MARKHAM, ON, May 5 - CNW/AsiaNet
- Current Chief Technology Officer and Previous Multi-national Company
Executive to Drive Sales, Operations and Development for Geac's European,
Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific Region -
Geac (TSX: GAC, NASDAQ: GEAC), a global enterprise software company for
Business Performance Management, today announced the appointment of Timothy J.
Wright to Chief Executive of EMEA and Asia Pacific. Mr. Wright, a British
national, has been a member of Geac's executive management team since his
appointment in January 2003. During this time, he has worked closely with
President and CEO Charles S. Jones to oversee the Company's product direction
and development initiatives, to manage operations and to identify key
acquisition targets worldwide. Mr. Wright has contributed extensively to the
selling process and is responsible in this past year for the identification and
acquisition of some of Geac's largest new accounts.
"I was an active participant in the search for Tim Wright in late 2002,"
said Mr. Jones. "Tim has been a critical contributor to the management team
over the last six quarters. He has redesigned the majority of our product
offerings to retain customers and reinvigorate our ability to sell to new and
existing customers. He has identified and assessed a range of acquisition
targets -- including our most recent extension into the Business Performance
Management arena. And, he has assisted me in managing key operational
components of the worldwide business."
"Tim has proven his capacity to manage successfully in a change-driven
environment," Mr. Jones continued. "Geac will benefit significantly from this
new appointment."
Mr. Wright is a featured speaker at Geac's Alliance Users' Conference,
which commences May 10th in Chicago, where he will share the keynote address
with Mr. Jones. Their presentation will focus on the Company's global business
strategy, new product introductions and vision.
Commenting on his appointment, Mr. Wright stated, "We have seen
tremendous success in EMEA in the last several quarters with strong organic
growth across three important product lines, traction of our newest
Performance Management product family, impressive new customer acquisitions
and meaningful revenue contributions. I look forward to tapping more new
product opportunities throughout EMEA and am delighted to expand my
contribution to Charles' team."
Mr. Wright will continue in his role as Chief Technology Officer. Andrew
M. Smith, currently Director of Information Technology for Geac, who managed
the Company's global information technology staff and systems for the past
year, will be promoted to assume the Chief Information Officer portion of Mr.
Wright's previous responsibility in his new role as CIO. Mr. Smith brings 20
years of information technology experience in the high technology industry and
has worked with Mr. Wright for several years at Geac and previously at Terra
Lycos. Prior to joining Geac, Mr. Wright served for more than three years as
both Chief Technology Officer and Chief Information Officer at Terra Lycos, a
leading global Internet provider comprised of the third largest network of
websites in the world with several million subscribers in 42 countries. (The
company was created in 2000 when Terra Networks S.A. acquired Lycos, Inc. for
$12.5 billion). At Terra Lycos, he was responsible for all global operations,
technology and engineering functions, managing nearly 800 employees across all
international business lines. Before joining Terra Lycos, Mr. Wright was
Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer of The Learning Company,
the number one provider of consumer educational and home productivity software
(sold to Mattel in May of 1999 for $3.8 billion). During his seven-year tenure
at The Learning Company, he was responsible for research and development as
well as for information technology, and helped grow the company's revenue from
$25 million to $800 million, identifying and successfully integrating 35
acquisitions.
Mr. Wright has recently served as an advisor to the White House's Office
of Homeland Security and is a member of the U.S. Secret Service Task Force on
Electronic Crimes. He received a Bachelor of Science with honors from City
University in London, where he was also a PhD candidate, and he is widely
published in Europe, Asia and the U.S. Mr. Wright began his career with a
range of management appointments throughout the UK and the Commonwealth.
Mr. Wright, who continues to report directly to Mr. Jones, will be based
in Geac's Chelsea, England office and will spend the next several months
traveling across the territories within his new region to meet with customers,
prospects and partners.
Following a brief transition period, Bertrand Sciard, Senior Vice
President, Europe and Asia Pacific for Geac, will be departing the Company to
become the Chief Executive Officer of another public company. "Bertrand has
been with Geac through some challenging times. He has been a good leader in
building a solid management team. We all wish him every success," concluded
Mr. Jones.
About Geac
Geac (TSX: GAC) is a global enterprise software company for Business
Performance Management, providing customers worldwide with the core financial
and operational solutions and services to improve their business performance
in real time. Further information is available at http://www.geac.com or
through e-mail at [email protected].
This press release may contain forward-looking statements based on
current expectations. Important factors that could cause a material difference
between these forward-looking statements and actual events include those set
forth under the heading "Risk Factors" in Geac's annual report on Form 20-F,
No. 333-103019, for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2003, filed on
October 31, 2003 with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission
available through the website maintained by the SEC at www.sec.gov, and filed
on November 3, 2003 with the Canadian Securities Administrators and available
through the website maintained by the Canadian Securities Administrators and
the Canadian Depository for Securities Limited at www.sedar.com. Geac is a
registered trademark of Geac Computer Corporation Limited. All other marks are
trademarks of their respective owners.
SOURCE: Geac Computer Corporation Limited
CONTACT: Investor Contact: Melody Firth, Geac,
(905) 475-0525 Ext. 3325,
[email protected];
Media Contact: Alys Scott, Geac,
(508) 871-5854,
alys.scott(at)geac.com/
--Distributed by AsiaNet (www.asianetnews.net)--