AI Features Guide

AI Receptionist Best Practices

Configure the assistant, activities, SOPs, forms, and channel settings that make Prudens a reliable operating layer for intake, service requests, carrier communication, and controlled human handoffs.

Open AI Receptionist Feature View Operating Model Back to Guides

Configure in this order

  • Create the assistant and define its voice, identity, and responsibility
  • Add channel activities and attach the right SOP to each one
  • Configure forms, QA, escalation rules, and live monitoring

Configure the AI Receptionist

Set up the assistant foundation first, then give it narrowly defined activities and SOP-controlled execution paths.

1. Create the assistant

  • Give the assistant a clear name, overview, language, personality, and responsibility.
  • Configure the default, phone, and chat greetings around the first workflow it will own.
  • Select a voice and use the voice nudge to set tone, accent, or speaking style.

2. Add activity types

  • Start with only the channels the assistant needs: check email, send email, take or make calls, and send SMS.
  • Add Observer activities when another process should watch events without taking action.
  • Use Carrier Submissions as a separate activity when the assistant must move qualified work downstream.

3. Attach SOPs and QA

  • Attach one primary SOP to every action-oriented activity and add child SOPs for reusable branches.
  • Use SOP steps for required data, tools, handoffs, and completion conditions instead of relying on prompts alone.
  • Enable QA where a reviewer must validate output before the activity is treated as complete.

4. Configure forms and settings

  • Build the forms and required fields the assistant will use during intake and follow-up.
  • Configure phone numbers, SMS or text behavior, email replies, signatures, and company details.
  • Test each channel with a real scenario before activating the assistant for production traffic.

Validate the Agents You Create

Every enabled activity and its SOP becomes an executable agent path that should be observed before it runs unattended.

Assistant agent paths

Review the agent created for each assistant activity. Confirm its SOP, tools, forms, handoff instructions, and expected outcome before activation.

Live Data

Use Activities, Inbox, SMS, Calls, QA, Escalations, and the Assistants Todo List to find incomplete work and tune the operating model.

Realtime

Review call status, recordings, transcripts, and whisper notes while a live interaction is in progress, and request a human takeover when needed.

State Machine for Reliable Reception Flows

Use state transitions so behavior is predictable, auditable, and easy to improve.

State Trigger Assistant Action Control Next State
Inbound Received Portal, SMS, phone, email, or web intake Normalize message and attach account context Identity and account match checks Intent Classified
Intent Classified Confidence above threshold Select SOP and response template Confidence threshold + fallback conditions Data Collection
Data Collection Required fields incomplete Prompt for missing details and required documents Retry limit and SLA timers Ready for Execution or Escalated
Ready for Execution Required data complete Launch workflow tasks and send confirmation SOP policy checks and ownership assignment In Progress
In Progress Task milestones reached Send status updates and next-step notices Channel preference and communication policy Resolved or Escalated
Escalated Risk, uncertainty, or SLA breach Route to human owner with full context bundle Priority routing and manager alerts Human Resolution

Best Practices by Workflow Type

Apply these patterns to keep service quality consistent at volume.

Insured service requests

  • Use structured request categories for policy and account changes.
  • Send immediate confirmation with SLA window and owner role.
  • Push milestone updates automatically until completion.

COI and EOI handling

  • Collect requestor, holder details, and delivery requirements up front.
  • Run checklist validation before issuing status-ready confirmation.
  • Log delivery completion and issue final confirmation with timestamp.

Carrier communication

  • Use standardized outbound templates for submission and follow-up loops.
  • Tie responses to account workflow state, not separate inbox threads.
  • Escalate to producers when carrier requests affect quote positioning.

FNOL and urgent events

  • Prioritize urgency scoring over template completeness.
  • Trigger immediate handoff with concise incident summary.
  • Maintain customer updates while human teams resolve the issue.

How It Connects to Other Prudens Features

The receptionist should orchestrate, not operate in isolation.

Client Portal

Use portal requests as structured intake and keep clients updated with automated status messaging.

View Client Portal

Policy Comparison

Route risk-sensitive requests into structured comparison flows when coverage or premium decisions are involved.

View Policy Comparison

Form Fill Automation

Trigger form collection and completion automatically when a request reaches submission-ready state.

View Form Fill Automation

Proposal Builder

Launch proposal workflows when comparison output is approved and client communication is required.

View Proposal Builder

Carrier Appetite and Submission

Move qualified opportunities into carrier routing with context intact from first intake through submission.

View Carrier Workflow

MCP Server

Use governed tool actions when your assistant needs to execute cross-system tasks safely.

View MCP Server

KPI Scorecard and Weekly Governance

Track leading indicators so quality scales with volume.

Core KPIs

  • First response time by channel
  • Auto-resolution rate versus escalation rate
  • SLA compliance rate by workflow type
  • First-pass request completeness
  • Customer follow-up count per request

Weekly governance rhythm

  • Review top 20 escalated transcripts for failure patterns.
  • Tune intent mappings, prompts, and fallback messages.
  • Update SOP routing and threshold policies as conditions change.
  • Publish release notes so teams know what behavior changed.
  • Audit random completed cases for policy and compliance quality.

Design the receptionist as your workflow control layer

Start with omnichannel intake, enforce state transitions, and chain downstream features only through controlled SOP paths.

Open AI Virtual Assistant