Human Takeover

Human Takeover is the exit ramp from automation. When the conversation reaches this node, the bot flow terminates and the system attempts to assign a support agent. From that point, the customer is talking to a person.

This is a terminal node — it has no output handles. Once triggered, the bot's job is done.

What Happens

When the node fires, the system first checks support hours. If outside hours, it sends an out-of-hours message (configured in the Channel Connector) and stops there. If within hours, it looks for an available agent.

Agent assignment follows a load-balancing approach: the system finds the agent with the fewest active conversations. It checks active agents first, then away agents. If no one is available, the customer receives a message explaining no agents are available, and the conversation is marked as awaiting response — an agent will pick it up when one becomes free.

The flow is abandoned entirely. Any pending timeouts cancel, the current node and flow references clear out, and the conversation enters human support mode.

When to Use It

After failures. When an automated process cannot continue — validation keeps failing, the API is down, the customer's situation doesn't fit any path — offer the option to talk to someone. Place it as one branch from an Interactive Options node: "Retry" loops back, "Talk to an agent" routes here.

Optional handoff at the end of a process. The customer finished onboarding, but you want to offer "Any questions? Talk to an agent" before closing. The node handles the routing — you just connect to it.

Designed escalation paths. Menus that explicitly offer "Talk to an agent" as an option route here when the customer selects it.

Human Takeover vs Global Keywords

Both can transfer to an agent, but they serve different purposes.

Human Takeover is a deliberate escalation point. You design the flow to offer "Talk to an agent" as an option, and the customer selects it. The transfer happens at a specific, intended moment — the "controlled handoff."

Global Keywords configured with an agent action work differently. They're an emergency escape hatch — the customer types "ayuda" at any point, and the transfer happens immediately, interrupting whatever was happening. This is the "panic button" — it works regardless of where the flow is.

Use Human Takeover for designed escalation paths. Use Global Keywords for universal help commands that should work from anywhere.

Prerequisites

Support agents must be configured for the tenant and channel. Without agents, the node will send the "no agents available" message and mark the conversation as awaiting response.

Support hours and the out-of-hours message are optional, configured in the Channel Connector. If support hours are set and the node triggers outside them, the out-of-hours message is sent (if configured) and the flow terminates without attempting agent assignment.