European Leaders In Procurement Network Announces Top Consultancies as Global Authors and Supporters

London, 4 January, 2007 -- Sigaria Ltd, governor of the European Leaders In Procurement Network (ELP Network), today confirmed the involvement of three of Europe's top consultancies as global authors and supporters of the network in 2007.

The supporting organisations include Accenture, one of the world's leading global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing companies; BrainNet, a European leader in supply chain management consulting and qualification; and ProcServe, a PA Consulting Group company that delivers procurement transformation services. As part of their involvement, these companies will contribute an ongoing stream of articles, white papers, research and other best practice information in the areas of procurement and supply chain management.

Launched in May 2006, the ELP Network supports the growing demands faced by procurement executives from their organisations' boards. The network has become the leading independent community for executive-level procurement and supply chain management professionals and delivers learning, networking and information exchange platforms including events, research, online news, information resources and the leading industry magazine (European Leaders In Procurement).  Services now reach over 10,000 senior executives across Europe's largest companies.

Mark Perera, CEO Sigaria explained, "Procurement is at the forefront of the entire corporate agenda, from outsourcing to supplier relationships to green procurement and climate change. Involving these companies in the network whilst maintaining editorial control means we can offer an even wider scope of valuable specialist information and resources to our network members."

Global authoring and support of the network is reserved for a small number of organisations that have a track record of delivering objective information across a broad range of procurement and supply chain topics.

 "Procurement is a critical value driver for our clients," said Kris Timmermans, managing partner of Accenture's procurement practice in Europe.  "Our involvement with the ELP Network supports our aim to deliver ground-breaking information, best practice and insight to this important community."

Sven T Marlinghaus, Partner, BrainNet, added, "BrainNet is one of the leading brands for supply chain consulting and qualification in Germany working with the regions most visionary corporate procurement organisations. This exciting partnership will enable us to share the extensive knowledge, experiences and case studies already gained, with a wider European purchasing audience."

Veera Johnson, CEO, ProcServe added, "The ELP Network is one of the most important resources and information channels for European purchasing leaders. As a leader in the Procurement Transformation field, ProcServe will use this important relationship to share information and help executives overcome their global challenges."

Supporting contributions will start in January 2007 overseen by the ELP Network advisory board and extend to the end of 2007.

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About Accenture:
Accenture is a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company. Combining unparalleled experience, comprehensive capabilities across all industries and business functions, and extensive research on the world’s most successful companies, Accenture collaborates with clients to help them become high-performance businesses and governments. With more than 175,000 people in 49 countries, the company generated net revenues of US$19.70 billion for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2007. Its home page is www.accenture.com.

About BrainNet:
BrainNet is one of the leading international brands for supply chain consulting and qualification.  Our offices in West and Eastern Europe, USA and China cover the most important global key markets. We are working for leading blue chip cooperations, innovative midcap companies and public organizations. BrainNet´s market and technology practices provide best practice procurement knowledge to our clients since 1995. Our consulting approach combines professional analytics, knowledge of IT-perspectives and a high level of social and intercultural competence. For more information and success stories check out our website www.brainnet.com .

About ProcServe:
ProcServe is a Procurement Transformation company established by PA Consulting Group. ProcServe has been created to provide clients with a suite of technical solutions and professional services that enables them to transform their procurement functions. This fundamental transformation allows organisations to realise substantial buying efficiencies and ultimately see real cost savings. ProcServe achieves this by embedding process change and enabling full electronic connectivity with all suppliers.

ProcServe utilises proven eProcurement technology solutions and professional services to enable Procurement Transformation for its public and private sector clients. At the heart of procurement is the need for organisations to leverage management information in order to target and achieve genuine cost savings through their entire supply chain. ProcServe addresses the key procurement challenges faced by organisations around managing their spend and reducing overall costs in ever competitive markets. In order to deliver Procurement Transformation, ProcServe analyses and manages change within four core areas of an organisation; Products, Technology, Process and People.

The key technologies and services provided by ProcServe are already being used in the United Kingdom and will be offered on a global level during 2007.  One of our flagship projects is the world leading UK Zanzibar Project - the revolutionary national eMarketplace solution for the UK public sector.  www.procserve.com 
 

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