The Barge and Whisper features in Aloware allow supervisors and admins to monitor and support agents during live customer calls. They are accessed directly from the Aloware Talk interface and provide real-time assistance during ongoing conversations.
Barge
This feature allows supervisors or admins to join an active call between a rep and a customer, and speak to both parties. When a situation requires intervention or direct support, supervisors can "barge" into the conversation, take it over, and address the customer's concerns directly alongside the rep.
From a call behavior perspective, barge changes the structure of the conversation. Once the supervisor joins, the call becomes a shared interaction between the agent, the customer, and the supervisor. Because the supervisor is now actively part of the live discussion, everything they say is heard by the customer in real time, just like the agent’s communication. This makes barge a direct form of escalation or real-time intervention rather than passive monitoring.
Whisper
With Whisper, supervisors can join an active call and speak only to the rep, providing guidance or coaching without the customer hearing. This feature is particularly useful for training new team members or offering subtle guidance during challenging calls, helping reps build their skills in a live environment without disrupting the customer experience.
In terms of call behavior, whisper creates a private layer of communication within the ongoing call. The agent continues the customer conversation as normal, while the supervisor provides real-time coaching that is only audible to the agent. The customer remains unaware that the supervisor is present, and the interaction does not directly affect what the customer hears.
How call behavior relates to duration and talk time
Call duration and talk time measure different parts of a live call depending on supervisor involvement through whisper or barge.
Call duration tracks the full length of the call from start to end. It includes the entire active session regardless of who is speaking or how many participants join.
Talk time measures actual conversational interaction during the call. When only the agent and customer are connected, talk time reflects their exchange directly.
When a supervisor uses whisper, the supervisor joins privately and only the agent hears them. The customer is not part of this interaction, so whisper is treated as internal coaching and does not represent customer-facing conversation.
When a supervisor uses barge, the supervisor joins the live conversation with both the agent and customer. Since the supervisor is now directly speaking in the customer interaction, barge time becomes part of talk time.
In summary, duration always reflects the full call session, while talk time reflects customer-facing conversation. Whisper stays internal to the agent, while barge becomes part of the live customer interaction.
How can a business admin use this?
Viewing active calls
Navigate to the Wallboard, then select Live calls. Each call entry shows details about the caller and call status, with Barge and Whisper buttons appearing for eligible users.
Using Barge
To join the call, click the Barge button. This action connects the supervisor directly to the conversation, allowing them to speak with the customer AND agent and provide live support alongside the rep.
Using Whisper
For private coaching, click the Whisper button. This connects the supervisor to the call without the customer hearing, and only the agent hearing, allowing discreet communication to guide the rep through the call.
How can agents use this?
For agents, admins can set user permissions to authorize access to barge and whisper in the users menu > profile. Read this guide on how to enable it.
Practical use cases
Training - New reps can receive real-time coaching, allowing them to handle calls independently with the reassurance that a supervisor is available to assist if needed.
Quality assurance - Supervisors can occasionally join or listen in on calls to ensure consistent quality, offering feedback directly or later.
Escalation support - When a call becomes complex or requires a higher authority, the supervisor can step in seamlessly using the barge function.
How does this relate to our other tools?
Barge and whisper integrate seamlessly with Aloware's broader communication and team management tools. They complement features like call analytics and the Wallboard, which help supervisors make data-driven decisions about when to monitor or intervene.