Press release:

IBM Unveils New Services to Accelerate Customer Engagement Efforts for CMOs, CIOs

IBM Interactive gains momentum worldwide as a leading global digital marketing provider

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Armonk, N.Y. - 07 Sep 2012: IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced a new set of services targeting chief marketing officers (CMOs) and chief information officers (CIOs) to boost engagement efforts among today’s increasingly selective and digitally empowered customers. IBM Interactive, IBM’s digital marketing agency, will play a critical role in guiding businesses through their digital transformation journeys.

IBM’s 2011 study of more than 1,700 chief marketing officers revealed that the majority of the world’s top marketing executives recognized a critical shift occurring in regards to customer engagement, but felt underprepared to manage the change. The IBM study also found that while 82 percent of CMOs say they plan to increase their use of social media over the next three to five years, only 26 percent are currently tracking blogs, 42 percent are tracking third party reviews and 48 percent are tracking consumer reviews to help shape their marketing strategies.

In response to this need, IBM is introducing a new set of integrated services designed to help businesses build and expand their digital marketing presence. IBM will help businesses use technology as a tool to build more meaningful, personalized interactions across mobile, social and online touchpoints.

IBM will rapidly assess a business's current needs against future marketing vision, conduct a gap analysis to evaluate which of the future capabilities are currently supported through existing business architecture and then determine the new processes, technology, data, skills, and governance required for the transformation strategy. IBM will design customized roadmaps for clients built on industry-leading techniques and methodologies developed in worldwide client engagements.

Analytic techniques will be used to drive customer engagement, social marketing and collaboration, and marketing performance optimization efforts. For example, retailers, banks, insurance companies, and communications providers are all challenged to deliver the right offers for their products and services to customers at the right time.  Real-time predictive analytics can ease this task by analyzing the growing volumes of customer information – across various structured and unstructured data sources – to provide key insights into customer preferences.  Combined with business rules based on knowledge of what offers and actions have proven successful with other customers in a similar situation, the analytics can provide recommended actions for that customer on a personalized basis.

“Today, businesses have a unique opportunity to rebrand themselves to become more customer-centric and relevant,” said Adam Klaber, Managing Partner, New Markets, IBM Global Business Services. “As part of IBM’s broader Smarter Commerce efforts, IBM works with businesses to deepen customer relationships and turn prospects into brand advocates. Leading with a data-driven approach, IBM helps CMOs and CIOs to engage with consumer audiences in a more personalized and authentic manner, to in turn, boost brand loyalty.”

IBM Delivers Immersive Experiences with Customers Worldwide

IBM  has found worldwide success in driving marketing innovation and improved customer experiences with clients around the world. Examples of how IBM Interactive is working with businesses to innovate the digital experience include:

·    IBM is working with a major beverage provider to introduce exciting functionality to the customer engagement experience such as the ability to create personal drink recipes, assign and enable consumers to access their mobile devices to communicate the personal recipes to the vending machine. IBM also designed a new mobile website for the company’s loyalty rewards program, providing access to over 16.5 million registered members (1 in every 9 households).

·    IBM worked with a global luxury goods retailer to improve the customer shopping experience for its online channel. To reduce barriers in the checkout process, IBM created a streamlined process for browsing and checkout. In addition, IBM worked with the company to create targeted customer experiences for mobile smart phone and tablet users, as well as helped the company devise a strategy to expand its online presence to more countries.

·    IBM  has designed, developed and implemented new customer-facing Web sites for the world’s leading tennis and golf organizations including the United States Tennis Association, United States Golf Association and Wimbledon. Designed to enhance the fan experience, the sites bring together live scores, live streaming video, on demand clips, and provide a visual way to view the scores, news, event activities, and photos. IBM ensures that content can be accessed in real-time and delivered to multiple devices, such as the iPhone, iPad, and smart phones.

