Association Formed to Advance Best Practices in the Development of Strategic Business Alliances.

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 13, 1999--

Association of Strategic Alliance Professionals to Provide

"Best Practice" and Opportunity Sharing, Education and Professional

Development Services that Create Strategic Business Advantage

With funding support from such corporate sponsors as 3M (MMM), The Dow Chemical Company (DOW), Hewlett-Packard (HWP), Lucent Technologies (LU), Reebok International (RBK); SmithKline Beecham (SBH), Unisys Corporation (UIS), Siemens and The Warren Company, the Association of Strategic Alliance Professionals (A.S.A.P.) today formally introduced itself as a centralized resource to support business professionals responsible for forming and managing strategic alliances and other cooperative business ventures.

In the past decade, the formation of strategic business alliances has emerged as a critical and distinct management competency, contributing greatly to the revenue and profits of companies and the transformation of industries and the modern corporation. Based in Wellesley, MA, A.S.A.P. (www.strategic-alliances.org) was conceived as a vehicle to support the professional development of alliance managers and executives and to help create a distinct professional identity for those managers and executives. To that end, the association seeks to:

1) Create opportunities for member organizations to explore the creation of new strategic business alliances;

2) Share "best practices" in the formation and management of alliances and to advance the practice of alliance development and management by sponsoring, conducting and publishing leading-edge research on strategic alliances and other cooperative business relationships; and

3) Support the professional development of alliance managers and executives by promoting education, communication and fellowship among its members through publishing, training and education programs, conferences, workshops and on-line forums.

"A.S.A.P. helps alliance professionals drive their company's growth in what is now a highly networked business world," said Inder M. Singh, Vice President of Strategic Alliances for Lucent Technologies, Inc., and Vice Chair of the A.S.A.P. Board of Directors. "By affiliating with A.S.A.P., companies can tap into a network that's a virtual who's who of strategic alliance professionals and business leaders from across the business landscape."

"A.S.A.P. will serve as the 'go to' source for alliance-related resources, networking and finding potential business partners," said William T. Lundberg, Founding President and Executive Director of A.S.A.P. "Our motto is 'Creating Value through Cooperation,' which means our value rests in our ability to help members develop and expand their professional skills and alliance formation opportunities, thereby increasing the likelihood of their creating successful, mutually beneficial partnerships."

A.S.A.P. will look to build its membership base by recruiting business professionals from large, medium and emerging companies across a range of industries whose task it is to form, structure and manage strategic alliances and other cooperative business relationships. A partial list of targeted professionals includes: senior corporate executives; strategic alliance managers; corporate and business development managers and executives; strategic planning professionals; technology sourcing and product development managers, procurement and supply chain managers; marketing and sales managers; consultants and attorneys; and systems integrators.

"Membership in A.S.A.P. enables alliance professionals to share opportunities and 'best practices' and helps break down the sense of isolation that many alliance managers feel because it is a new and evolving profession," said Lundberg.

Membership in the association aims at strengthening a company's alliance programs, which increase its ability to: respond to rapid technological change and shifting customer demand; bring new products to market more quickly; cut costs and improve quality; penetrate new markets, and; provide integrated solutions for existing and potential customers.

A.S.A.P. will organize itself and its member programs and benefits by establishing a series of vertical "industry councils" and cross industry "alliance function and issue councils."

A.S.A.P will launch its activities in the next few months by publishing a "Best Practices Guide to Alliance Formation and Management." This fall, it will host the "A.S.A.P. Alliance Summit - '99" for strategic alliance professionals.

The Association of Strategic Alliance Professionals, Inc., is a non-profit, 501 (c) (6) corporation. A.S.A.P.'s mission is to serve as a central repository and exchange to support the professional development of its members and to raise awareness of the unique contribution of strategic alliances and strategic alliance professionals to the companies and industries they serve. Corporate sponsors include: 3M Company; The Dow Chemical Company; Heller, Ehrman, White & McAuliffe; Hewlett-Packard Company; Lucent Technologies, Inc.; Reebok International; Siemens; SmithKline Beecham; The Gas Research Institute; Unisys Corporation, and; The Warren Company.