TVisions Helps Harvard Business School Publishing Re-Launch E-Business Site; 1,000 User Beta Program Shapes Customer-Friendly Design

Business Wire, March 3, 2000

Business/Technology Editors

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 3, 2000

TVisions, Inc., one of the country's largest independent Internet professional services firms, and Harvard Business School Publishing (HBSP) announced today a completely redesigned HBSP website (http://www.hbsp.harvard.edu) for professionals and academics who are interested in articles from the world-renowned Harvard Business Review, books from Harvard Business School Press, HBSP newsletters, academic cases and a wide range of professional training materials.

The top-to-bottom redesign was the result of a comprehensive usability study that involved more than 1,000 beta testers and focused on three key areas of redevelopment: fostering community on the site, implementing intuitive search and navigation and updating the look and feel of the site to support HBSP's desire to present content and new products in ways that its customers find most useful.

The site provides users with a substantially enhanced channel for accessing the publishing group's content, and includes important new features like The Harvard Business Review Forum, with more than 10,000 registered users, and "Ideas @ Work On the Air," which lets visitors download and listen to audio broadcasts from today's most influential business thinkers.

TVisions leveraged research data from the previous HBSP site, behavioral data analysis and customer feedback to create a working prototype. The new site was then opened to the 1,000 customer volunteers for a comprehensive 14-day beta test. The testers praised the advanced search features, clean design and streamlined purchasing. They also provided additional comments, which were incorporated into the final design.

As HBSP's Internet partner, TVisions provides strategic, creative and technical services on design, user experience, testing and increasing profitability. Working with HBSP, TVisions created a new information architecture and graphic interface, with special entry points for managers, educators and trainers. The new search options include broad topics and categories to streamline overall browsing as well as specific content searches.

"We are committed to using the latest interactive technologies to bring our customers cutting-edge research and business information," said Sarah Hall, senior web projects manager for Harvard Business School Publishing. "The redesigned HBSP site has received enormous support and it's exciting to provide a dependable, intuitive resource for our customers."

"We created an optimal experience environment for Harvard Business School Publishing's customers," said Ralph Folz, president of TVisions. "Our goal is to empower our clients with technology, allowing them to extend their relationship with their customers."

TVisions, Inc.

TVisions is a premium Internet professional services firm that plans, designs, and implements strategic e-business solutions for clients seeking market leadership. TVisions, a privately held company, serves the financial services, healthcare, insurance, publishing and technology industries. Its clients include Microsoft, Staples, Dun & Bradstreet, Analog Devices, Fidelity Investments, Duracell, and Harvard Business School Publishing. TVisions, headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts can be contacted at http://www.tvisions.com or (617) 218-6500.

Harvard Business School Publishing

Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, Harvard Business School Publishing is a wholly-owned, not-for-profit subsidiary of the Harvard Business School. HBSP publishes for the general, professional, and academic markets. Its offerings include the widely-respected Harvard Business Review, books from the Harvard Business School Press, the newsletters Harvard Management Update, Harvard Management Communication Letter, and Balanced Scorecard Report, a line of multimedia products for management development, videos, simulations, course books and cases. For more information, please visit our website at http://www.hbsp.harvard.edu.