For more information on IBM Interactive, visit: http://www.ibminteractive.com/

For more information on IBM Smarter Commerce, visit:http://www.ibm.com/smarterplanet/us/en/smarter_commerce/overview/

To join the conversation, follow hashtags #smartercommerce and #IBMSCGS

Press release:

IBM Helps Global Industry Leaders Connect with the Chief Executive Customer

IBM Predicts Intelligent-Guided Future

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ORLANDO - 06 Sep 2012: Today, from the Smarter Commerce Global Summit, IBM (NYSE:IBM)  is helping a range of global business leaders across major industries, such as Anheuser-Busch InBev, Bank of America, ConocoPhillips, Expedia.com, Office Depot, Radio Shack, and Virgin Atlantic Airways. Customers are looking for new ways to connect with their customers accelerating key business processes such as marketing, sales, supply chain and customer service, driving faster business results.

IBM is also forecasting key Smarter Commerce trends including the prevalence of intelligent-guided customer experiences, mobile-first business strategies and the growth of hybrid cloud computing as the primary means for entering new markets. 

From procurement and supply chain, marketing and sales, to customer service, companies are re-engineering key business processes to meet the preferences of their increasingly powerful and demanding clients, essentially their new chief executives. 

IBM is helping more than 2,000 global brands transform operations centered around their customers. A variety of chief marketing officers (CMOs), chief information officers (CIOs) and other business leaders from many companies such as Husqvarna, Lenovo, Norwegian Cruise Line, SHOP.CA, Staples, Urban Outfitters and Wacoal will join IBM at the summit and present the business results they have achieved after working with IBM and shifting to a Smarter Commerce approach. 

"The old adage 'the customer is always right' has evolved.  The customer is dictating the terms under which commerce is conducted," said Craig Hayman, general manager, IBM Industry Solutions. "The new 'chief executive customer' expect companies to respect their time, preferences, values and privacy. Meeting these expectations requires insight, innovation and a system of engagement that delivers an intelligent guided customer experience at every touchpoint." 

IBM Predicts Intelligent-Guided Future  

Smarter Commerce is a growing market opportunity in excess of $20 billion per year in software alone that centers on the customer experience.  In five years, intelligent-guided marketing and selling will routinely put the ultimate control in the hands of customers, allowing them to indicate what they are in the market for.  In this new normal, businesses will have the ability to scan who is looking for what and make offers to customers to meet their preferences. Consumers will expect at most to wait just minutes or seconds for offers to come in and select the one they like.    Bearing today's reality and this vision in mind, here are key trends IBM predicts will contribute to the evolution and expansion of Smarter Commerce: 

1)         Everything will be Data Driven

Stemming from buying behavior, social media interactions, and advanced analytics -- essentially the application of Big Data, customers will project what they are in the market for instead of settling for what's available on the shelf.  Companies will respond within seconds essentially bidding for each individual's business.  Sharpening analytics will help businesses across all industries anticipate and predict what customers want. The vision of marketing to a universe of one is realized.

 2)         Businesses Go Mobile First as Devices Proliferate and Channels Merge

Businesses will primarily design applications and processes for mobile deployment instead of PCs as individuals center their lives around smart phones and device use explodes exponentially.   Location-based services will expand individualized offers; drive acceleration of business processes and reduction of costs.  Frictionless payments will remove obstacles to impulse buying, leading to less predictable market shifts in consumer demand and requiring greater analytics to decipher. 

3)         Cloud Computing will Lead Businesses to New Markets

Established companies will deploy a hybrid cloud model for rapid expansion to new markets while newer players will use the cloud in a virtual inventory model to start up quickly and cost-effectively compete against larger competitors.  Businesses realize immediate returns with instant deployments, reducing capital budgets.  Cloud technology will serve as the primary means for people to quickly connect with social and collaborative business networks, bringing intellectual capital to bear for business more rapidly and in new ways.

The Future Starts Now 

Many companies are on the path toward Smarter Commerce today, meeting the expectations of the chief executive customer.  To help organizations realize the full potential of Smarter Commerce, IBM is teaming up with First Data in a consortium of industry leaders includingKohl's, Nordstrom, CardSpring, Citi and others that bring together retail, financial and technology institutions to share and establish best practices in retail commerce. 

RadioShack, a leading U.S. retailer of mobile and technology products, services and accessories, is working with IBM’s DemandTec cloud solutions designed to help CMOs and their teams improve price image and pricing operations throughout the entire pricing lifecycle.  

Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd. engaged IBM Web analytics and strategic consulting services to better understand its customers’ online preferences and enable more precise marketing activities.  Virgin Atlantic has been able to cater more effectively to customers and successfully evaluate and monitor site performance. 

SHOP.CA is a case study in hybrid cloud technology deployment. Canada’s online marketplace retailer is using IBM Web analytics, a cloud solution, integrated with on-premise instances of WebSphere Commerce.  The online retailer selected IBM's technology as the e-commerce engine to power its consumer storefront, multi-merchant product catalog and Shop.ca Rewards program. IBM is also providing analytics on visitor preferences and interactions, as well as analyzing their searching and buying histories. This data will give Shop.ca insight on how, when and where to reach shoppers with content and offers personalized to their tastes and preferences via mobile or social vehicles.

 For more information on IBM Smarter Commerce, visit: http://www.ibm.com/smarterplanet/us/en/smarter_commerce/overview/

Press release:

Lockheed Martin and Raytheon Complete First Launch Exercise for Next Generation GPS Satellites

NEWTOWN, Pa., September 5, 2012 – Raytheon Company [NYSE: RTN] and Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] have successfully completed the first launch readiness exercise for the U.S. Air Force’s next generation GPS III satellites. The exercise is a key milestone demonstrating the team remains on schedule to achieve launch availability in 2014.

The Lockheed Martin-built GPS III satellites and the Raytheon-developed next generation GPS operational control system, known as OCX, are critical elements of the U.S. Air Force’s effort to affordably replace aging GPS satellites while improving capability to meet the evolving demands of military, commercial and civilian users worldwide. This is the first space and ground enterprise successfully building the ground control and space vehicles by two independent prime contractors.

The launch readiness exercise, completed over a three day period by mission operations personnel, validated the basic satellite command and control functions, tested the software and hardware interfaces and demonstratedbasic on-console procedures required for space vehicle contacts during the launch and early orbit mission.  The event sets the stage for the first GPS III satellite’s mission readiness timeline, which includes five short-duration exercises and six, five day mission rehearsals leading up tolaunch.

“Completion of our first GPS III launch readiness exercise is a major milestone for the entire GPS enterprise and is a solid indictor that our space and ground segments are well synchronized,” said Col Bernie Gruber, the director of the U.S. Air Force’s Global Positioning Systems Directorate.

To achieve first launch availability in the 2014 timeframe, the U.S. Air Force awarded Lockheed Martin and Raytheon contracts in January of this year to provide a Launch and Checkout Capability (LCC) for launch and early on-orbit testing of all GPS III satellites.  At the heart of the LCC is Raytheon’s Launch and Checkout System that will provide satellite command and control capability, an integral part of OCX’s  support of the first GPS III launch.

“The completion of our first launch readiness exercise is an important milestone for the entire GPS enterprise,” said Keoki Jackson, vice president of Lockheed Martin’s Navigation Systems mission area. “This achievement is a testament to efficient planning and synchronization by theU.S. Air Force and demonstrates that we are on track to deliver critical GPS III capabilities to military, commercial and civilian users worldwide.”

“This milestone represents the hard work and dedication of the entire GPS III and OCX government-industry team,” stated Ray Kolibaba, a vice president of Raytheon’s Intelligence and Information Systems business and GPS OCX program manager. “This is another demonstration of the rapid progress we’re making on OCX development, while maintaining GPS space-ground enterprise alignment. I’m confident that we'll be prepared to support the first GPS III launch with an efficient, evolvable and secure ground control system built independently.”

The GPS III team is led by the Global Positioning Systems Directorate at the U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center. Air Force Space Command, based at Schriever Air Force Base, Colo., manages and operates the GPS constellation for both civil and military users.

About Lockheed Martin

Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that employs about 120,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. The corporation's net sales for 2011 were $46.5 billion.

