PWC and SME Corporation Form Global Alliance

Alliance formed to provide global clients with Web-enabled project management

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP and SME Corporation Form Alliance to Provide Global Clients with Web-enabled Project Management

SME Corporations Web-enabled Project InVision® Solution to be Combined with PricewaterhouseCoopers Project Management Best Practices and Methodology

San Rafael, CA – April 17, 2001 – SME Corporation, a leading provider of Web-based enterprise solutions, and PricewaterhouseCoopers, the world's largest professional services organization, today announced an alliance to deliver Web-enabled project management solutions to the corporate market. As companies focus on cost-effective measures to meet the challenges of todays economic climate, the combination of SMEs Project InVision and PricewaterhouseCoopers project management services enables organizations to proactively assess their project portfolio to focus on strategic objectives.

The alliance with SME Corporation provides us with a cutting edge technology platform to complement the delivery of our project management and support services on a global basis. There is a tremendous value proposition as the technology helps us address the most pressing issues our clients face regarding their business projects, such as the management of decentralized, global teams and the rapid realization of business benefits. The alliance combines the reach and consulting experience of PricewaterhouseCoopers' Global Risk Management Solutions (GRMS) practice with the technical capabilities of SME's Project InVision. We look forward to bringing the benefits of this collaborative solution to a global network of clients and industries," said Peter Harries, partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Enterprises increasingly use project offices to report on critical project information and to standardize processes across the enterprise," said industry analyst Matt Light, research director, Gartner Inc. "A Web-based application enabling project and resource management and collaboration can help enterprises determine project priorities and optimal resource allocations." Project InVision supports such activities by creating a project portal allowing geographically dispersed employees, vendors, contractors, and customers to collaborate real-time on projects.

Under terms of the agreement, PricewaterhouseCoopers will deliver an Enterprise Project Management Office (EPMO) solution, combining SMEs Project InVision software with PricewaterhouseCoopers' methodologies, best practices and value-added professional services. PricewaterhouseCoopers will also utilize the Project InVision solution as a standard tool to manage selected internal firm projects.

For years, SME Corporation has had a proven product in Project InVision. This alliance provides a significant leap in our ability to deliver a complete solution to the corporate marketplace," said Matthew Meblin, CEO of SME Corporation. Together, SME and PricewaterhouseCoopers will be a dominant player in the enterprise project management market space."
Our objective was to select a Web-based solution that could adapt to the varying needs of our customers. We needed a solution that was flexible enough for smaller engagements but could quickly scale to larger enterprise requirements. With SME we found a sound and stable product from a vendor with the vision and ability to deliver. Its all about providing global access to the right information at the right time," said Lou Savarino, senior manager at PricewaterhouseCoopers, who played a key role in the evaluation of SMEs Project InVision.

About SME
SME Corporation (www.smecorporation.com) is a pre-IPO company, founded in 1991, with an established base of Fortune 500 customers including EDS, Lucent Technologies, AT&T, Morgan Stanley, and ExxonMobil. Headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area, SME has sales and support offices in the New York, Los Angeles, Dallas, Detroit and Jacksonville metro areas, with plans to open international offices in European and Asian Pacific regions. Project InVision was honored with Microsofts 1997 award for Best BackOffice Solution" and as a finalist in the 1999 awards for Best Business Solution."

About PricewaterhouseCoopers
PricewaterhouseCoopers (www.pwcglobal.com) is the worlds largest professional services organization. Drawing on the knowledge and skills of more than 150,000 people in 150 countries, we help our clients solve complex business problems and measurably enhance their ability to build value, manage risk and improve performance in an Internet-enabled world.

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CONTACT:
         
Karen Semerau, SME Corporation      
415-381-9639, X305
karens@smecorporation.com

Kathryn Oliver, PricewaterhouseCoopers
860-241-7333
kathryn.oliver@us.pwcglobal.com

C. J. Puffer, Avalon Marcom   
707-837-8950
cjpuffer@home.com