GEMATECH Call Center Systems

GEMATECH CALL CENTER AND TELEPHONY DISASTER RECOVERY TOOLS:
- BUSINESS CONTINUITY MANAGER (BCM)
- REMOTE SERVICE MANAGER (RSM)
- SECURE VOICE RECORDING (SVR)
- CALL CENTER SERVICES

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BCM, RSM, and SVR are powerful, new Call Center solutions, offering significant
operational and disaster recovery capabilities.

Contact Philip Jan Rothstein, FBCI, at pjr@rothstein.com, 1-888-ROTHSTEin or
203.740.7400 for further information and for assistance in evaluating and configuring BCM,
RSM and SVR for your call centers.

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BUSINESS CONTINUITY MANAGER (BCM)

OVERVIEW

The GemaTech Business Continuity Manager "BCM" is the world's first cost
effective solution for the intelligent management of telecommunication services during a
disaster affecting business.

The BCM builds on the existing disaster recovery services available from
traditional telecommunications systems and provides intelligent, on-line, management to
provide continuity of communications.

The principle behind BCM is simple - the system takes diverted call traffic, which
has been re-routed by standard "divert on failure" systems, and intelligently re-routes each
call on an individual basis.

In the event of a telecommunications failure, traditional digital telephone
exchanges are designed to manage the re-routing of telephone (or data) traffic on a
trunk-by-trunk basis. This implies that telephone connections are being re-routed in groups
of
24 (23 useable channels plus 1 data channel) or more channels. In a typical system these 24
channels can be transporting calls to up to 138 individual connections, each with a unique
number (Direct Inward Dial or "DID"). Because of the complexity of managing each
individual users requirements, the re-routing of telephone traffic on a call by call or number by
number basis is not easily supported on traditional digital telephone exchanges.

The BCM takes the management of individual calls away from the central
telephone exchange and places it were it is best supported and most needed - with the end
user.

BCM fills a major gap in the rapidly growing Disaster Recovery market. While
most modern digital central office switches can, in principle, be programmed to route
individual telephone numbers to new locations in the event of a disaster, in practice, their
management systems make this a cumbersome and difficult task to manage.

BCM capitalizes on this legacy by providing a simple-to-use Windows NT based
management interface to a system which can take a re-routed number range and route the
individual numbers to any location under the control of the end customer. It also provides live
statistics on the status of recovery crews, their availability, and most importantly, details of
the
customers attempting to call the disaster stricken business.

For more information on Business Continuity Manager and in configuring these powerful
tools
to your environment, contact Rothstein Associates (info@rothstein.com or
1-888-ROTHSTEin).

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HOW BCM WORKS:

On detection of the problem, telephone calls to the business are automatically
diverted to the BCM. The BCM has a pre-planned database of people and contact numbers,
to which it intelligently routes calls, on an individual basis. Each individual extension can have
its own Call Service Plan so that any number can be tried.

Contact numbers are labeled as "Agents" by the system and can be any phone
number that the system can reach. A typical individual would have several agents
established
to accept calls including their normal phone number, a home or alternative office number, a
mobile number and an answering service number.

The system looks at each incoming call to determine for whom it is intended.
Then, based on YOUR priorities and pre-planned contact points, BCM routes calls through to
the intended recipient. Because the BCM makes full use of the normal Public Switched
Telephone Network (The PSTN) the system places almost no constraints on where staff
members can be located. Calls can be routed anywhere that it is possible to receive a phone
call.

The phone number that the calls are expected to come in on are labeled as
"Services". Each service number (e.g. a DID) has a number of agents associated with it (e.g.
normal number, mobile number, and/or answering service). Each agent associated with a
service can be prioritized for calls and can be assigned with different priorities to several
services. Up to 2048 Agents may be assigned to a service.

By assigning different priorities to agents for different services the system
manager can pool available agents from different services to better cope with fluctuations in
call activity. Consider an example where a call comes in to an emergency help desk and no
emergency support agents are available. To avoid irritating the caller by forcing him to hold
in
a queue, an agent with a limited knowledge in another group, say press handling or
reception, can accept the call. While the lower priority agent may not be able to answer the
query directly, the system has provided a human face to the customer, logged his problem
and can return the call when able to do so.

For each call service plan the following parameters can then be set:

- Which agents to call - according to skill sets and availability
- Which priority to call agents with
- Weighting of agents according to percentage of calls to receive within a service
- Number of rings per agent tried
- Time to wait before re-trying an agent who did not answer
- Maximum time to find an agent
- Maximum call duration allowed
- Preferred and backup channels for outgoing calls (to allow alternate routing in
case of line failure)
- Service number and a backup if re-routing backup is included for incoming calls
- Announcement to play if no agents are scheduled (service is not scheduled).

