Aspect eWorkforce Management 2000 Builds On Market-Leading TCS Technology for Contact Center Staffing.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 31, 2000

Aspect Portal Software Keeps Service Levels High, Labor Costs Low

for Multiskill, Multimedia, Multisite Contact Centers

Aspect Communications Corporation (Nasdaq:ASPT), the leading provider of customer relationship portals, today announced Aspect(R) eWorkforce Management 2000 -- a contact center staffing tool built upon market-leading technology developed by TCS Management Group, Inc., which now supports and develops the software in Nashville, Tenn., as Aspect Communications. Aspect eWorkforce Management 2000 dramatically reduces the complexities of staffing for the multiskill, multimedia and multisite contact center. This integrated, automated software suite will also offer the advanced Aspect eSchedule Planner 2000 module, a new release of Interactive Agent that allows contact center agents to use a Web browser to view and request changes to their work schedules and automatically receive "accepted," "declined" or "wait-listed" responses.

Aspect eWorkforce Management can be purchased separately or as an application of the Aspect Customer Relationship Portal, a real-time eBusiness software platform that helps ensure that any customer contacting a company at any time from anywhere in the world through any communication channel receives the response he or she is seeking. To make certain the customer receives a response quickly and at minimum cost, the resources with the right skills have to be available at the right times to respond to all different types of contacts. Efficient staffing is critical to providing the quality of service demanded by consumers in today's competitive marketplace.

"There are distinct advantages to a unified platform," said Daryl Gonos, co-founder and senior partner of The Workforce Management Group, whose research shows that Aspect is the leader in workforce management, with 55 percent market share. "The challenges presented by the integration of multimedia data into the workforce management application are significantly minimized."

"An indispensable step in enabling the success of any customer relationship management strategy is to make sure that resources are in place to carry it out," said Gary Barnett, Aspect senior vice president of eCRM applications. "Scheduling staff to work in a multidimensional environment is not simple, and a simple tool will not give contact centers the flexibility and accuracy required for realizing the highest return on their CRM investments. Aspect eWorkforce Management, which supports the industry's leading contact routers, is sophisticated software designed to help evolving contact centers reduce the complexity of workforce management without sacrificing the quality of its results."

To ensure that staffing levels meet customer demand and the goals of a company's CRM strategy, Aspect eWorkforce Management forecasts contact volumes and handle times for voice, Web, e-mail and fax; determines the staff and resource requirements for consistent, optimal customer service; schedules staff and resources for all skill sets and contact center sites to meet business criteria, such as revenue maximization or quality of service; and tracks performance by operational criteria, such as service level.

More than 2,500 contact centers in 40 countries use a release of Aspect eWorkforce Management software, including those centers representing such Fortune 50 companies as Aetna, Allstate, AT&T, Bank of America, Bank One Corporation, Bell Atlantic, Boeing, Chase Manhattan Corporation, Chevron, Compaq Computer, Costco Wholesale, Exxon, Ford, General Electric, General Motors, Hewlett-Packard, Home Depot, IBM, Intel, JCPenney, Johnson & Johnson, Lucent, MCI WorldCom, McKesson HBOC, Merrill Lynch, Motorola, Prudential Insurance Company, SBC Communications (Pacific Bell), Sears, Target, TIAA-CREF, Time Warner and United Parcel Service.

Aspect eWorkforce Management Features

Aspect eWorkforce Management 2000 features user interface enhancements that make system configuration and the creation of forecasts and schedules easier. A "big picture" desktop interface includes interactive icons that give direct access to the software's modules, helping new users understand the software's structure more quickly. The number of reports regarding scheduling, employee information, intra-day performance, personal accounting and forecasting are increased, and automatic schedule assignment features are enhanced.

In addition to the Scheduler's native support for multiskill routing environments, this feature-rich product's additional scheduling tools include Project Optimizer and Meeting Optimizer, which can choose the most optimal time for staff to work on a project or meet for training without leaving the contact center understaffed. Understaffing leads to poor service and thus to lost revenue - as well as agent burnout, which can also prove expensive considering that personnel costs account for between 60 and 70 percent of an average contact center's budget.

Another unique feature is Aspect eWorkforce Management's ability to create Budget Forecasts of how much money a contact center should allot for staff wages and telephone costs, and how much net revenue will result from marketing campaigns and from business-as-usual months. These forecasts are essential for strategic planning and help change an operation from a cost to a profit center.

The Vacation Administration feature considers staffing forecasts and service quality goals to determine vacation "allowances" for contact centers, such as how many hours of vacation may be taken on any given day.

The Intra-Day Performance feature enables managers to monitor the performance of the contact center by comparing actual contact volumes and average handle times to projections in 15- or 30-minute intervals and then make corrective staffing changes accordingly.

Aspect eWorkforce Management 2000 will be available this fall.

The Workforce Management Group, Inc.

The Workforce Management Group, Inc. (WFMG) is a collection of independent workforce management industry analysts and consultants focused exclusively on workforce management issues in the customer contact center. WFMG has been widely quoted and is recognized as the preeminent authority on workforce management systems and practices. The company consults widely with vendors on product direction as well as with the users of workforce management systems across all product lines. WFMG also publishes The WFMG Manager, a newsletter for workforce managers. For more information about WFMG, visit the organization's Web site at www.wfmg.com or call 877/575-wfmg.

Aspect Communications

Aspect Communications Corporation is the leading provider of customer relationship portals, a software platform for building and deploying eCRM applications that enable businesses to ensure consistent interactions with their customers from one centrally managed eBusiness system. Aspect's leadership position in customer relationship management solutions is based on its 15-year history and more than 7,600 customer contact center implementations. Aspect is headquartered in San Jose, Calif., with offices in major cities worldwide. For more information about Aspect, visit the company's Web site at http://www.aspect.com or call 877/621-3692.

Note to Editors: Aspect, the Aspect logo and the phrase "The Starting Point for eBusiness" are trademarks and/or service marks of Aspect Communications Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. All other product or service names mentioned in this document may be trademarks of the companies with which they are associated.