About Raytheon

Raytheon Company, with 2011 sales of $25 billion and 71,000 employees worldwide, is a technology and innovation leader specializing in defense, homeland security and other government markets throughout the world. With a history of innovationspanning 90 years, Raytheon provides state-of-the-art electronics, mission systems integration and other capabilities in the areas of sensing; effects; and command, control, communications and intelligence systems, as well as abroad range of mission support services. Raytheon is headquartered in Waltham, Mass. For more about Raytheon, visit us at www.raytheon.com and follow us on Twitter at @raytheon.

Press release:

Oracle Press Release

Oracle Simplifies Application Access with New Oracle Secure Global Desktop Release

Latest Desktop Virtualization Solution Provides Richer User Experience, Enhanced Security, and Easier Deployment

Redwood Shores, Calif. – August 16, 2012

News Facts

Today, Oracle announced general availability of a new release of Oracle Secure Global Desktop, a highly scalable and reliable application access solution that provides secure, browser-based access to applications hosted in the data center, from a wide variety of client devices.

Oracle Secure Global Desktop 4.7 improves the user experience through support for multi-monitor configurations, richer graphics and audio; delivers out of the box security; expands the list of supported server operating system and Internet browser versions; and supports faster deployment through Oracle VM Templates.

Supporting the industry’s broadest range of server-based applications, including Web-based applications from Oracle and other vendors, and standard Windows, Linux, UNIX, and legacy applications, Oracle Secure Global Desktop helps lower the risk, time and cost of delivering applications to the enterprise.

Oracle Secure Global Desktop is part of Oracle Virtualization, the industry's most comprehensive desktop-to-data center virtualization portfolio; enabling customers to virtualize and manage their full hardware and software stack from applications to disk.

Richer User Experience, More Secure, and Easier to Deploy

Oracle Secure Global Desktop 4.7 delivers a richer application experience by providing:

Multi-monitor support: Can increase productivity in organizations such as contact centers by allowing users to run multiple applications on different physical monitors at the same time.

Bi-directional audio: Expanding on the existing support for audio output for Windows applications, Oracle Secure Global Desktop now supports microphones and other audio input devices. This enables the use of dictation, conferencing, training, and other applications requiring audio interaction.

Enhanced Linux and UNIX graphics display: Oracle Secure Global Desktop now supports improved performance for 3-D applications utilizing OpenGL 1.3 graphics extensions. This provides a richer user experience for customers in Federal Government, Healthcare, Education and other industries where the regular use of graphically intense applications is becoming more common.

Oracle Secure Global Desktop 4.7 provides optimal out-of-the-box security through pre-configured security settings, eliminating the need for additional effort by administrators. This helps ensure consistency for large enterprise deployments.

Oracle Secure Global Desktop 4.7 adds support for the latest Internet browsers and server OS platforms including Internet Explorer 9, Chrome and the latest Firefox ESR browsers, and the Oracle Linux 6 and Oracle Solaris 11 operating systems.

For nearly instant deployment, a new Oracle VM Template is available as an alternative option for installing and configuring Oracle Secure Global Desktop. This Oracle VM Template is a ready-to-run Oracle VM virtual machine that eliminates the installation and basic configuration steps for the operating system and Oracle Secure Global Desktop.

Oracle Secure Global Desktop can run on Oracle Exalogic Elastic Cloud to provide secure remote access directly to Oracle Applications co-resident in Exalogic for an exceptionally responsive user experience.

Supporting Quote

"IT organizations need a single solution that can deliver secure remote access to all of their data center applications – not just Windows based applications," said Wim Coekaerts, Senior Vice President of Oracle Linux and Virtualization Development. "Oracle Secure Global Desktop is an easy to deploy and use solution that enables users to access Windows, Linux, UNIX, and legacy applications in a way that provides a rich user experience and high security while reducing complexity for both IT and the user.”

Supporting Resources

Oracle Virtualization

Oracle Secure Global Desktop

Video - Oracle Secure Global Desktop for Exalogic

Oracle Virtualization blog, Twitter, Facebook

Relevant Blog: Wim Coekaerts

About Oracle

Oracle engineers hardware and software to work together in the cloud and in your data center.  For more information about Oracle (NASDAQ:ORCL), visit www.oracle.com

PRESS RELEASE

Cisco Live! What You Make Possible in Mexico

• One of the most important global technology events is once again taking place in Mexico, on the Mayan Riviera.
• More than 2,500 attendees will gain insight and the inspiration to create exciting new possibilities in the way they live, work, learn and play.

