10 May 2007 07:00
Embargoed Release: 07:00hrs Thursday 10th May 2007
Sopheon Plc (`Sopheon' or `the Company') Sopheon Enhances Accolade‚® Solution to Streamline Management of Large, Complex Product Portfolios New Service Pack Release EnablesUsers to Generate Analytical Portfolio ReportsFive to Ten Times Faster BOSTON, FRONT-END OF INNOVATION CONFERENCE - May 10, 2007 - Sopheon, theinternational software and services company, announced today the introductionof a set of enhancements to its Accolade product life cycle management solution(PLM) that includes a substantial increase in the power of the system's coreportfolio engine. The new capabilities promise to increase the efficiency withwhich Accolade users can analyze large, complex product portfolios and willenable team members and executives to simplify communications related toproduct-development projects. Additional changes will advance the system'salready acclaimed ease-of-use. The new feature set, referred to as AccoladeVersion 6.0 Service Pack 2, will be available at the end of this month.Research has shown that frequent, rigorous portfolio analysis is a prerequisiteto consistent product innovation success. Sopheon's Accolade provides asoftware-based process model for portfolio management. Since its introduction,Accolade has featured functionality that automates the gathering, storage,analysis and reporting of data on the projects making up users' productportfolios. Enhancements to the system's portfolio engine announced today arespecifically designed to help Global 1000 companies that are managing complexportfolios encompassing large numbers of projects. Tests of the newcapabilities indicate that users will be able to generate analytical reports onportfolios comprised of 3000 or more projects, and more than 1000 metrics perproject, five to ten times faster than was previously possible.A number of enhancements included in the Accolade Version 6.0 Service Pack areaimed at strengthening project-related communication among product developmentdecision-makers and team members. For instance, one new feature makes itpossible to automatically add pictures or drawings of products to projectdocuments. This capability eliminates time-consuming cutting and pasting ofimages, and ensures consistency of format. The pictures make it easier forusers to locate individual projects on lists and within collections ofdocuments. They also provide a visual assist to business executives faced withthe need to quickly understand projects they are being asked to consider andapprove. New navigation aids help to ensure that system users don't overlookproject documents. Other enhancements, such as the ability to instantlyinitiate a search for project information from any page within the Accoladesystem, further the Sopheon solution's ease-of-use, an attribute area in whichit is already recognized as leading the industry.Sopheon's selection of features for inclusion in the service pack was based onfeedback from current Accolade users and, in particular, the Company's ProductAdvisory Council. The Council is comprised of executive-level decision-makersfrom some of the leading companies in the world, including BASF, CadburySchweppes, Campina, Celanese, Cytec, Electrolux, Hospira, Land O'Lakes,Nautilus, Nestle, Parker Hannifin, Verizon Wireless and Timex."Accolade is an enabler of our innovation-focused `Winovation' program," saidBob McAdoo, vice president of worldwide business systems for Parker Hannifin."One of the things we value about the Sopheon system is its scalability, as itcurrently supports thousands of users on an instance of the software centrallyhosted. These new features will further increase our efficiency in analyzingand reporting on our global portfolio of projects. They will also extend one ofthe software's most important traits, the fact that it is obvious-to-use,making it even easier for the cross-functional teams involved in developing andmanaging our portfolios to learn and adopt the system.""It's noteworthy that nearly every one of the features being introduced in thisrelease was driven by feedback and ideas from our customers," said BryanSeyfarth, solutions marketing director for Sopheon. "Estimates indicate thatthere are now more companies using Accolade to successfully govern Stage-Gate‚®processes than any other innovation management solution in the marketplace. Thebreadth and maturity of our user base provides us with an extraordinaryresource in our ongoing efforts to deepen Accolade's differentiation and value.It is an unerring compass in our search for unmet, and unspoken, needs. Thisnew release will delight our current customers. It will also make our offeringan even clearer choice for any prospect looking for a solution based onthorough, expert understanding of what really works-and what doesn't-when itcomes to improving gated innovation processes."
Accolade‚® is a registered trademark of Sopheon plc.
Stage-Gate‚® is a registered trademark of the Product Development Institute.
All other trademarks and registered trademarks are the sole property of their respective owners.
About SopheonSopheon is an international provider of software and services thathelp organizations improve the business impact of product innovation. Sopheon'sAccolade system automates and governs the innovation process, enablingcompanies to increase revenue and profits from new products. Sopheon is listedon the AIM Market of the London Stock Exchange and on the Euronext in theNetherlands. For more information, please visit www.sopheon.com
For further information contact:
Barry Mence, Chairman Sopheon plc Tel : + 44 (0) 1483 685 735 Arif Karimjee, CFO Andrew Tan Hansard Group Tel : + 44 (0) 207 245 1100 + 44 (0) 7957 203 685 Floor van Maaren Citigate First Financial Tel : + 31 (0) 205 754 010
SOPHEON PLC