By varying these parameters the system manager can assign individual call plans
to individuals or groups with complete flexibility.

The key component of the system is the BCM unit itself. BCM can be installed at
an independent or remote location. Connection to the telephone network is via ISDN-24
lines,
and the Remote Management System. The database of call service plans is stored on the
BCM and updated using the Remote Management System. The BCM includes powerful,
sophisticated remote management functions, which allow you to group individual contacts
such as hunt groups, prioritize who receives which calls and change call routing on the fly.
Live on-line call statistics let a supervisor with a PC keep a second by second watch on the
calls being routed through the system to check that the deployed personnel are handling the
situation. Disasters, by their very natures are unpredictable, so if changes to call priorities
need to be made as people or groups become overloaded then instant changes to the call
routing can be made to compensate.

The BCM is seen by the telephone network as a transparent routing device and
has full access to all the available information on call traffic. The system intelligently cross
correlates this information with the agent databases and keeps a full record of the last
16,000,000 CLIs received.

This information is used to provide live monitoring of the current caller and agent
status and full historical information of call, agent and service histories. The live monitoring of
agents is designed to provide a live snapshot on how the system and agents are performing
as a disaster unfolds. Summary statistics are available per agent and service for any period
of time.

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To understand the functionality that the GemaTech BCM provides it helps to
understand what happens to incoming calls when they reach the BCM (incoming calls
diverted from the disaster struck business to the BCM).

- When a caller dials a number that has been diverted to the BCM the BCM first
identifies the caller and the person or department they have dialed. The person or
department can be an individual direct dial number or a group of numbers. (This is achieved
without actually answering the call)

- The BCM then scans the database of available staff (Scanning up to 2048
possibilities in less than a second) and prioritizes numbers to try according to their skill sets
and availability. The BCM also checks to see if the customer is logged as having called
before. If this is the case it identifies the last 2 staff members they spoke to (if any) and can
use this information to prioritize to which the call is directed.

- Each number is then rung in turn with the phone allowed to ring for a
pre-determined number of rings before another number is tried. If the called number fails to
pick up the ringing phone then the system assumes he/she is unavailable and places the
number at the back of the queue to receive incoming calls.

- If a number is identified as not having been answered within a specified number
of
rings, the system can avoid trying to ring them for a specified number of minutes. This serves
to avoid ringing delays when a staff member is unlikely to be available for calls.

- For all calls, including those not answered, the BCM updates the central database
so detailed statistics are available anytime. The system stores a complete call record for
each of the last 16,000,000 calls received including information such as:

- Calling Line ID (if available)
- Date and Time of Call
- Previous number/person connected if CLI is recognized
- Reason for call termination (Caller ends call, agent ends call, no
answer, service unavailable)
- Duration of Call
- Time to answer Call
- Which numbers were tried before the call was answered

As far as the caller is concerned he simply dials the number to speak to a person
or service, the phone rings and he is connected. The number of rings is of course dependent
on the speed with which the call is picked up and how many numbers are tried before the call
is accepted.

Although the person receiving the call can be located anywhere in the world where
a phone connection is available, the caller's perception is that he is speaking to the normal
location

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BCM FEATURES

- Individual End User management removing the need for a conventional (and
complex) PABX to have to be re-programmed to effect Call Plan changes.
- Flexible ACD functionality allowing a manager to monitor an invocation 'real time'
and to manage the situation by making changes to the Call Plan all as the 'disaster' unfolds.
- Ability to effectively and seamlessly distribute 100% of incoming calls to 100% of
employees who may be re-located anywhere to work (probably at home) in times of an
invocation.
- Provides a Graphical User Interface (GUI) to manage, schedule and supervise
remote workers.
- Remote diagnostics facilities allow remote management of the BCM from any
remote site via V34bis internal modem
- Ability to gather and store information on all the calls it receives, answered or not,
allowing full detailed statistics to be available at anytime.
- Call record information is available to other software packages in formats such as
Comma Separated and CSV files, ODBC and SQL for integration into other databases
- TAPI, CAPI and Hayes compatible interfaces to Screen Popping applications
- Stores a complete record for each of the last 16,000,000 calls received.
- Ability to share a system across multiple users making it ideal for a bureau
service
(as an Application Service Provider [ASP] i.e. GemaSure) or as a service enhancement
from
telephone operators.