Mexico City, 16 August,  2012 - Cisco today announced that its industry-leading IT and communications event, Cisco Live!™, is taking place on the Mexican Mayan Riviera from 6 to 8 November 2012 at the Moon Palace Hotel.

Cisco Live! is the most important meeting point for customers, IT experts, partners and technology specialists to access premier education and training in the latest products, trends, and market transitions as well as certification in Cisco technologies.

"We are so proud to have the chance to host Cisco Live! again," said Rogelio Velasco, general manager of Cisco Systems de Mexico. "During three days, we will be able to present Cisco's industry-leading technologies to our customers and partners in an environment that encourages the exchange of ideas. This will help them face IT-related challenges and discover what they can make possible in their careers and for their organizations."

Cisco Live! Mexico will offer the following tracks:

• Networkers program sessions, including training sessions in technology, business and products for network engineers.
• Technical seminars on data center and virtualization; routing and switching; "bring your own device"; the new protocol for the Internet IPv6; and unified communications and collaboration.

•  IT management program sessions, with business and vertical market sessions as well as case studies that offer attendees strategies and tools for driving the business of IT.   

• Executive symposium, an exclusive CxO-level event to discuss relevant IT- and business-related topics focused on how technology can drive business transformation.

This year, attendees will have again the chance to access the Hands-on Labs designed to help them learn about a technology and to apply that knowledge through solving problems in a controlled environment. The equipment in the Hands-on Labs to be deployed at Cisco Live! will be connected with labs in San Jose, California, giving participants access to the latest technology developed by Cisco and expert guidance.

The Hands-on Labs are in the following areas:

• CCIE: A four-hour session for attendees studying for the CCIE® certification both in Routing and in Data Center. Participants will receive direct counseling from the team in charge of the practical exam of the certification.

• Two Collaboration labs: One lab focuses on medianet (video applications, network design, physical security, videoconferencing and Cisco WebEx®). Another focuses on monitoring and solving network-performance problems related to voice, data and video.

• Data Center: This lab explores the configuration and deployment of Cisco Nexus® switches.

In addition, participants will get access to the World of Solutions, an attractive trade show area designed to welcome Cisco's ecosystem partners and enhance the solutions offered to the attendees, where more than 50 partners and technology providers will present their latest products. Cisco solutions will also be showcased.

Besides, attendees interested in presenting their certification exams during Cisco Live! will have access to a special discount of up to 75 percent.

Cisco Live! is held annually in just four locations worldwide: U.S., U.K., Australia and Mexico. Last year Cisco Live! Mexico gathered 2,500 professionals from Mexico and the rest of Latin America who attended 112 sessions; 250 engineers participated in certification exams, and 50 partners took part in the World of Solutions.

For further information about Cisco Live! Mexico, the industry's premier education and training event for IT professionals, please visit www.ciscolive.com.

About Cisco

Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide leader in networking that transforms how people connect, communicate and collaborate. Information about Cisco can be found at http://www.cisco.com. For ongoing news, please go tohttp://newsroom.cisco.com.

# # #

Visa and MasterCard Investigate Data Breach

Excerpt from an article in

The New York Times

Saturday, March 31, 2012

Visa and MasterCard Investigate Data Breach

By JESSICA SILVER-GREENBERG and NELSON D. SCHWARTZ

Visa and MasterCard are investigating whether a data security breach at one of the main companies that processes transactions improperly exposed private customer information, bank officials said Friday. The event highlighted a crucial vulnerability that could affect millions of credit card holders.

The breach occurred at Global Payments, an Atlanta company that helps Visa and MasterCard process transactions for merchants. One bank executive estimated that about one million to three million accounts could be affected. That does not mean that all those cards were used fraudulently, but that credit card information on the cardholders was exposed.

The bank official, who insisted on anonymity because the inquiry is at an early stage, said that Visa and MasterCard notified his company on Thursday, but that banks had been frustrated with the pace of disclosure by Global Payments. He said that Global Payments, which is one of the biggest transactions processors, had provided little information on where the breaches took place, how accounts were hacked and other details that could indicate which customers might be vulnerable.

