Software provides financial visibility across enterprise.

Cognos Inc. Nov 15, 2002

Press Release Summary:

Cognos(TM) CPM for Finance integrates forecasting, budgeting, planning, and consolidations with reporting, analysis, and metrics management. It provides financial visibility, accountability through actionable metrics, and reliable data via shared financial framework. Centralized software includes audit trail creation and consolidation. Solution monitors key indicators according to user-defined criteria, analyzes that information, and drills through to transaction-level details.

Original Press Release:

Cognos Announces CPM for Finance; The First Complete Solution for Driving Financial Performance Across the Enterprise

- Gives companies better visibility of finances and more accountability through actionable metrics -

BURLINGTON, MA, November 5, 2002-Cognos (Nasdaq: COGN; TSX: CSN), the world leader in business intelligence (BI), today announced Cognos CPM for Finance. It is the first complete financial solution that aligns core financial processes with company strategy and performance by integrating forecasting, budgeting, planning, and consolidations with reporting, analysis, and metrics management. This integration gives companies better visibility of their finances, more accountability through actionable metrics, and more reliable data via a shared financial framework.

In addition to dealing with enhanced financial reporting requirements detailed by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in the U.S., financial executives must now put greater focus on corporate governance. They are looking for better visibility and reliability in their financials at a summary and detail level, with the ability to distribute accountability throughout the organization. Having a single, reliable, and accurate view for both balances and details of the financials for all stakeholders has become increasingly critical.

Designed to meet the challenge of a complex and changing financial regulatory environment, Cognos CPM for Finance ensures the integrity and timeliness of financial reports, giving financial executives a means to improve performance across the company by integrating financial processes - such as audit trail creation, rapid consolidation, and budgeting. This centralized solution reports a consistent picture of a company's financial health. For example, this ensures the timely identification of resource shortages, allowing organizations to optimize resource allocation and usage.

"In today's unstable and constantly changing global economy, financial executives are challenged with managing financial performance," said Brent Houlden, Solutions Regional Director of Operations, Central Canada, at Deloitte & Touche, one of North America's leading professional services firms. "With Cognos' market-leading solutions, we are already having an impact on the financial performance of Deloitte & Touche, with better planning and forecasting of our revenues and key expenses. This is a core part of our drive to continually improve our financial performance and increase the strategic value of finance across the firm. Cognos CPM for Finance looks like a strong fit to extend our existing investment and assist in our financial objectives."

"Organizations need better solutions to ensure visibility into performance and enable better accountability in the new closed-loop business performance management paradigm," said John Van Decker, senior program director, Application Delivery Strategies of META Group. "Fast, accurate decision making is especially important against a backdrop of global economic uncertainty. The market for balanced scorecards and key performance indicator delivery is especially significant as financial professionals recognize the significance of measuring department and enterprise-wide performance."

Instead of implementing company strategy based on intuition, Cognos CPM for Finance allows finance professionals to monitor key indicators according to user-defined criteria, analyze that information, and drill through to transaction-level details - delivering Web-based, self-service reports across the enterprise. The inclusion of both user-defined and packaged metrics provides users with a guided approach to decision making by analyzing cause-and-effect scenarios of their key performance indicators (KPIs). This allows users to form confident business decisions at every level of the organization. The reporting and analysis integration enables a truly collaborative decision-making environment for users, allowing them to easily share and distribute information tied to KPIs. The decision-making flow moves cleanly from "what" is happening to "why" it is happening.

While financial data remains at the core of a CPM effort, CPM for Finance allows for the gathering of financial and non-financial information. As a result, finance professionals are able to lead the organization to enterprise-wide performance management. Cognos CPM for Finance broadens the impact and use of financial information to anyone who makes critical decisions daily. As part of an enterprise metrics foundation, organizations can incrementally integrate areas beyond finance for a holistic picture of the company and comprehensive performance management.

"Cognos is ensuring that an organization's key stakeholders can all work from consistent information and provide the direction and flexibility required to elevate budgeting and planning from a financial necessity to a dynamic and strategic process," said Tom Manley, Cognos senior vice president, Finance & Administration and Chief Financial Officer. "The introduction of Cognos CPM for Finance is a significant deliverable on our CPM vision, providing software that allows companies to measure execution against business strategy, offering a clear path for customers looking to improve overall corporate performance management. Delivering solutions that help organizations drive enterprise value across the enterprise continues to power our business."

Availability

Cognos CPM for Finance will be available in December 2002.

For more information about Cognos CPM for Finance, including upcoming Webinars, please visit: cognos.com/products/finance/events.html

Cognos and the Cognos logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cognos Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries. All other names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.