ST. LOUIS, MO (Feb 1, 2002) - Pipkins is pleased to announce the release and immediate availability of their Vacation Planner module. The Vacation Planner is an add-on module to Pipkins' award winning Maxima Advantage Vantage Point software. The Vacation Planner module empowers agents to more effectively control their time off management. Agents accessing the Vacation Planner will see their yearly calendar showing requested, granted and wait-listed vacation days. It will also show a summary of used, available, pending and scheduled vaction days. The agent view shows non-operation and blackout days stream lining the agents vacation request process. Through advanced browser-based technology Vacation Planner allows administrators to set daily limits, non-operation days and blackout days based on groupings of their choosing. Vacation Planner also integrates with HR systems to ensure it has the most up to date information available.

About Maxima Advantage

Maxima Advantage is a sophisticated workforce management solution for determining expected call center workload and allocating the resources needed to complete the work. The cornerstone of the system is the forecasting module, which is powered by Pipkins' proprietary Merlang® optimization algorithm. Merlang, a modified version of the popular Erlang algorithm, takes into account both busies and abandoned calls, thus negating the overstaffing bias inherent in the Erlang algorithm.

The system calculates staffing requirements based on the forecasted call volumes, handling times, and user-defined service levels such as tolerance for percentage of calls abandoned, percentage of busies, and mean time to answer. A flexible, rules-driven scheduler provides the optimal lowest-cost schedule based on factors such as hours of availability, agent preferences, skill groups, and other user-defined parameters. The system includes a full complement of reports designed for all levels of management as well as the ability to create your own custom reports. Available Options include Real-Time Adherence, Internet Portal (WAVE™ - Web Agent Viewing and Empowerment), Multi-media Portals, Wireless Client.

About Pipkins Inc.

Pipkins, Inc. (PIPKINS), founded in 1984, is the leading supplier of workforce management software and services to the call center industry. Its Maxima Advantage product enables managers to solve the complicated operational issues in today's multi-faceted call center environment. It offers a rich and robust feature set, as well as an open design that allows for the complete integration of emerging CRM technology. PIPKINS' systems forecast and schedule more than 100,000 agents in over 300 locations across all industries worldwide. The company is headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. For more information, visit www.pipkins.com.

Contact:

Pipkins, Inc., Tim Venturella
(314) 469-6106, tim@pipkins.com