Banks said that when they could identify victims, they would notify them and replace credit cards, if necessary.

While far from the largest breach of credit card data in recent years, the latest incident, which is being investigated by major banks and federal authorities as well as the card companies, underscores concerns about the vulnerability of electronic financial data.

Rockwell Collins Pro Line Fusion® ‘flies’ into the business aviation market

Note to visitors: We have moved!  For current news and information, please visit our successor blogs:  http://JBK-BizTech.blogspot.com and http://JBK-Current-Events.blogspot.com. Thank you.

Rockwell Collins Pro Line Fusion® ‘flies’ into the business aviation market

Industry’s most advanced integrated avionics system enters service on Bombardier Global 5000 aircraft

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (Mar. 28, 2012) – Rockwell Collins today announced that its Pro Line Fusion® advanced integrated avionics system has entered into service as part of Bombardier’s Vision Flight Deck*on Global aircraft.

“Never before has there been an avionics system this sophisticated with such captivating enhancements in the business and regional aviation market,” said Greg Irmen, vice president and general manager, Business and Regional Systems for Rockwell Collins. “Pro Line Fusion brings superior situational awareness, unprecedented flexibility, and a new level of secure, reliable synchronization between the aircraft and corporate flight operations.”

Pro Line Fusion offers unmatched breadth and capabilities that span from turboprops to air transport and military aircraft. The system integrates and displays essential flight information through empowering, graphically rich interfaces, including high-integrity head-up guidance featuring synthetic and enhanced vision, and the industry’s largest format LCD primary flight displays (15 inch). These state-of-the-art interfaces make flying more intuitive and greatly enhance pilot situational awareness during all phases of flight.

Pro Line Fusion brings new features currently not available in the marketplace, including:

• Certified synthetic vision on a head-up display that improves safety and operational efficiency in low-visibility conditions and unfamiliar territory
• Highest-resolution synthetic terrain data, which couples with Rockwell Collins’ patented Airport Dome that orients pilots before descent and targets runway highlighting on the airport diagram
• Networked capability enabling interoperability with Rockwell Collins Ascend™ to synchronize the aircraft and ground systems for database and maintenance updates
• An open, software-based architecture which supports rapid deployment of new features as they are certified and adapts to meet future airspace requirements

This first delivery is on a Global 5000 jet. The first delivery of a Bombardier Global 6000 aircraft featuring the Rockwell Collins Pro Line Fusion as part of the Vision Flight Deck is expected in the coming weeks.

About Rockwell Collins
Rockwell Collins (NYSE: COL) is a pioneer in the development and deployment of innovative communication and aviation electronic solutions for both commercial and government applications. Our expertise in flight deck avionics, cabin electronics, mission communications, information management, and simulation and training is delivered by 20,000 employees, and a global service and support network that crosses 27 countries. To find out more, please visit www.rockwellcollins.com.

Hitachi to Launch "Hitachi Global Solution for SAP"

Hitachi to launch "Hitachi Global Solution for SAP"

-- Solution that includes a global template that enhances SAP® Best Practices, a global AMO service and a global knowledge database --

Tokyo, March 21, 2012 – Hitachi, Ltd. (NYSE:HIT / TSE:6501) today announced that it enhanced the flexibility in order to meet global requirements from an implementation to an operation phase of SAP® ERP*1 and prepared "Hitachi Global Solution for SAP" for supporting customers throughout. On April 2, Hitachi will launch this solution for the companies that are considering using SAP ERP or have already implemented it in some local sites.

Currently, globalization on business in Japanese companies is advancing rapidly. It is required to achieve a global business management with more restricted budget for investment than before in order to have the ability to complete on the market.

Against the backdrop, Hitachi added the functions which correspond to a business process adapting practical business to SAP® Best Practices*2 which is utilized normally in an implementation of SAP ERP used in common as an package software and prepared them by the name of "Hitachi Global Template for SAP." According to the announcement of SAP, it is said the project of SAP ERP implementation with utilizing SAP Best Practices can reduce the total man-hour by 32%*3 on average.

