Press Release

Press Information

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
04 Aug 2005

Carlson Leisure Travel Services Cites COPC Framework and Six Sigma Continuous Improvement Methodology as Key to Growth Following Re-Certification to the COPC-2000® Standard

Amherst, New York — Carlson Leisure Travel Services (CLTS), the leading travel fulfillment provider for credit card companies, financial institutions, and fulfillment loyalty programs, continues its commitment to quality customer service with re-certification for 2005 to the COPC-2000® Standard, sustaining certification for the third consecutive year. CLTS made history in 2003 as the first and only travel fulfillment provider worldwide to achieve certification to the comprehensive contact center operations performance standard that specifies minimum operational requirements in critical functional areas important to end users and clients. Following their original certification in 2003 — which proved key to generating a double-digit improvement in its bottom line — and its subsequent re-certification in 2004, CLTS has gone on to realize continued over-all growth and gains in cost reduction, customer satisfaction, and profitability.

Eric Burdon, Executive Vice President of Minneapolis-based Carlson Leisure Travel Services, which operates customer contact centers in Boise, Idaho, and St. Louis, Missouri, credits the COPC framework, together with implementation of Six Sigma in its contact center environment, as instrumental in CLTS' success in rapidly growing its business while maintaining the highest level of quality and customer service.

Mark Steinweg, General Manager, agrees, "COPC certification is a critical component of being a 'best in class' organization. Achieving certification to the Standard gave us a holistic assessment of capabilities and processes that needed improvement. As a result of those revisions, together with a culture of continuous improvement and ongoing assessment generated by COPC compliance, the quality of our service delivery is consistent, customer satisfaction is high, and we continue to reduce operating costs as well."

As a prominent service provider in the field of leisure travel award redemption programs, Carlson Leisure Travel Services is committed to sustained enhancement of the value level of its customer service.

About Carlson Leisure Travel Services

Carlson Leisure Travel Services, a division of Carlson Travel Group, Inc. (wholly-owned by Carlson Companies), provides corporate clients with employee leisure booking tools, including TripForce.com, in addition to providing financial institutions and credit card reward programs with travel award redemptions. Through its customer contact centers, Carlson Leisure Travel Services currently assists more than 6.5 million active members of client credit card loyalty programs.

Carlson Travel Group, Inc., also known as Carlson Leisure Group (CLG) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Minneapolis (MN)-based Carlson Companies. CLG includes: Carlson Travel Franchise Group, which serves as the franchise leisure travel arm with the Carlson Wagonlit Travel Associates(sm), Results Travel(sm), Cruise Holidays(sm) and SeaMaster Cruises® brands; Carlson Vacation and Business Travel Division; Carlson Leisure Travel Services, which fulfills leisure travel needs for a variety of loyalty and affinity programs, and includes Cruise Deals, Inc.; and Carlson Destination Marketing Services, which provides consumer and trade marketing support for destinations around the globe.

About COPC

Headquartered in Amherst, New York, Customer Operations Performance Center Inc. (COPC) is the leading authority on customer contact center and transaction processing services organizations. COPC services clients on a worldwide basis, and has representatives in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, India, Japan, Singapore, United Kingdom, and the United States.

The COPC-2000® Standard was developed in 1995; representatives from various companies volunteered to join a work team concerned about performance and service quality provided by third party Customer Service Providers (CSPs). These firms included American Express, Compaq, Dell, Intel, L.L. Bean, Microsoft, Motorola, Novell, and Xerox. Several hundred locations in 30 countries are using the COPC-2000® Standard to improve performance, reduce costs, and increase customer satisfaction. Users include firms in e-commerce, computer hardware and software, financial services, healthcare, telecommunications and consumer products.

For additional information about COPC, please email to info@copc.com.