Business Objects Congratulates Customer Owens & Minor for Number One Ranking in InformationWeek 500

Business Wire, Sept 24, 2001

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 24, 2001

Owens & Minor's Supply Chain Extranet Helps Company Secure Top

Spot in InformationWeek's Annual List of the Largest and

Most Innovative Users of Information Technology

Business Objects (Nasdaq:BOBJ), the world's leading provider of business intelligence (BI) solutions, today announced that Owens & Minor, a Business Objects customer, has been named the number one company in InformationWeek's annual ranking of the 500 most influential and innovative users of information technology.

Owens & Minor, a $3.5 billion distributor of medical and surgical supplies, has been recognized by InformationWeek for its pioneering and innovative efforts in "Collaborative Business," which includes a supply chain extranet with its network of customers, partners, and suppliers.

Owens & Minor was one of the first corporations to combine the power of the internet and business intelligence to improve relationships and extend new services to its customers and business partners. In 1998 the company launched WISDOM, (WebIntelligence(R) Supporting Decisions from Owens & Minor), its supply chain extranet which uses WebIntelligence, the business intelligence solution for the internet from Business Objects. Beginning with 12 hospital customers and four suppliers on a pilot project, the application has now expanded to over 130 healthcare systems and several of Owens & Minor's top suppliers. WISDOM has provided significant benefits to its business partners and competitive advantage to Owens & Minor, and revolutionized the healthcare supplies distribution industry.

"We are extremely pleased to be ranked number one in this year's InformationWeek 500," said David Guzman, senior vice president and CIO of Owens & Minor. "We have always placed a focus on using technology to deliver innovative service to our customers, and our strong partnership with Business Objects over the years has helped us achieve these goals."

"Owens & Minor has always been a special customer to Business Objects, and we congratulate them for receiving this tremendous honor," said Bernard Liautaud, chief executive officer of Business Objects. "Owens & Minor's distinction as the most innovative and influential user of information technology demonstrates the power and benefits of using business intelligence to establish collaborative business relationships with your customers, partners, and suppliers."

Using WebIntelligence as its interface to business users, WISDOM allows customers and suppliers of Owens & Minor to use the internet to access, analyze, and share detailed information related to their medical supplies purchasing, inventory, and supply chain. This allows its customers and suppliers to track expenses, manage inventory, and negotiate improved contracts through product and supplier consolidation. For example, a purchasing manager at a large hospital could use WISDOM to view the number of suppliers from whom he or she currently purchases surgical gowns, and consolidate the number of suppliers he or she buys gowns from in order to secure better discounts through volume pricing.

Customers and suppliers are not the only groups to benefit from this supply chain extranet -- the customer-focused solution has also contributed to Owens & Minor's status as one of the top players in the highly competitive medical supplies distribution industry. The supply chain extranet is used as a significant competitive weapon, as Owens & Minor can demonstrate how this solution can help hospitals reduce procurement costs and improve operational efficiency. In the past few years WISDOM has helped Owens & Minor win and retain important customer contracts.

For a virtual tour of WISDOM, visit Owens & Minor's website at http://www.owens-minor.com and click on the "Products & Services" link.

Extranets are Hallmark of Successful Companies

As InformationWeek pointed out in last week's issue, collaborative business is a hallmark of successful companies. According to the InformationWeek Research Survey of the IT executives from this year's InformationWeek 500, 97% of the companies on the top 100 of the list say that extranets and supply chains are widely deployed throughout their organization. In addition, 99% of the top 100 responded that they have widely deployed data warehousing products and technologies throughout their organizations.

Starting with Owens & Minor as its first extranet customer in 1998, Business Objects has been helping companies in every industry create collaborative business relationships with their customers, partners, and suppliers. Today Business Objects has over 570 extranet customers, including Caterpillar, Harley Davidson, MasterCard, Penske Logistics, PepsiCo, Principal Financial Group, Sabre, and Zurich Financial Services.

About the InformationWeek 500

For 13 years, the InformationWeek 500 has tracked the IT agendas of the nation's largest and most innovative IT organizations, providing a unique opportunity to understand and examine their business practices across core areas of operations. To obtain a spot in this annual ranking, companies must demonstrate a pattern of technological, procedural, and organizational innovation. Only companies based in the United States with at least $1 billion in annual revenue may participate. The criteria used in the selection process of the InformationWeek 500 are determined by the magazine's editors.