Press Release

Press Information

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
02 Nov 2006

For additional information, contact
Catherine Nowocien, 716-835-5041
copc@graytoncompany.com

Microsoft Customer Service and Global Outsourcing Teams In Asia Pacific Achieve Certification to COPC-2000 VMO Standard

Redmond, WA and Williamsville, NY - Microsoft Managed Global Service Operations and Customer Operations Performance Center Inc. (COPC Inc.) announces that Microsoft's Managed Global Service Operations (MGSO) and Customer Service Asia Pacific Operations have successfully completed the process of certification to the COPC-2000 VMO Standard. This achievement earns Asia Pacific Operations the distinction of becoming the first organization within Microsoft Inc. to achieve certification to the COPC-2000 VMO Standard.

Microsoft Inc. initiated the certification process at its MGSO and Customer Service operations in the Asia Pacific in region as a strategic initiative to drive consistent end-user satisfaction. The certification process is also underway at Microsoft's MGSO in Redmond, Washington.

The COPC-2000 VMO Standard is uniquely positioned as the only vendor management standard available for the contact center industry and represents a breakthrough in CSP management. Driving more consistent vendor performance, greater scalability and flexibility, the COPC® Framework ensures better service to end-users. Ultimately, these standardized processes, procedures and metrics result in lower acquisition costs, fewer CSP replacements, and overall increased customer satisfaction.

Microsoft's MGSO and Customer Service Asia Pacific Operations entered into the certification process with sustained commitment to ensure that key approaches, processes and metrics were in place to provide effective management of their Customer Service Provider (CSP) relationships. Working together with COPC Inc. professionals, they also became a significant contributor to the development of the COPC-2000 VMO Standard.

Since initiating the certification process Microsoft APAC Customer Service has experienced:

• 24% point top box improvement in customer satisfaction with call center service


• 36% per contact reduction in service delivery vendor cost


• significant decrease in month over month variation across the multiple measures of service availability

"The Asia Pacific Regional Customer Service organization was formed only 3 years ago. We knew that to ramp up to deliver a great level of experience to our customers in line with the more mature organizations both in our Region, and in Microsoft globally, we needed to focus our resources on doing the right things day in day out," stated Brett Frazer, Regional Manager for Microsoft's Asia Pacific Customer Service organization. "We decided to implement the COPC-2000 VMO Standard as the framework to meet this objective. Our decision was based on the COPC-2000 VMO Standard's core focus on required metrics relating to: leadership and planning; key business processes, key people processes, and performance required for effective management of third party Customer Service Providers. It also aligned perfectly with the Outsource Management System developed by our partners in MGSO to cover the contractual relationship elements which they own in our overall relationships with our Customer Service Providers."

"Based on the improvements we have achieved for our customers, internal clients and shareholders throughout the certification process," added Frazer, "I am fully confident that we made the right decision in aligning our processes with the COPC-2000 VMO Standard and implementing its framework as our quality management system."

About Microsoft
Founded in 1975 and headquartered in Redmond, Washington, Microsoft (NASDAQ "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

About COPC Inc.
Customer Operations Performance Center Inc. (COPC Inc.) is the world’s leading authority on operations management and performance improvement for buyers and providers of customer contact center and business process outsourcing (BPO) services. The COPC® Performance Management System includes operational certification programs, operational management training, Six Sigma in Contact Centers, performance improvement consulting, and vendor sourcing and management services.

Since 1996, COPC Inc. has helped organizations in 35 countries drive results averaging two to five times Return on Investment (ROI) with a payback of less than one year. These results are achieved by leveraging the COPC® Family of Standards, the industry's first performance management and certification system which, today, remains the most rigorous and only high performance set of global best practices and performance metrics that simultaneously increase customer satisfaction and profitability.

Global clients include Accenture, Apple, BT Group, Bertelsmann Arvato, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cable & Wireless, Citigroup, Convergys, Genpact, HP, Lenovo, Microsoft, NTT, Sony, Telefónica, Telstra, and Wipro.