The Auto-Answer functionality used on CS 1000 Unified Communications phones corresponds to the Call Forcing feature for CS 1000 call centers.

Call Forcing is an alternative to standard manual call handling. With this feature enabled, the phone automatically displays a call for an agent in an answered state following a short buzzing signal. In this case, the agent does not need to press the In-Calls key to answer the call.

Different scenarios are possible when an agent ends the call. By default, unless the agent presses the Not Ready key to finish processing (similarly to the After Call Work functionality on Avaya Aura® Call Center Elite phones), the call just ends. The agent is available after a programmable Flexible Call Force timer elapses. The timer value is 2 seconds by default and has a range from 0 to 30 seconds. This timer is used for ending all call-related activities, including call recording.

Advanced functionality allows an administrator to set two timers instead of the Flexible Call Force timer. The first is Forced Answer Delay Time, similar to the Flexible Call Force timer. The difference is that the system administrator can determine if the phone displays calls immediately after this timer expires. The second timer is Forced Answer Delay for Ring Back with which a caller has a certain time to hear the ring-back tone before the phone displays the call.

Call forcing usually implies the use of a speakerphone or headset, but it can also be used when a handset is off hook. If the handset is on hook, the agent must go off hook to answer the first call. Subsequent calls can be forced until the agent goes on hook.