PDSI donates TeleStaff™ to the American Red Cross to schedule call center staff and volunteers to its 1-800-GET-HELP Response Center in support of Hurricane Katrina relief efforts

Orange, CA.- September 14, 2005 – In the early morning of September 3, 2005, PDSI, a leading provider of sophisticated workforce automation solutions, received a call from the American Red Cross requesting the use of its scheduling automation to schedule call center staff and volunteers by phone to its 1-800-GET-HELP Response Center in Washington D.C. The Response Center receives incoming calls from those affected by Hurricane Katrina and provides much needed around-the-clock relief assistance.

“PDSI is profoundly saddened and deeply touched by the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf States. We are extremely honored to do whatever we can to assist the American Red Cross in its relief efforts. Providing the Red Cross with TeleStaff™ allows the Response Center to more quickly and accurately schedule staff and volunteers who are tirelessly answering incoming calls to provide assistance, information and support to those affected by this disaster,” said Greg Ekstrom, president of PDSI.

PDSI donated TeleStaff™ and began customizing it specifically for the 1-800-GET-HELP Response Center. Because of the unprecedented scale of disaster relief created by Hurricane Katrina, having the Response Center appropriately staffed as soon as possible in order to help the hurricane victims was a high priority. To assist the Red Cross, PDSI decided to install TeleStaff™ on one of its servers at its headquarters in Orange, California, and provide American Red Cross managers remote connection via the internet as if it were running at their site. Additionally, PDSI donated an 800 number and the multiple phone lines needed to operate the IVR part of TeleStaff that allows staff and volunteers to schedule themselves by phone into call center shifts.

“Within 48 hours, the system was in production. Now, the Red Cross is able to schedule call center staff and volunteers through an interactive voice response system (IVR) and determine when more volunteers are needed to answer calls from the disaster victims,” said Jeffrey Modell, an IT Senior Director of the American Red Cross. “PDSI has really helped us in responding to Katrina survivors,” Modell concluded.

“The American Red Cross is mounting the most ambitious response to a natural disaster in our considerable history,” said Marsha J. Evans, Red Cross President and CEO. “Such an effort is only possible with the timely and generous support of good corporate citizens such as PDSI.”

With a task of scheduling upwards of 500 or more staff and volunteers over 4 4-hour shifts during the day and 1 8-hour shift at night, the 1-800-GET-HELP Response Center staff and volunteers are putting to use the rules-based automation and IVR system which are TeleStaff’s key strengths. Each time a staff member or volunteer calls into TeleStaff™, they are prompted to choose a date and shift. TeleStaff™ then runs a set of rules to determine if the shifts are filled and begins making staffing decisions. If there are available shifts, TeleStaff™ will fill them and automatically staff a Roster. Ensuring all shifts, including future ones, are accurately staffed at all times is important for the Response Center to ensure Hurricane Katrina victims are receiving the information and support they need on a 24/7 basis. Furthermore, TeleStaff™ is able to provide management with on-demand rosters which details ‘who is where and when’ at all times.

PDSI has been providing scheduling solutions to the American Red Cross since 1990 and is grateful that its technology can provide further assistance at this critical time.

To contribute to the Red Cross Hurricane Katrina Relief Fund, visit Red Cross website.

PDSI is a leading provider of sophisticated workforce automation solutions for public safety agencies, large municipalities, healthcare services, hospitality organizations and commercial entities throughout North America. PDSI products seamlessly integrate leading edge technologies necessary to automate daily processes such as scheduling and staff management for shifts, events or appointments resulting in value-added solutions and offering increased productivity among human resources. TeleStaff™ provides public safety agencies a scheduling and notification solution capable of managing complex rules, work codes and shifts. Collection Management System™ (CMS) is a group of applications specifically designed for blood collection organizations. STAFFeasy™ is a web-based event staffing and notification solution designed to fill positions based on rules and notify personnel of work assignments. For more information about PDSI, please visit the company’s website or call 1-800-850-7374.

About The American Red Cross

American Red Cross disaster assistance is free, made possible by voluntary donations of time and money from the American people. You can help the victims of thousands of disasters across the country each year by making a financial gift to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund, which enables the Red Cross to provide shelter, food, counseling and other assistance to those in need. Call 1-800-HELP NOW or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Donations are being accepted at Coinstar machines at select grocery stores across America. To find the nearest Coinstar machine, visit www.findcoinstar.com. Contributions to the Disaster Relief Fund may be sent to your local American Red Cross chapter or to the American Red Cross, P. O. Box 37243, Washington, DC 20013. Internet users can make a secure online contribution by visiting www.redcross.org