Business Services Industry

Experian Named One of Year's Most Innovative Companies; Study Ranks Top 100 Leaders in Designing and Implementing Customer Relationship Management Strategies

Business Wire, Jan 2, 2001

Business Editors and High-Tech Writers

ORANGE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 2, 2001

Experian, a leading information solutions provider, Tuesday announced that it has been named by InformationWeek to the inaugural Innovation 100: The Customer, a research series that spotlights industry leaders in pioneering innovative, customer-centric business and technology strategies within the new connected economy.

The project was co-produced by InformationWeek, the leading IT media brand, and Cap Gemini Ernst & Young, the global consulting firm.

"Experian is pleased to receive this award as it acknowledges our long history in the field of customer relationship management," said Craig Smith, CEO of Experian North America. "The field of CRM has its roots in our core businesses of direct marketing, database management, and customer and business information.

"We have a long history of helping our clients connect with their customers while developing products and solutions which contribute to profitability, growth and customer retention."

Research teams from InformationWeek and Cap Gemini Ernst & Young came together to develop Innovation 100 in order to find ways to help companies become proactive in serving their customers' needs. The resulting report is an in-depth look at 100 top U.S. companies' customer offerings and the systems they use to ensure their customers' personalized service.

Experian was ranked number 45 on a list which included Federal Express, United Airlines, and Agilent.

"Experian's winning submission details ePIN (SM) -- a cooperative development with Lucent Technologies and the U.S. Postal Service," said Chad Spannaus, vice president of sales, marketing and business development in Experian's lettershop division.

"ePIN is a sophisticated mail tracking system that allows marketers to greatly improve their customer relationship management initiatives, while reducing costs, through enhanced personalized service offerings including pinpoint mail delivery timing -- crucial in sophisticated direct mail campaigns."

Additional innovative submissions included Experian's e-series of solutions used to authenticate consumers for secure and real-time delivery of their personal credit reports.

"The results of the Innovation 100 amplify InformationWeek's past findings that there is a definitive trend toward customer-centric offerings," said Rusty Weston, editor of InformationWeek Research. "Our research over the past year has shown that companies are emphasizing customers' specific needs in compelling new ways."

About Experian

Experian is an information solutions company. It uses the power of information to help its clients target prospective customers, manage existing customer relationships and identify opportunities for profitable growth. Through its Web-based products and services, Experian enables its client to conduct secure and profitable e-business.

Experian is a subsidiary of The Great Universal Stores PLC and has headquarters in Nottingham, U.K. and Orange. Its 12,000 people support clients in more than 50 countries. Annual sales are about $1.5 billion.

For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.experian.com.

Details about the award and its recipients can be found at www.informationweek.com/innovation100.>