Brickstream and GMT Team Up to Deliver the Industry's First 4th Generation Staffing Solution.

ATLANTA -- Brickstream Corporation, the leading provider of automated in-store customer behavior measurement solutions, and GMT, the leading provider of workforce optimization solutions to financial institutions, today announced the financial industry's first fact-based real-time workforce optimization solution--4th Generation Staffing (4GS). 4GS provides the first-ever schedules built on fact-based real-time customer observations. By incorporating an accurate and timely view of branch activity leading financial institutions are using the 4GS solution to create schedules that deliver enhanced customer service levels and reduced labor expenses. Customer observations are provided by Brickstream's BehaviorIQ(TM), the only automated customer behavior measurement technology that continuously captures in-branch customer behavior. Forecasting, scheduling, and workforce management are provided by GMT Planet, the industry's most advanced workforce optimization tool.

Existing staffing solutions do not depict the branch reality

Existing 3rd Generation Staffing (3GS) systems are not based on a true picture of branch activity. 3GS systems are based on assumptions and processed transactions not how many customers actually walk through the door or how long customers actually wait in line. During busy periods, for example, this makes it appear that customers arrive later than they actually arrive and can result in scheduling too few tellers to serve customers causing long wait times, particularly during peak hours. 3GS systems are also blind "open loop" technologies--they have no way of seeing what actually happened in the branch; whether the schedule was wrong, whether the schedule was not followed or whether wait times standards were actually achieved. "By relying on transaction data as a forecasting input existing staffing systems are creating schedules based on how many people were served not how many are people are waiting in line to be served," said Simon Angove, President of Brickstream. "They have no way of knowing that more tellers are needed because the branch is backed up, the line is out the door and customers are unhappy." "Striking the right balance between labor expense and customer service has always been one of the great challenges in branch banking," said Jerry Silva of TowerGroup, "and the additional focus on sales today makes workforce optimization that much more important. The ability to quantifiably measure the behavior and performance of branch staff is becoming more critical than ever."

Closed loop 4GS solution improves quality and productivity

The 4GS solution combines the leading workforce management solution with a fact-based real-time branch measurement solution to provide schedules that meet targeted service levels at the lowest cost of labor. Brickstream and GMT have created an integrated closed loop solution that improves each step of the workforce management process:

--GMT Planet Modeling - improve accuracy of demand forecast by importing customer branch arrival data from Brickstream into the model

--GMT Planet Scheduling - improve accuracy of teller schedules by continuously incorporating actual teller service time data from Brickstream

--GMT Planet Time & Attendance - improve schedule adherence by using Brickstream to compare actual schedules used to recommended schedules

--GMT Planet Reporting - closed loop reports combining GMT data with Brickstream customer data, such as wait time service level performance

"We are experts at collecting the data from the inside of the teller window and creating a staff schedule", said Roger Avats, CEO of GMT. "Brickstream delivers the data from the customer-side of the teller window, which allows us to improve the quality of the demand forecast and provide a vastly improved schedule."

GMT's experience in delivering fact-based real-time workforce management solutions for call center environments was instrumental in partnering with Brickstream to develop an equivalent integrated offering for branch banking. It is only with the joint offering from Brickstream that GMT becomes the first workforce optimization system to bring this technology into the branch.

Leading financial institutions use 4GS to improve performance

Leading financial institutions are using 4GS to achieve significant cost savings and improvements in customer satisfaction that have not been possible with existing staffing solutions.

"Revolutionary breakthroughs in retail banking appear once a decade. This combination is truly revolutionary in that retail executives can now confidently and consistently achieve the optimal combination of branch productivity and service improvements across their retail branch network. Every customer focused bank will want to leverage this powerful combination," said Frank McIntyre, Executive Vice President of Transcend International, LLC, and a former Fleet Bank executive. "Using the 4GS approach Fleet Bank was able to save an estimated $10 million dollars using Brickstream and staffing software."

About Brickstream

Brickstream provides BehaviorIQ(TM), the only automated customer behavior measurement technology that continuously captures, transforms and analyzes in-store customer behavior. Brickstream helps retailers improve the customer experience and drive profitable sales growth through more effective service, marketing and sales strategies. The Brickstream Solution was developed over a period of nine years and is protected by numerous patents. Brickstream serves retailers, retail banks, and consumer packaged goods manufacturers throughout North America and Europe.

About GMT

GMT makes companies more profitable through effective workforce management. GMT delivers its workforce optimization solutions by listening to what our customers require and cost-effectively delivering those features. GMT Planet, the company's flagship product, is a flexible workforce management and workforce optimization solution that adapts to meet the needs of contact centers, processing centers, financial institutions and entire enterprises. GMT is also the developer of CashMaster(TM), the world's leading cash management and forecasting application for financial institutions.