And Hitachi also prepared "Hitachi Global AMO Service for SAP"*4 for an operation phase after an implementation to solve the issues such as multi vendor compatibility which are seen frequently in a global project. It can realize the one stop system operation including the sites overseas.

Hitachi will launch "Hitachi Global Solution for SAP "by the combinations of "Hitachi Global AMO Service for SAP," "Hitachi Global Template for SAP" and "Hitachi Global Knowledge Database" in which a great deal of the know-how based on the experiences of the implementations for Hitachi group is included.

Features of "Hitachi Global Solution for SAP"

(1) "Hitachi Global Template for SAP", greatly enhances SAP Best Practices

"Hitachi Global Template for SAP" realizes an implementation based on SAP Best Practices which is new methodology. And the supplemental solutions for business process (Point 5 Solutions), Industry Solutions, Country requirements were added to the basic contents of SAP Best Practices in order to solve the issues regarding legal requirements and business practices of a region or a country which are likely to occur in a global project. The number of the scenarios is increasing sharply.
It is hopeful to reduce costs still more by adding more functions to SAP Best Practices which makes it possible to achieve workload reduction.

(2) "Hitachi Global Knowledge Database", includes the know-how of global implementations

Hitachi has accumulated much knowledge through the implementations for Hitachi group so far. The knowledge was collected into a knowledge database systematically. It is possible to grasp the legal requirements in a target country and region by utilizing this knowledge database in the implementation project.

(3) A lot of patterns of an implementation by the combinations of the templates for Domestic and Overseas

There may be various patterns of implementation of SAP ERP depending on the situation and requirement of a company.
In addition to the template for a domestic project, Hitachi prepared the template for a project overseas as "Hitachi Global Template for SAP". It can realize a lot of patterns of implementation. And it enables to adapt to the company's specific situations and requirements more flexible than before, by the suitable combinations of both templates.

(4) "Hitachi Global AMO Service for SAP" realizes one stop operation service for global system

Hitachi can provide the SAP ERP operation service not only for the system which was constructed by Hitachi, but also for the one which was constructed by other vender, by utilizing the top-class actual results of SAP ERP system operation in Japan.
This service enables to reduce the issues(Problems between systems, An increase of adjustment work between multi-vendors and so on) caused by multi vendor compatibility which are seen frequently in a global project.

Price and launch date of "Hitachi Global Solutions for SAP"

Tools	Product	Contents	Price	Launch Date
Template (Overseas)	Hitachi Global Template for SAP	The global template for medium and large enterprise which is useful for a SAP ERP implementation. It enhances SAP Best Practices Solutions to supplement business process in SAP Best Practices and achieve business process adapted to a practical business.(Point 5 Solutions) Industry solutions completely based on SAP® Solution Composer recommended by SAP as a business map. The functions to meet country requirements.	Quotation	April 2, 2012
Knowledge (Overseas)	Hitachi Global Knowledge Database	The knowledge accumulated through the global implementation for Hitachi Group(Documents which include the knowledge about legal requirements and business practice in target countries and regions).
AMO (Domestic, /Overseas)	Hitachi Global AMO Service for SAP	Outsourcing services: It realizes the one stop operation of SAP ERP systems (Domestic/Overseas) including the systems implemented by other vendors.
Template (Domestic)	Hitachi Template for SAP	The template provides a lot of functions adapting to legal requirements and business practice for Japan and all kind of the documents which are required in a project management.		Available

Sales target

The total 30 billion yen by the end of 2015 fiscal year for overseas implementation (Including hardware, license fees).

*1

SAP® ERP: Enterprise system (Package software) provided by SAP.

*2

SAP® Best Practices: The business process and project accelerator in order to streamline the implementation

*3

Reduction by 32% :SAP collected the results from the projects overseas and compared days required of the project based on a conventional　methodology with those of the project based on SAP Best　Practices. It is not always possible for all the companies to achieve reduction by 32%.

*4

AMO: Application Management Outsourcing: Outsourcing an operation of business system to a 3rd vendor.

• About "Hitachi Global Solution for SAP"