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BCM DEVELOPMENT STATUS

Formally released in September 1999, further refinement of the Agent 'rostering' system and
management system has added to the product's already significant technological lead.

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REMOTE SERVICE MANAGER (RSM)

OVERVIEW

GemaTech's Remote Service Manager provides the functionality of a highly
sophisticated Call Center without the traditional restraints of Automatic Call Distribution
Systems (ACD's). With the flexibility to locate agents and supervisors anywhere, a Call
Center can be distributed across several offices or homes. The Call Center operator can
make substantial office savings and the pool of available talent, from which agents are
recruited, is no longer restricted to those living within commuting distance.

The principle behind RSM is simple. The system extends the office, or Call
Center, to remote offices and homes, by intelligently managing the routing of calls and
computer networking, RSM allows a remote worker to be part of the same system as
workers
on a new or existing system.

By intelligent use of the standard telephone network, the Remote Service
Manager
extends the office phone to remote homes and offices while providing the functionality of a
sophisticated ACD. This does not simply reduce the need for traditional office space but can
completely remove the need for a central office creating a true "Virtual Office or Virtual Call
Center."

RSM can facilitate cost effective and economic solutions for a wide range of call
center applications including:
- Establishment of a true virtual call center requiring no central office
- Establishment of a new call center business with a central office as well as remote
workers
- Provision of an overflow facility to an existing single call center
- Linking call centers together as though they were one
- Provision of an outsourced bureau service using remote workers

Because the connection to remote workers is over standard telephone
connections rather than expensive dedicated fixed links, telephone costs are kept to a
minimum. RSM further reduces communication network costs by only creating a telephone
connection, if and when, it is needed.

With telephone call charges kept to a minimum it is possible to extend the
geographic spread of agents providing for a much larger talent pool from which to recruit
workers.

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HOW THE RSM WORKS

RSM provides phone and computer connections to remote locations, typically a
remote or home office, via standard public telephone connections (often known as Perfectly
Ordinary Telephone Service or POTS) or ISDN lines. Phone connection from the RSM to the
telephone network is via ISDN-24 links (the standard means of supplying businesses with
large numbers of lines). To the computer network the RSM is a Windows NTTM server. The
RSM treats each remote agent as a directly connected phone line with an optional Windows
NT Client.

As well as interfacing seamlessly to the telephone and computer systems, the
RSM maintains a database of agents and their skill sets, when they are scheduled to be
available, and which phone number(s) to use to reach them. This allows the RSM to
intelligently, queue, route and monitor telephone and data traffic to remote agents.

When a call comes into the call center the RSM follows a simple procedure:

- Before the caller hears ringing the RSM identifies the caller and the service they
have dialed. This service can be an individual direct dial number, a group of numbers or a
free phone number.

- The RSM then scans the database of available numbers and prioritizes them
according to skill sets and availability. RSM also checks to see if the customer is logged as
having called into a service before and identifies the last 2 agents they spoke to (if any).

- These agents can then be given priority as the first agents to try or, if desired for
security, barred from speaking to the same customer again.

- Each agent is then rung in turn. The phone is allowed to ring for a pre-determined
number of rings before another agent is tried. If the called agent fails to pick up the ringing
phone then the system assumes he/she is taking an unscheduled break. The RSM then
places the agent at the back of the queue to receive incoming calls.

- If an agent is identified as not having answered within the specified number of
rings, the system can avoid ringing them for a specified number of minutes. This serves to
avoid ringing delays when an agent is unlikely to be available for calls and can be used as a
"sin bin" for commission rewarded agents failing to be available as scheduled.

- As this is managed while the phone is still ringing no call charges have been
incurred, for incoming or outgoing calls, until the caller is connected through to an available
agent. For free phone numbers this represents a considerable saving avoiding lengthy call
holds charged at free-phone rates (The "Paying for my customer to get frustrated"
syndrome).

- Once a call has been routed to an agent there are several options for connection
to the computer network. Direct connection via an analog modem; Direct connection via an
ISDN modem.

These options use standard, switched, telephone connections and only create a
connection as required for data transmission. There is no need for expensive leased line
connections and call charges are kept to a minimum. While the analog modem connection
may introduce a small delay in access to the computer network, establishing an ISDN
connection or a combined voice/data single line connection is effectively instantaneous.

The RSM is able to read Calling Line Identification information (CLI), during
ringing, so customer database queries can be initiated and results prepared for screen
popping before the customer is even connected to an agent.

