Press Release

Michael Gray
Garlands Call Centres

michael.gray@cjgarland.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
29 Sep 2008

Lezli Harrell
COPC, Inc.

lharrell@copc.com

Garlands awarded COPC-2000(R) CSP Standard quality certification

Tees Valley and South Tyneside, UK, 29th September 2008. - Customer Operations Performance Center International Inc. (COPC International Inc.) recently announced that Garlands has achieved certification to the COPC Customer Service Provider Performance Management System (COPC-2000(R) CSP Standard).

The COPC(R) Family of Standards is considered the most coveted certification in the global customer service industry today. Garlands joins a select number of companies currently COPC-2000(R) CSP Standard certified including blue chip brands such as Microsoft, Sony General Motors and Citibank.

Garlands' COPC-2000(R) CSP Standard certification - obtained on Tuesday 25th April 2008 - covers inbound customer service across three Garlands' sites in Middlesbrough, Hartlepool Marina and Stockton. Certification at the company's new South Shields site, as well as certification of Garlands' other business activities, will follow.

"Obtaining certification is a significant milestone in Garlands' development and demonstrates our commitment to continual quality and performance improvement and to passing on these benefits to our clients," said Chey Garland, Chief Executive of Garlands. "It has taken more than 18 months to meet the stringent standards required by COPC International Inc., but we are already feeling the benefits in terms of improved performance, more streamlined business processes and enhanced customer satisfaction."

Chey continues: "Implementing the COPC-2000(R) CSP Standard has touched everyone at the company, helping them focus on delivering exceptional customer service on each and every customer contact. Garlands continues to grow its client base and range of service offerings with the aim of being clearly recognised as the 'Contact Centre of 1st choice' for prospective partners. We are honoured that our name now sits alongside many of the world's best known blue chips as certified to the COPC-2000(R) CSP Standard."

The COPC-2000(R) CSP Standard is the first and only certification process designed specifically for the needs of contact centres. It was developed in 1995 by individuals from customer-focused companies concerned with the level of service quality provided by Customer Service Providers (CSPs). As a world-class benchmark of productivity and efficiency for customer contact operations, it is used in several hundred locations in more than 50 countries to improve performance, reduce costs, and increase customer satisfaction.

"Garlands' commitment to achieving the COPC(R) 2000 CSP Standard demonstrates their long-term dedication to excellence, as well as their continuous effort and expertise in driving best-in-class results over time," said Richard North, CEO, COPC International Inc. (EMEA). "Implementation of the COPC(R) Performance Management System has allowed the operation of the Garlands' centres to be more efficient and systematic, thereby, earning the increased trust and confidence of their clients."

About Garlands

Garlands is a leading UK provider of outsourced customer contact services via phone, email and the Web. Garlands' services range from customer service to outbound customer acquisition, debt collection, customer retention, technical assistance, cross-selling, upselling, staff accounts, activations, credit management, customer registrations, customer lifecycle management and many other back office functions.

Garlands believes that people are the key to delivering superb customer service. It provides comprehensive and innovative programmes with a holistic focus to develop the skills of its staff - programmes that extend beyond the call centre and into the local community. The company has four North East contact centre sites - Hartlepool Marina, Middlesbrough, Stockton and South Shields - with a fifth site in South Africa opening shortly.

Garlands was named 2007 Outsource Contact Centre Provider of the Year at the National Outsourcing Awards; and Tees Valley Company of the Year at the North East Business Awards in March 2008. The company was also ranked the UK's third largest inbound contact centre agency by sales turnover in the 2007 Precision Marketing Contact Centre League Tables.

About COPC International Inc.

Customer Operations Performance Center International Inc. (COPC International Inc.) is the world's leading authority on service-chain operations management, including performance improvement for buyers and providers of customer service, customer contact centre and business process outsourcing operations. Since 1996, COPC International Inc. has helped more than 1,000 organizations in 50 countries improve customer service by using the COPC(R) Family of Standards, the industry's first and most comprehensive set of performance management operating models for customer service operations. Today, it remains the only performance-driven and industry-governed global best practices model that simultaneously increases both customer satisfaction and profitability. For further information, please visit www.copc.com.

Product and service names mentioned herein are the trademarks of their respective owners.