Crescendo Technologies Group wins Lotus Beacon Award for CRM

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CRESCENDO TECHNOLOGIES GROUP WINS IBM/LOTUS
BEACON AWARD FOR CRM IMPLEMENTATION

Award Further Validates Crescendo's Position as
Leader in Quality IT Implementations

ALPHARETTA, GA -January 22, 2001 - Crescendo Technologies Group, LLC, a leading Information Technology (IT) services firm that transforms businesses with strategic IT initiatives, was awarded the Beacon Award for Excellence in Partnering during the annual Lotusphere conference. The Beacon Awards are given in recognition of Lotus Business Partners that excel in providing expert and quality products, solutions, and services to customers. The Beacon Awards are judged by a combination of leading worldwide industry press and analysts, along with Lotus executives. A customer testimonial is a significant part of the success criteria for this award. Detail of the award is at: www.lotus.com/beacon

"It is an honor to be chosen by Lotus, which fully understands solution partnering for best client results," says Jerry Miller, President of Crescendo Technologies Group, LLC. "This award further validates our vision for delivering quality solutions that help clients improve customer service and business operations."

"With more than 13,000 Business Partners worldwide making a substantial impact on how businesses operate today, Lotus has one of the largest, strongest and successful partner programs in the world," said Pierre Van Beneden, Executive Vice President, Worldwide Field Operations, Lotus Development Corp. "As our partners' solutions become more innovative each year, determining the winners and finalists becomes an increasingly difficult decision, as we must exemplify the high standard of excellence we have come to expect of our partner community."

Together, Crescendo Technologies Group and United System Solutions (United) won the Excellence in Partnering category, which recognizes two or more partners who utilized their complimentary skills to deliver a total customer solution. The solution is a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) application based on United's Maximizer Enterprise for Notes.

Crescendo used Maximizer Enterprise for Notes to create a solution that consolidated customer information and improved customer service for Manheim Auctions, the largest wholesale automobile auction company in the world. It enabled four of Manheim's business units to manage and share information about its customers, as well as to facilitate workflow. Previously, four disparate systems within customer service, sales, marketing, and headquarters held separate records of customer information. Crescendo performed the overall package integration and back-end, IBM AS/400 system integration. Crescendo built a portal-based system, featuring a custom dashboard view for each. The custom portals enable CRM tasks, such as calendaring, to-do's, customer interactions, and technical support. The unified system with customized applications for collections, order entry, credit card processing, and prospecting, provides sales reps, service people, and others a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system with better customer information in real time.

About Crescendo Technologies Group, LLC

Crescendo Technologies Group is a leading Information Technology (IT) Services firm that builds, integrates and delivers technology initiatives that transform businesses into industry leaders. Crescendo's staff of consultants, architects, analysts, developers, and administrators have breaking software development skills and rigorous technology experience that provide insight, direction, and knowledge infrastructure to help clients navigate the fast-changing, connected economy. Multidisciplinary practices open legacy systems to the web with security, develop systems for enterprise collaboration and knowledge management, provide security audits and policies, create Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) and pervasive wireless applications, and deliver electronic commerce presences that create value and efficiency. Crescendo is the winner of "Excellence in Partnering" at the 2001 Lotus Beacon Awards. Clients include: Cox Enterprises, Federated Department Stores, Coca Cola Bottling Company, Natio nal Services Industries, JDN Realty, American Financial Group, LeasePlan USA, S1 Corporation, William Carter Co., Scientific Games, Powertel, and the State of Georgia. For more information, call (678) 942-3400 or visit the company's web site at www.Crescendo-Tech.com.

About United System Solutions

United System Solutions is the developer of Maximizer Enterprise for Notes, the winner of "Best in Showcase" and "Excellence in Partnering" at the 2001 Lotus Beacon Awards. Maximizer Enterprise for Notes is a modular suite of applications for automating customer management, sales, marketing and customer service. Through its various divisions, United System Solutions is the provider of industry leading products, award winning education and consulting services. The company is based in Toronto, Canada and can be found on the World Wide Web at www.me4n.com.

About Lotus Development Corp.

Lotus Development Corporation, founded in 1982, is a subsidiary of IBM Corporation. Lotus sets the standard for truly innovative software products and services that reflect the company's unique understanding of the new ways in which individuals and businesses must work together to achieve success. Lotus is redefining the concept of conducting business through practical knowledge management, e-business and other groundbreaking ways of connecting to the world's ideas, thinkers, buyers, sellers and communities via the Internet. Lotus markets its products in more than 80 countries worldwide through direct and extensive Business Partner channels.

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