How does group calling work?
When an incoming call is received, the central station sends a ringing request to all devices assigned to the group. Depending on the selected mode, various scenarios may occur:
- Simultaneous ringing for all units (simultaneous ringing), all phones in the group ring at the same time. The call is answered by the first employee to pick up the handset. All other ringing stops automatically.
- Progressive ringing (hunt or sequential): the PBX attempts the first phone number; if unanswered, it proceeds to the second, then the third, and so on.
- Cyclic allocation - The central hub selects a phone within the group according to the configured algorithm to ensure calls are distributed evenly.
Each group member must be assigned a branch or a SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) device. The group can be associated with a single phone number or used as a destination from the IVR menu.
When to use group ringing?
Group ringing is suitable for small and medium-sized teams where complex queue management is not required. Typical uses:
- Sales team - Incoming enquiries ring to all sales staff and are taken by the first available person.
- Reception - if the receptionist is busy, the call also rings at the deputy's desk.
- Service technicians - allocation of the call to the first available technician without a queue system.
- Small company - one incoming call rings on all devices of the owner and their colleagues.
Compared with call queuing, group ringing is simpler to set up and requires fewer parameters. However, it does not keep the caller in a queue, if no one answers, the call goes to voicemail or to the configured forwarding destination.
What to watch out for when setting up group ringing?
When configuring group ringing, keep these points in mind:
- Define what happens if no one in the group answers, most commonly redirection to voicemail or a backup number.
- Set a reasonable time limit for each attempt in sequential ringing (usually 15-20 seconds per phone).
- Combine group ringing with time-based conditions, outside working hours, deactivate the group or redirect calls to voicemail.
- When mobile phones ring simultaneously, remember that each ring generates an outgoing call, check your operator's tariff.
On virtualni-ustredna.cz, a ringing group can be configured and adjusted at any time online, without the need to contact the network administrator.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can mobile phones be included in the group?
Yes. If an employee uses a softphone (software phone) on their mobile, they can be added to the group. Alternatively, group ringing can be directed straight to mobile numbers, which then ring simultaneously with the fixed extensions.
What is the difference between group calling and the Find Me/Follow Me function?
Group ringing is configured at the line or number level and applies to all incoming calls to a given group. Find me / follow me is a personal setting for a specific user who wishes to be reachable on multiple own devices. Both mechanisms can operate in parallel.
How many phones can be assigned to a single group?
It depends on the settings of Virtuální ústředna. Usually, groups are not capacity-limited on the software side: the limit is typically the number of available branches in the tariff.