Norstan Unified Messaging Solution Helps Increase Productivity At Babbage Simmel.

MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 4, 1999--

A Norstan messaging solution is helping to increase productivity at Babbage Simmel, the Dublin, Ohio-based technology training and consulting firm. The new system allows Babbage Simmel employees to access voice, fax and e-mail from their desktop PC or by telephone via a unified messaging system.

"Our business has grown rapidly and substantially," said Rick Haggard, director of operations at Babbage Simmel. "In that process, our telephone system began to experience serious overload problems, making it difficult to serve our customers effectively. We asked Norstan to help us deal efficiently with a tremendous increase of incoming telephone calls as well as faxes both incoming and outgoing."

Norstan's solution encompassed a unified messaging system from Applied Voice Technology, Inc. of Kirkland, Washington, called CallXpress for Windows NT. The system allows Babbage Simmel employees to view voice, fax and e-mail messages from a single Microsoft Outlook screen and respond to customer requests immediately. Among the benefits of the system is the ability to route call messages directly to the right customer representative; compose and send response faxes with complete confidentiality from the desktop; automatically fax corporate information, forms and literature to customers from a central fax library; and, provide the same functions to Babbage Simmel employees traveling on company business, including access to current messages and new messages as they arrive.

In addition, AVT's CallXpress, running on the Windows NT platform permits ease of administration from any workstation using standard Windows controls, such as, pull-down menus, radio buttons and on-line help. "We are extremely pleased with Norstan's solution and the CallExpress system," said Haggard. "Customer service has improved dramatically and productivity is up across the company. The new system has met and exceeded our expectations."

Founded in 1983, Babbage Simmel serves more than 700 companies, worldwide. It offers Microsoft, Novell, Cisco and Active Developer technical training courses and high-level Microsoft and Novell consulting. Babbage Simmel has over 12,000 alumni that have participated in its training courses.

Norstan, Inc. (Nasdaq:NRRD) is a global leader in technology services providing information technology, networking and communication systems solutions to business clients, worldwide. Headquartered in the Twin Cities, Norstan's sales and consulting service offices are located in 80 cities throughout North America and Europe and on the worldwide web at www.norstan.com. Through its three operating units Norstan is a single-source provider of leading-edge technology products, world-class technology services and competitive financial offerings.

Norstan and associated product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of Norstan, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. All other products and services mentioned in this document may be trademarks of the companies with which they are associated.