Message from Harry Debes

[bmcintyre@xxxxxxxxx]

The following is a message from Harry Debes, the President of Geac
Enterprise Solutions Americas. This message is intended to clear up and
misconceptions concerning recent events at Geac.

Geac Enterprise Solutions (GES) Americas is making cost reductions in
certain non-performing portions of the business.

  While our business is
still quite profitable, certain portions are not achieving expectations.
To some degree this is due to the slowdown in traditional ERP spending by
customers and prospects.   Other firms in our field (SSA, Baan, JD Edwards
etc) have all experienced a similar reduction in demand following the Y2K
rollover.   In late July we will be reducing our headcount by approximately
7%.   This is an adjustment which affects many part of our business, but it
is a selective, not global, reduction in certain non-performing areas.  The
System21 team (which accounts for about 25% of GES Americas revenue) will
lose a number of positions in professional services in regions where demand
from customers is low.  However, we will still have more than 100 people in
our S21 professional services organization, we are retaining all of the
people in Customer Support (which grew in headcount by 15% in the last 4
months) and development spending on System21 remains in excess of $25m for
our current fiscal year.    In no way should this adjustment be viewed as a
reduced commitment to System21 by Geac.  Rather, it is a prudent management
decision to adjust business spending in line with market demand.   Some
people will undoubtedly try to read something more into this - but they
will be wrong.

Harry Debes
President, GES Americas