UpSource Chooses HigherGround Call Recording and Monitoring Solutions for Newly Updated Call Center Operations

LOS ANGELES – February 24, 2003 – HigherGround, a global provider of recording and telecom management solutions for the contact center industry, today announced that UpSource, one of Canadas leading call centers, has chosen the companys call recording and monitoring solution, HigherGround Praetorian and HigherGround Mentor with Agent Evaluation, Screen Capture and Screen Title Tracker, and Report Commander, as key components of its recently enhanced call center platform for advancing delivery of high quality, customized, outsourced services.

LOS ANGELES – February 24, 2003 – HigherGround, a global provider of recording and telecom management solutions for the contact center industry, today announced that UpSource, one of Canadas leading call centers, has chosen the companys call recording and monitoring solution, HigherGround Praetorian and HigherGround Mentor with Agent Evaluation, Screen Capture and Screen Title Tracker, and Report Commander, as key components of its recently enhanced call center platform for advancing delivery of high quality, customized, outsourced services.

What initially attracted UpSource to the HigherGround solution is its focus not only as a call recording solution but, as importantly, a Business Intelligence platform," said Mark Burns, Chief Technology Officer for UpSource. Our value proposition as an outsourcer includes our ability to use the right, best-of-breed technology to solve clients problems in ways that they have not even thought of yet. Having a strong BI platform as part of our underlying infrastructure puts us another step in that direction. In addition, on a more functional level, we really liked the ability to record, even selectively, without requiring a CTI hook to the ACD."

Like many call centers today, making the right technology choice was critical to UpSource. After a careful analysis of the market, UpSource chose HigherGround because of our reliability, comprehensive solution and analysis capabilities" stated Terry Ryan, President and CEO for HigherGround Inc. We are delighted to have UpSource as a customer and partner. Both organizations are focused on delivering the highest quality possible. With our products in their portfolio, UpSource continues to deliver on that promise."

UpSources selection was based on four criteria: functionality, reliability, ease of use and cost.

 Functionality. UpSource required voice and data recording for 100% of their calls, quality monitoring tools, essential reporting/analysis capabilities, the ability to partition information and a clear upgrade path.

 Reliability. System availability is critical to Upsource, so a system with redundancy and reliability was essential. Since UpSources ACD platform is configured for five 9s reliability, the HigherGround call-recording platform had to meet that expectation. In addition, strong maintainability that allows both local IT staff and HigherGround to quickly diagnose and resolve problems is crucial. HigherGrounds alarming capability, with over 250 alarms that alert of potential problems, and the unique Im Alive notification service that dials the companys support center nightly to authenticate the operability of the system both provide additional reliability.

 Ease of Use. HigherGrounds solution was easy for management and supervisory staff to use. It has reporting flexibility without requiring customization, customized evaluation forms that are easy to create, quick retrieval of recordings, remote retrieval and remote monitoring. Also important was a system that does not require IT work for customization each time a manager or supervisor has a new or unique need.

 Cost. As a growing outsourcing company, UpSource was attracted to HigherGrounds ability to offer a complete call recording solution at a competitive price that met all its primary needs.

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About UpSource
UpSource is a new, innovative provider of high quality outsourced services for business processes and customer service. UpSource partners with clients to ensure that performance reaches the highest possible level. UpSource tailors each program to meet the specific and unique business objectives of each customer - creating flexible solutions that move up the quality of service delivered. This service approach, UpSourcing, delivers extraordinary value because it is driven by the unique business requirements of each client. Every customer interaction is an opportunity -to retain customers, to gather information, develop loyalty, deepen brand identity, or cross or upsell.

UpSource helps companies maximize each and every opportunity. The company offers a rare combination of unequalled passion for service, the best technology and a highly educated, stable workforce delivered at an affordable cost. Together with our experienced management team, UpSource delivers results for customers in a wide range of industries. UpSource Inc is a privately held company headquartered in Cambridge Massachusetts with its North American Operations Center located in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia (www.upsource.ca).


About HigherGround Inc.
HigherGround ensures that its clients capitalize on every contact, every day. The companys customer-interaction recording solutions and multi-dimensional analysis and reporting tools empower clients with the knowledge and insight needed to monitor and verify phone and data transactions, improve agent performance, optimize telecommunications resources and provide a comprehensive view of the contact centers performance. HigherGrounds proven solutions provide imperative business intelligence for sound decision making and bottom line control for compliance monitoring, risk management and performance improvement.

HigherGrounds integrated call recording and telestatistics management software products are used by highly recognizable names such as American Red Cross, AOL Time Warner, Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway, Charles Schwab & Co., Continental Airlines, EXXON, Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, California State University (Hayward), Miller Brewing Company, Parkland Hospital, United States Air Force, UNOCAL and various municipalities and cities throughout North America.

For more information contact:
Terri A. Slater                   
Slater Public Relations Inc.             
561.487.7037 818.591.3133
tslater@slaterpr.com

Gretchen Ryan                
HigherGround Inc.
gryan@highergroundinc.com

Susan Cohen
UpSource
978.337.7601
susan.cohen@upsource.ca

Note to editors: HigherGround and Im Alive are trademarks of HigherGround Inc. All other trademarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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