November 09, 1999 14:19
Net Shepherd Hires David Herman As CEO Of New Business Intelligence Company
CALGARY, Alberta--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 9, 1999--
Dun & Bradstreet's Partner for Global Business Development to
join Net Shepherd
Net Shepherd Inc. (ASE: WEB) today announced that David Herman will head up its new business intelligence operation. Mr Herman is leaving
Dun & Bradstreet, where he is Partner for Global Business Development and has been deeply involved in developing Internet strategies for
D&B.
"This is a critical step forward on the route that we have planned for Net Shepherd", said President & CEO Don Sandford. "In the Roadmap that
we issued last August, we wrote of our intention to set up US-based companies that use different applications of our unique combination of
technology, people and an Internet-derived database of commercial information. The Business Intelligence company is a key party of this
strategy and David's appointment is a crucial step in the setting of up of this company."
"David brings an impressive track record of relevant expertise to the role", continued Sandford. "He has twenty years experience in business
intelligence. He was among the first to see the commercial potential of the Internet and launched one of the world's first commercial websites,
way back in 1993. He has recently helped lead the development of eccelerate.com, D&B's global e-commerce operation. His track record
shows that he knows how to scale ideas and grow businesses. He has the strategic grasp, the understanding of business relationships and the
contacts that will be needed to make this business grow."
"I'm very excited to be joining Net Shepherd for this venture", said David Herman. "The business model we're using has already been proven to
work in the market place, so it's a matter of scaling up something that we know already works."
"The commercial potential of this is enormous", commented Sandford. "The leading US Internet analyst company Forrester estimated earlier
this year that the on-line business intelligence market will be worth $11 billion within five years. We will be extremely competitive in this market.
As we explained in our Roadmap, our work has already proved that it is possible to collect highly accurate information on companies at a
fraction of the cost of traditional methods. In a demonstration project, 200,000 pieces of information were collected from corporate websites in
only three days. Compared with traditional methods, this was achieved at a tenth of the cost and in a tenth of the time and with better quality. This
will transform the economics of the business intelligence industry."
"David Herman's decision to join us is another indication of this operation's potential", concluded Sandford. "He brings a wealth of high quality
experience in the business intelligence market and I am sure that he will play the defining role in building this operation."
Background Notes:
Recent highlights of David Herman's career:
As Partner of Global Business Development, he was part of the executive team that created a subsidiary that has developed global electronic
commerce solutions for Dun & Bradstreet. He developed a business plan that resulted in funding commitment for the firm. He acquired and
equipped headquarters office in Silicon Alley and hired key personnel for relationship management. He also negotiated key global channel
agreements in support of the proof of concept test.
Before this, he was the Director, Global Marketing Organization, from late 1996 to October 1998. In this role, he developed the corporate
strategy for electronic commerce, including the management of key alliances in the digital certification, directory and registration markets. He
also developed the data collection program for Internet data.
From 1993 to 1996, he worked as the Director - Electronic Commerce, where he successfully led the development and deployment of one of the
first commercial sites on the Internet. This team was the first in the industry to interactively develop and deliver products over the Internet using
secure web servers.
His Awards, Presentations and Papers include:
* 1991 and 1993 - Received Chairman's "Customer First" award.
* 1993 -- one of seven people selected as Change Agents by the
President.
* Provided staff and leadership to standards bodies including Internet
Society (1994 - 1998), CommerceNet (1993 - 1997), National
Information Infrastructure Testbed (1993 - 1995), and Internet
Engineering Task Force (1994 - 1997).
* 1997 -- Presented White Paper on Governance in Electronic Commerce
and consulted with Department of Commerce on key issues.
* 1994 - 1998 -- Regular speaker at electronic commerce conferences
globally, participating in forums in China, Europe and the United
States.
He was educated at the Wayne State University, where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology in 1979. He and his wife Julie have
three children and they live in Pennsylvania. His leisure interests include reading about the new economy, investing, mountain biking and golf.
About Net Shepherd:
Net Shepherd's technology helps companies that want to transform the way they do business and create new opportunities using the Internet. It
is a leading provider of Internet-based community solutions to provide the gathering of information and the management of work at the speed of
the Internet.
Net Shepherd develops, partners with and invests in companies that use this technology in a variety of different applications.
Net Shepherd Inc. is traded on The Alberta Stock Exchange under the symbol WEB.
Information and statements in this document, other than historical information, should be considered forward-looking and reflect management's
current views of future events and financial performance that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Factors that could cause actual results
to differ materially include, but are not limited to, the following: general economic conditions and developments within the Internet and Intranet
industries; product development and technology changes; competition and pricing pressures; length of the sales cycle; variability of sale order
flow and the management of growth.
"THE ALBERTA STOCK EXCHANGE HAS NEITHER APPROVED NOR DISAPPROVED THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN."
CONTACT: Net Shepherd Inc.
Peter Hunt, Vice-President, Corporate Affairs
900, 800 6th Avenue SW
Calgary, Alberta T2P 3G3, Canada
Phone: (403) 218 8917
Fax: (403) 232 6711
E-mail: peter.hunt@netshepherd.com
Website: www.netshepherd.com |
