Train your knowledge

Building Procedures the agent can run safely

Building Procedures that your Unless Customer Agent can run safely is essential to delivering effective, compliant, and controlled automation during customer interactions. Procedures empower the agent to take meaningful actions on behalf of customers while ensuring that every step respects permissions, compliance boundaries, and human oversight. This article explains how to create, manage, and deploy Procedures safely within the Unless platform.

what are Procedures and why are they important?

Procedures are predefined, agentic actions that the Customer Agent or Team Assistant can execute during conversations. Unlike simple question-answering bots, Procedures enable the agent to perform tasks such as booking meetings, redirecting customers to specific pages, escalating to live chat, or running backend API calls. This capability transforms the agent from a passive responder into an active assistant that gets work done.

However, because Procedures can affect customer accounts or business processes, safety and control are paramount. Procedures keep the customer in control by requiring explicit consent before execution and enforce permission boundaries to prevent unauthorized or irreversible actions. This balance ensures automation enhances service without compromising compliance or customer trust.

types of Procedures you can create

Unless offers seven out-of-the-box Procedure types, each suited to different use cases:

• Suggest a follow-up question: Proposes related questions the customer can click to continue the conversation.
• Redirect to a URL: Sends the customer to a specific webpage, such as a pricing or support page.
• Start a component: Launches an interactive UI component like a video, form, or multistep flow within the conversation.
• Switch topic: Moves the conversation to a different knowledge area or FAQ slice.
• Live chat: Escalates the conversation to a human agent when automation reaches its limit.
• API call: Executes a backend API endpoint and uses the response to assist the customer.
• Custom JavaScript: Runs arbitrary JavaScript code when triggered by the customer.

Choosing the right Procedure type depends on the action you want the agent to perform and the level of automation and interaction required.

defining variables and triggers for Procedures

Procedures often require input variables to run effectively. For example, a booking Procedure might need the customer’s email or preferred time slot. You can configure these variables as required or optional. If the agent does not already have the variable from the conversation context, it will ask the customer to provide it before proceeding.

Triggers determine when and where a Procedure becomes available during a conversation. You can link Procedures to specific knowledge sources or FAQs, set them to appear after negative feedback, following an unanswered question, or always. This flexibility ensures Procedures are offered at the most relevant moments, improving customer experience and operational efficiency.

managing permissions and escalation

Safety in Procedures is enforced through permission boundaries and escalation flags. You decide which Procedures the agent can run autonomously, which require human approval, and which are off limits. The platform prevents the agent from taking irreversible actions without explicit human consent.

Marking a Procedure as an escalation signals that it hands off the conversation to a human agent. This is important for tracking in reports and ensuring that complex or sensitive issues receive appropriate attention.

how to create and test Procedures

Creating a Procedure is straightforward:

1. Navigate to Train > Procedures in the Unless dashboard.
2. Click Create procedure and select the Procedure type.
3. Name the Procedure and configure any required variables.
4. Set trigger conditions and link the Procedure to relevant Sources or FAQs.
5. Mark escalation status if applicable.
6. Use the Preview feature to test the Procedure in simulated conversations before going live.

Testing ensures that Procedures behave as expected, variables are collected correctly, and triggers fire at the right moments.

best practices for safe Procedure deployment

• Keep the customer in control: Always require explicit customer consent before running Procedures.
• Limit irreversible actions: Mark Procedures that change critical data or billing as requiring human approval.
• Use escalation wisely: Escalate complex or sensitive issues to live agents promptly.
• Monitor usage: Use conversation analytics to track Procedure runs, completion rates, and customer feedback.
• Iterate and improve: Refine Procedures based on real-world performance and customer reactions.

conclusion

Building safe and effective Procedures is key to unlocking the full potential of the Unless Customer Agent. By carefully defining actions, variables, triggers, and permissions, you enable the agent to assist customers proactively while maintaining compliance and control. Procedures transform your AI agent from a passive helper into an active partner that drives customer satisfaction and operational efficiency. With proper setup and ongoing management, Procedures help you deliver seamless, secure, and scalable automation across the entire customer journey.