CIO Magazine and Pacific Edge Software Host Executive Briefings Featuring Industry Luminaries

Business Wire, Oct 7, 2002

Business Editors/Technology Writers

BELLEVUE, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 7, 2002

"Maximizing the Value of IT With Portfolio Management" Event

Features META Group Analysts and Executives From

Top Corporations and Venture Firms

CXO Media Inc., publishers of CIO Magazine, and Pacific Edge Software, a leader in Project Portfolio Management (PPM) solutions, will host two complimentary IT Portfolio Management Briefings on October 22, 2002, in Seattle, Washington, and on November 5, 2002, in Boston, Massachusetts. The events will feature presentations by Vice Presidents Marnie Ross and Doug Lynn, of META Group, Jean Miller, former first vice president, Enterprise Program Office at Washington Mutual Bank and portfolio strategist, and Amir Hartman, co-founder and managing director of Mainstay Partners LLC.

"In today's unstable business environment, everyone in an organization is under constant pressure to increase efficiency, while reducing costs and ensuring all initiatives align with the company's strategic goals," said Mike Metcalf, vice president of marketing for Pacific Edge Software. These Executive Briefings will highlight real-world examples of how sophisticated and flexible Portfolio Management solutions have enabled businesses to easily optimize the value of IT investments and cut costs."

Designed for C-level executives, the event is by invitation only. Registrations can be submitted at www.cio.com/pacificedge and attendees will be alerted as soon as their registration has been accepted. There is no fee to attend once registration has been established.

IT Portfolio Management Briefing Speakers

The Executive Briefing, jointly hosted by Pacific Edge Software and the CXO Media Group, publishers of CIO Magazine, will feature several industry luminaries, including:

-- Marnie Ross and Doug Lynn, vice presidents of executive directions for META Group, a leading market analyst firm, will discuss how increasing IT investment value is critical to business success share and the latest IT research and trends.

-- Amir Hartman, co-founder and managing director, Mainstay Partners LLC, will present IT Governance: Best Practices from the Field, reviewing the reasons technology investments failed to deliver the promised productivity enhancements, while providing a proven, practical framework based in portfolio theory for managing these investments for success.

-- Jean Miller, former first vice president, Enterprise Program Office at Washington Mutual Bank and portfolio strategist, will focus on optimizing IT strategy and moving from a project to a portfolio management perspective, as well as the key steps necessary to implement portfolio management into an organization.

-- Rob Dickerson, president and CEO, and Mike Metcalf, vice president of marketing for Pacific Edge Software, will open the Briefing with some welcoming remarks and set the tone for the event by stressing the need for CIOs to adopt Portfolio Management to ensure IT projects and spending are aligned with corporate strategy.

According to Marnie Ross, vice president of executive directions at META Group, "Our research shows that companies with the ability to evaluate IT spending based on business impact and business value improve IT's value to the business by over 25% annually. As a result, we believe that by 2005-06 greater than 50% of global 2000 CIOs will adopt portfolio management techniques and tools for IT project and asset management, real options analysis, and budget planning and monitoring."

Project Portfolio Management

The Pacific Edge Project Portfolio Management solution facilitates the continuous process of selecting and managing the optimum set of project-oriented initiatives to deliver maximum business value. Through this decision-making process, management can reach consensus on the best use of resources to focus on projects that are achievable and strategically aligned with business goals. The resulting project portfolio delivers a tactical balance of what is possible and what is needed.

In the last year alone, Pacific Edge Software customers saved millions of dollars by employing the company's PPM software and consulting services. Similar to a financial portfolio, where the mix of stocks, bonds and other investments is manipulated based on the overall financial goals of the owner, PPM stems from the desire to look at all projects within a company under one umbrella, ensuring company goals are being realized.

About Pacific Edge Software

Pacific Edge Software is a leading provider of Project Portfolio Management (PPM) solutions for global companies, transforming how organizations manage and optimize their project portfolios. Pacific Edge's business-critical PPM solution, The Edge for IT(TM), enables organizations to balance and align projects with business goals and strategies, maximizing value and minimizing costs. The Edge for IT includes Project Office(TM) and Portfolio Edge(TM) enterprise software products, professional services, and a Project Portfolio Management process. Pacific Edge customers include industry leaders such as AT&T Wireless, Airborne Express, Alcon, Brigham Young University, Costco, Dell, Kraft Foods North America, Inc., Honda, and Johnson & Johnson. More information can be obtained from the company's website (www.pacificedge.com).