathways

Before deploying the Virtual Operator, organizations should carefully consider:

• What decisions are routine enough to trust to AI?
• What information gathering requires no human judgment?
• Which scenarios are low-risk enough for automated closure?
• Where does human oversight become essential?

These answers form the foundation of your VO Guidelines and Action Plan design.

Designing Action Plans for Virtual Operator

The Two-Part Action Plan Strategy

Best practice for Virtual Operator implementation involves structuring Action Plans in two distinct phases:

Phase 1: Virtual Operator Triage (Initial Steps)

This section contains only the steps your organization trusts AI to complete:

• Verification of basic event details
• Initial classification questions
• Standard assessment protocols
• Preliminary risk evaluation

These steps should be:

• Clearly defined with unambiguous criteria
• Low-risk in terms of potential impact
• Routine enough to not require human judgment
• Well-bounded with predictable outcomes

Phase 2: Human Operator Processing (Subsequent Steps)

Following the VO's triage, the remaining Action Plan steps guide your human operators through:

• Complex decision-making
• Stakeholder communication
• Nuanced assessment
• Final disposition
• Any actions requiring human authorization

Leveraging Triggered Actions

Action Plans can utilize Triggered Actions to create comprehensive, adaptive workflows. When combined with Virtual Operator Guidelines, this creates a powerful framework for handling diverse scenarios:

Example Workflow:

1. VO completes initial assessment Action (Parent Action)
2. Based on the VO's answer, different Child Actions are triggered
3. Some triggered Actions may be completed by the VO (per Guidelines)
4. Others are left for human operators
5. The workflow adapts dynamically to the situation

This combination of Action Plans with Triggers, executed through VO Guidelines, allows you to establish exactly what you expect from the Agent; in the same way you would train a new human operator through standard operating procedures.

'Training' Your Virtual Operator

Think of Guidelines and Action Plans as the Virtual Operator's training program. Just as you would:

• Provide SOPs to new operators
• Define decision trees for common scenarios
• Establish escalation criteria
• Set boundaries for autonomous action

You configure Guidelines and Action Plans to teach the Virtual Operator:

• What questions to ask
• How to interpret responses
• When to escalate
• What actions are appropriate

The more clearly you define these expectations, the more effectively the Virtual Operator can support your team.

Getting Started

To implement Virtual Operator in your environment:

1. Audit your current Action Plans - Identify which steps are routine and low-risk
2. Define trust boundaries - Determine what decisions your organization is comfortable delegating to AI
3. Restructure Action Plans - Separate VO-appropriate steps from human-required steps
4. Configure Guidelines - Set up VO Guidelines in SureView Suite to authorize specific actions
5. Test and refine - Monitor VO performance and adjust Guidelines as needed

For detailed configuration and usage instructions, see the Virtual Operator Overview, Guidelines, and Usage Support Pages.