NTTA Customer Service Call Center Earns National Certification

NTTA Customer Service Call Center named “Certified Center of Excellence” Plano, TX (May 6, 2005) - The North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA) Customer Service Contact Center has been named as a certified "Center of Excellence" by one of the world's most prestigious organizations, namely the Center for Customer-Driven Quality at Purdue University. This award places the NTTA Customer Service Center among the top 10 percent of over 200,000 call centers in North America. This certification was accomplished after a rigorous review by auditors from BenchmarkPortal, repository of the world's largest database of contact center performance metrics and a renowned authority in the field of contact center operations and management.To earn the Center Of Excellence designation, a center must meet objective, quantitative criteria and pass audits by BenchmarkPortal researchers led by Dr. Jon Anton. Key drivers of successful contact center performance in customer service include operational efficiency, service level standards, process management, customer satisfaction, leadership, resources and employee training. "This award resulted from the NTTA's ongoing effort to reach 'World Class Customer Service' levels for our customers," said Allan Rutter, NTTA Executive Director. "Every day our team of Customer Service Specialists is committed to providing the best service possible to our customers. Being named a 'Center Of Excellence' is a great honor and something we consciously made an effort to achieve." The NTTA Customer Service Center currently averages over 5,700 customer contacts per day, and the independent customer satisfaction surveys identified a first contact resolution rate of 92 percent. Additionally, 94 percent of the customers surveyed rated the overall experience as excellent or very good. According to Dr. Jon Anton of Purdue University's Center for Customer-Driven Quality, this kind of stellar performance is "unique and commendable." "Our Customer Service Center team is extremely proud of this accomplishment," said Clayton Howe, Director of Toll Programs & Services. "This acknowledgement serves as a third-party affirmation for the hard work by our staff and the commitment made by our Board to provide our customers with an outstanding customer experience and our employees with an outstanding work environment. It was very rewarding to have an organization that is dedicated to customer service excellence identify that our working environment was one of empowerment and support for our staff." Mr. Howe continued, "This recognition should not be perceived as our arrival at our goal. Opportunities to increase both the efficiency and effectiveness of the customer contacts have been identified by our staff, and the organization is committed to deliver more." About NTTA The North Texas Tollway Authority, a political subdivision of the State of Texas, is authorized to acquire, construct, maintain, repair and operate turnpike projects in the North Texas region. The seven-member governing board is comprised of Chairman David D. Blair Jr., Vice Chairman Jack D. Miller, Directors Donald D. Dillard, William W. Meadows, Alan E. Sims, Paul N. Wageman, and Kay Walls. The NTTA serves Collin, Dallas, Denton and Tarrant Counties and is responsible for the Dallas North Tollway System, consisting of the Dallas North Tollway, President George Bush Turnpike, Addison Airport Toll Tunnel and Mountain Creek Lake Bridge. The North Texas Tollway Authority is able to raise capital for construction projects through the issuance of turnpike revenue bonds. NTTA toll projects are not a part of the State highway system and receive no direct tax funding. Tolls are collected to repay debt and to operate and maintain the roadways. Visit the NTTA web site at www.ntta.org or call 214-461-2000 for additional information about the North Texas Tollway Authority's TollTag program, the On-line TollTag Store, the Tag Wagon, and the Dallas North Tollway System which includes the DNT, the PGBT, the Addison Toll Tunnel and the Mountain Creek Lake Bridge. For additional information contact: Donna Huerta Community Affairs Director 214-461-2065 office, 214-325-1269 cell About BenchmarkPortal BenchmarkPortal is the custodian of the Purdue University Center for Customer-Driven Quality database of contact center metrics, the largest in the world. It provides reports, products and services for contact centers in the areas of operational metrics, customer satisfaction measurement and agent satisfaction measurement. BenchmarkPortal's Web site can be found at: www.BenchmarkPortal.com. For additional information contact: Susan Hampton BenchmarkPortal, Inc. SusanHampton@BenchmarkPortal.com