Abstract: In a call center, a plurality of agents comprises at least a first group associated with a first skill and a second group associated with a second skill. The second group may have a substantially larger number of agents than the first group, and accordingly the first and second groups may be referred to as small and large groups, respectively, and the first and second skills may be referred to as small and large skills, respectively. In one embodiment, if a service level target for the small skill is being met, and a number of available agents in the small group exceeds a specified minimum available agent requirement, at least one of the available agents in the small group is selected and designated as eligible for handling a communication involving the large skill, without assigning that agent to the large group or removing that agent from the small group.