We all want things to run smoothly. In business, that means automating tasks to improve both customer and employee experiences. AgentForce is a powerful tool designed to do just that. But what happens when AgentForce encounters a situation it can’t handle? What safeguards are in place?
It’s a bit like teaching a new employee. You give them guidelines, but sometimes, they’ll face something unexpected. AgentForce is similar. It uses “guardrails and instructions” to define boundaries and prevent unintended actions, like sharing private information.
These guardrails are set within “topics,” which provide specific guidelines for what your agents can and cannot do.
Think of it like this:
To get a clearer picture, imagine a case management topic. You might include instructions like “format dates in a human format” or “don’t reveal the case IDs.”
It’s helpful to see how this works in practice. In the AgentForce service agent, within the builder section, you can see various topics like case management and account management. You can add instructions such as “never include someone’s phone number.”
The system also allows you to test these guardrails in real-time. For example, if you ask AgentForce to provide someone’s social security number, it’s designed not to do that.
Instead of just breaking down, AgentForce is set up to respond with something like, “Sorry, I can’t assist with that.”
AgentForce handles user requests in different ways. It’s important to remember that AgentForce acts like another user in Salesforce. If AgentForce needs to access something like a case object but doesn’t have permission, it will respond with a message indicating it can’t perform the task.
AgentForce primarily uses flows, Apex actions, and prompt templates (instructions) to perform actions. To control what an agent can access, you set up permissions similarly to how you would for any other user in Salesforce.
Flows also include fault paths. These allow for alternative actions or messages when an error occurs. For instance, if a flow encounters an error while updating a record, a fault path can display a user-friendly message or notify an administrator.
AgentForce provides tools for error logging and debugging. These tools help identify and resolve issues during setup and when changes are needed later. Debug logs can trace the path of a flow and pinpoint the source of an error.
While AgentForce automates tasks, it also allows for human intervention. Agents can be configured to escalate issues to human agents based on things like specific keywords, sentiment analysis, or the complexity of the issue. This ensures customers receive the appropriate level of assistance.
Here are some best practices for using AgentForce:
As Augmon Jolley, a consultant with SOLVD, says,
“AgentForce is all about empowering businesses to automate tasks and enhance customer and employee experience, but we still need those guardrails and exceptions for when it does things that it shouldn’t do or things that it can’t do.”
And regarding testing, Augmon suggests:
“Use that tool while you’re configuring your agent builder. You know, ask your agent questions and find out what it can and can’t do. Find out what, how it’s going to respond to certain questions and confirm that it’s performing tasks the way you would expect before moving into your production environment.”
By using these best practices, you can effectively use AgentForce to automate tasks and improve your business operations.
If you need help setting up agents or have any questions about AgentForce or Salesforce, reach out to us at SOLVD. We’re here to help!
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