Agent desk
An agent desk is the screen where call center operators answer, hold and transfer calls and see caller details; most now run in the browser.
An agent desk is the workspace where call center operators answer calls, put them on hold, transfer them and see information about the conversation. It used to be a physical desk phone next to a separate customer screen. In most solutions today the phone lives inside the screen: a software phone (softphone) running in the browser, plus a headset, is the whole desk. Operators reach the same workspace wherever they log in from.
How it works
In a browser-based desk, audio travels through the browser itself using the WebRTC standard, so operators can work from the browser without installing a desktop app. An operator marks themselves as available, calls waiting in the call queue are routed to them, and details about the caller appear on screen when a call arrives. Holding, transferring and taking notes all happen on the same screen, and an outcome code is recorded when the call ends.
Why it matters
Seeing the right information at the moment a call arrives directly affects how quickly and how well the operator can help. A browser-based desk also brings remote and hybrid teams onto the same system, and onboarding a new operator does not involve setting up a desk phone. Supervisors usually follow live calls from the same environment through call monitoring.
In Speakline
Speakline's agent desk runs in the browser: hold, mute, blind and consultative transfer, consultation, three-way calls, a keypad and auto-answer are all on one screen. Calls handed over by the AI agent reach the operator with a summary of the conversation (a warm transfer). See Call center for details.