- All calls, including those not answered, are updated in the RSM central database
with:
- Calling Line ID (if available)
- Date and Time of Call
- Previous agent connected if CLI is recognized
- Reason for call termination (Caller ends call, agent ends call, no
answer, service unavailable)

The above procedure not only ensures the fastest possible connection through to
an agent, it makes use of the characteristics of the telephone network to minimize call
charges for both customer and call center operator.

As far as the caller is concerned he simply dials the number to speak to an agent
or service, the phone rings and he is connected. The number of rings is of course dependent
on the speed with which an agent picks up a call and how many agents are tried before the
call is accepted.

A screen pop can be prepared before an agent even accepts the call, since data
on the caller is available as soon as the customer finishes dialing. The agent is then typically
in a position to confirm the customer's name and details within the first few seconds of
conversation.

While the agent can be located anywhere in the world where a phone connection
is available the customer's perception is that he is speaking to a centrally located expert.

Using remotely located agents has many advantages (office space savings,
access to a larger skills pool, no commuting problems, etc). However, managing,
supervising
and motivating remote workers is more complex.

The RSM provides tools to simplify these issues. A graphical User Interface (GUI)
is provided to manage, schedule and supervise remote workers, all from a remote location.
Based on a Microsoft Windows platform, these tools provide a simple and intuitive interface
to the system.

The RSM management interface tools can be used concurrently by multiple
managers/supervisors with different levels of privilege. Services, agents and rosters are
typically configured remotely then downloaded for confirmation and consolidation to the
RSM.

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RSM is a high-end automatic call distribution system (ACD) - the core call routing
technology required for the implementation of Call Centers.

By using the latest computer telephony integration (CTI) techniques, RSM
removes the technical and economic barriers which have stopped Call Centers evolving to
cover multiple remote locations including tele-workers. From an end users' perspective,
RSM
enables a Call Center operator to take the Call Center to the skill base rather than drag the
skill base to the Call Center.

For more information on Remote Service Manager and in configuring these
powerful tools to your environment, contact Rothstein Associates (info@rothstein.com or
1-888-ROTHSTEin).

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RSM DEVELOPMENT STATUS

The first RSM was formally released in September 1999. Subsequent, and ongoing,
development has produced a much more powerful, flexible and sophisticated product
capable of linking remote call centers together as though they were one. This particular
application is directed towards the carrier market, offering networked based ACD
functionality. Current releases include "partitioned" systems enabling Service Bureau
Outsourcing for GemaServ and GemaSure; to provide additional/overflow services to
existing Call Center; full voice recording module; full web enablement providing the ability to
remotely monitor and manage a Call Center's activities, including 'live' Agent and call
statistics, from literally anywhere in the world.

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RSM FEATURES

- Price per seat: based on simultaneous calls passing through the RSM at any one
time.
- Any Agent's phone connected to the Public Switch Telephone Network (PSTN)
can be treated and managed as a 'Local Agent.'
- Management of the system can be from multiple remote locations via a simple
Windows based Graphical User Interface (GUI) using a dial-up connection, a network
connection or over the Web.
- Does not require special, complex, interfaces to provide CTI so lends itself to
simple integration into other product provider's 'legacy' database systems.
- The system can be shared across multiple users making it ideal for use by
telephone Carriers as an advanced 'Centrex' ACD platform.
- Remotely monitor and manage call center activities from literally anywhere in the
world using any web browser
- Ability to view the full operation of the call center activities including live monitoring
of the current caller and agent status as well as full historical information of call, agent and
service histories
- Optional secure instantaneous access to audio recordings of call center activity
- Identifies the CLI while the phone is ringing so the customer database queries
can
be initiated and results prepared for screen popping before the customer is connected to the
agent
- Uses dial-up connections to remote workers rather than expensive dedicated
fixed links therefore keeping telephone costs to a minimum
- Full scaleable: Grows with your business

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SECURE VOICE RECORDING (SVR)

SVR is a powerful, sophisticated and totally secure voice-recording module,
which
can be incorporated into both the BCM/RSM product range or as a stand-alone product.
Developed from first principles and using certain proprietary software incorporated into the
RSM, the SVR has been designed to record all telephone calls passing through either the
BCM/RSM or a conventional PABX on separate channels.

SVR provides immediate and unlimited access to all recordings from anywhere in
the world using secure, password controlled web access. Incoming and outgoing speech are
recorded on separate channels which can be emailed as secure .WAV files to anybody else
who has the necessary security access to read the files.

