Jade And Ernst & Young Form Strategic Alliance

Ernst & Young's software development capability enhanced

JADE and Ernst & Young have formed a strategic alliance that will see Ernst & Young complementing its software development and implementation service lines with the capability to build enterprise class systems in JADE.

JADE's Chief Executive Gil Simpson and Ernst & Young CEO John Judge signed the agreement which will see JADE solutions offered through Ernst & Young's consulting services divisions to corporate and middle market clients.

Mr Simpson said JADE was very enthusiastic about the opportunity to work with Ernst & Young. "This partnership will provide New Zealand businesses with information technology solutions that leverage the considerable capabilities of Ernst & Young in consulting and software development and JADE as a programming technology.

"JADE has been used to build software frameworks for a number of industries such as online banking, finance, healthcare, ports and utilities. With their expertise in consulting to these industries Ernst & Young will be able to add immense value to these frameworks and offer highly competitive solutions to clients in these sectors."

Mr Simpson said JADE also gave Ernst & Young a powerful and flexible tool to create entirely new transactional applications for customers or protect client investment in legacy systems through extensions. "Realtime integration of the back office with the front office is the driving force of true, transactional e-commerce, and JADE will enable Ernst & Young to deliver this to their clients."

"The addition of Ernst & Young to JADE's Partner community in New Zealand also provides us with an extremely strong platform for the global expansion of our JADE programme." Mr Judge said Ernst & Young is excited about the potential which JADE offers to the many businesses serviced by the firm's Entrepreneurial and Management Consulting divisions.

"JADE as a technology is able to co-exist with and is highly complementary to Ernst & Young's existing software development and eCommerce toolsets. Many Ernst & Young clients will be attracted by JADE given its New Zealand heritage, openness and proven ability to deliver innovative and cost effective software solutions. These include not only eCommerce applications but several other vertical industry solutions which will have great appeal within Ernst & Young's New Zealand and international client base".

Mr Judge said many Ernst & Young clients find that custom development is essential to maintaining competitive advantage in what is an increasingly global market place. The Internet is having a profound affect on our thinking about future business and service delivery models.

"Ernst & Young's philosophy is 'From Thought to Finish'. JADE along with our other toolsets gives us the choices we need to rapidly design, build and deliver the business systems which will give our clients a sustainable competitive advantage in their chosen market place. Fortune increasingly favours the agile and nimble player in today's global economy."

"Our business alliance with JADE enables us to further develop and support a relationship with a major player in New Zealand's software industry. The international potential for JADE projects is considerable, and we look forward to a long and rewarding association with Gil Simpson, the JADE team and to developing effective relationships with other JADE partners."

ABOUT ERNST & YOUNG

Ernst & Young is one of the leading professional services firms, with 800 people across Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. The firm has received several recognitions and awards for its investment in knowledge sharing, the latest technology and for offering a variety of work/life balance programmes for its people. Ernst & Young's professionals provide consulting, tax, assurance and advisory business services for domestic and global clients.

ABOUT JADE

JADE is a software programming technology used to build enterprise-class, transaction-based business systems, particularly high volume e-commerce applications.

More than 100 JADE Partners, including companies such as Ernst & Young, IBM, Wang New Zealand, Motherwell Information Systems, Hitachi Data Systems and Cardinal, use JADE in their product or service offering. JADE is part of Aoraki Corporation Limited, New Zealand's largest and most successful software company. For more information visit www.discoverjade.com

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