STORAGE

Cognos, the world leader in business intelligence (BI) and corporate performance management (CPM), will present a series of customer- focused roundtables worldwide throughout the fall of 2004 as a venue for sharing and discussing 'next practices' and emerging trends in enterprise planning and performance management. David Axson, renowned author of the popular "Best Practices in Planning and Management Reporting," joins world-class customers Genentech, 7-Eleven, Lucent and Pfizer to headline the fall sessions, which are hosted by the Cognos Innovation Center for Performance Management. The program is designed to help customers share insights for managing enterprise planning and performance to new levels of innovation in today's dynamic business environment. "The Cognos Innovation Center for Performance Management serves as a trusted advisor and partner to its members. The Innovation Center provides an environment to help corporations and Public Sector organizations turn planning and performance management 'next practices' into everyday practices for improved productivity and growth, return on investment and alignment of goals and objectives with business vision," said Rich Lanahan, vice-president, Cognos Innovation Center for Performance Management. "These regional Innovation Roundtables provide participants with an opportunity for frank discussion between executive industry peers as they exchange and explore practices and approaches for planning, forecasting and performance management innovation." The fall Innovation Roundtable series builds on the successful inaugural roundtable session held in June 2004 at Cognos Forum. The combined market cap of the companies that participated in the first session exceeded one trillion dollars. Two of the companies that participated were Best Buy and Ventana Research. "The practical experience of the global financial services organization served as a great example to illustrate the economic imperative for success- driven companies to turn traditional budgeting on its ear and focus on agility, relative performance and greater accountability," said Karen Kuehneman, director, Enterprise Planning, Best Buy. "The customer case study and subsequent discussion with my industry colleagues further reinforced our decision to deploy Cognos enterprise planning capabilities across our business. Attending the Innovation Roundtable garnered valuable insights into performance management challenges and successes for our team." "The case study and roundtable discussion helped illustrate the value of one integrated system for planning, budgeting and forecasting," said Robert Kugel, Vice President & Research Director, Financial Performance Management, Ventana Research. "In particular, the session illustrated the power of rolling forecasts for improving flexibility and ultimately, financial control." Further information on the Innovation Roundtable dates and locations is available at: http://www.cognos.com/roundtable.