The benefits of incorporating full voice recording functionality into everyday call
center activity have only recently become appreciated. With an increasing amount of
business being conducted over the telephone, the ability to record all transactions is
imperative. With the growing number of disputes that arise, the system has a tremendous
advantage to be able to instantaneously retrieve and replay the conversation. Additional
applications include monitoring 'Agents' performance, specifically during training and call
verification to check that orders have been correctly logged. Most importantly, the system
has
the ability for 'Agents' to "flag" a problem call to a Supervisor to enable him/her to listen on
that particular call and take over if appropriate.

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SVR FEATURES

- Significantly lower costs for resilient storage
- Integration with web-based Call Center call records and statistics
- User defined security plus digitally encoded time-code and call ID
- Support for both analog and digital lines
- Comprehensive management capabilities including live monitoring of calls
- Scalable and distributed
- Unsurpassed voice recording quality
- User controlled playback quality, storage and delivery method
- Security encrypted all call records are "scrambled" preventing unauthorized
playback

- Web-enablement through a standard browser for the replay of recordings
- No special playback hardware or software required
- Short cuts to "Web Markers" within a recording to locate specific elements of that
recording

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SVR DEVELOPMENT STATUS

The first software release incorporating all of the unique features of recording,
"scrambling," storing and retrieval was recently released. This release is capable of full voice
recording, retrieval and playback securely over the Web through links with the call statistics
generated by the RSM/BCM.

Further upgrades, scheduled for imminent release, will incorporate a number of
additional, and largely unique, features, which will position the SVR significantly ahead of the
established competition.

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CORE TECHNOLOGY

The core technology is unique. It is a totally integrated solution comprising hardware
assemblies (PCBs utilizing industry standard components) and proprietary software.

GemaTech, and its subsidiary companies, own the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) to all
technology used in the family of products developed to date, including all hardware/software
designs and copyrights.

The core technology permits GemaTech to quickly and efficiently create new products for
proven markets with a fundamentally different approach to that adopted by the competition
a
strong competitive edge. All key software modules are held within 'source code', which is
never released. Customers only have access to 'object code'. As a totally digital system the
products can handle signals of all types i.e. voice, fax, video, data and e-mail.

This technology allows thousands of calls to be handled simultaneously at a significantly
lower
cost compared to existing solutions. It can be used for both voice and data calls such as
Internet Providers for local Points of Presence (POP), product fulfillment, Interactive Voiced
Response (IVR.)

GemaTech chose to exploit existing telecommunications and IT 'standards' wherever
possible, most notably T1 and E1 interfaces, and Windows NT respectively. Specific
features (and resulting benefits) have been derived directly from GemaTech's own research
with end-users.

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GEMATECH SERVICES

Operating as separate business units, GemaTech offers two service bureau
offerings designed for the mid-tier markets. These markets offer a low cost entry to both the
business continuity and virtual call center segments. Due to a unique product design, many
applications can be partitioned on the same server.

GemaServ is an ASP type service that targets the call center market. A
subscriber
can build and scale a 'Virtual' Call Center network based on business needs, not driven by
product. GemaTech's technology allows 'centers' to be grouped in small, distributed
networks
while incoming calls are routed seamlessly between them to employees on a partitioned
basis. This could include home working for part time staff or out-of-hours support regardless
of the size of the application.

GemaSure is a Business Continuity alternative. It targets companies, both large
and small, that wish to "share" the BCM where there is a major gap within the market for a
credible, all embracing, telecommunications disaster recovery/business continuity solution.
This includes businesses and call centers.

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COMPANY BACKGROUND

GemaTech is a leading designer and manufacturer of software for the
Telecommunications industry, specifically the Business Continuity and Virtual Call Center
segments. Many companies are looking for new solutions to the current rigid and costly
offerings in the face of increasing demand for business assurance (continuity) along with the
demand to reduce cost and increase productivity at the call center level. Additionally, small
to
medium sized businesses experience the same need for business continuity and seek
alternative solutions to having all employees in one location. Explosive growth in most
municipalities is also creating a market demand to get people off the road. This problem
has
become so critical that some states are looking at enacting legislation designed to move
people in to a home worker environment.

Capitalizing on these needs, GemaTech has developed unique solutions that
utilize the PSTN to deliver its functionality to its customers. The GemaTech RSM and BCM
products have distinguished themselves by delivering superior functionality, unsurpassed
ease of use for system administration, and unparalleled price performance.

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Contact Philip Jan Rothstein, FBCI, at pjr@rothstein.com, 1-888-ROTHSTEin or
203.740.7400 for further information and for assistance in evaluating and configuring BCM,
RSM and SVR for your call centers.

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