Hitachi Acquires Impact Plus

DALLAS -- Hitachi Consulting, the global business and IT consulting arm of Hitachi, Ltd. (NYSE:HIT - News) today announced that it has acquired Impact Plus, a London-based business and IT consulting firm which specializes in serving the Public Sector and Financial Services Sector. Impact Plus counts among its clients three of the top five U.K.-based banks, as well as many leading Finance & Leasing, General Insurance, and Life & Pensions providers. In the government sector, Impact Plus' clients include the largest government departments and related agencies including the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Ministry of Defence, National Audit Office and Metropolitan Police. Impact Plus is also an accredited OGC Catalist supplier through the Office of Government Commerce.

Impact Plus offers high-value business and IT consulting services to its clients in the areas of Customer Strategy, Sales Effectiveness, Operational Performance, Technology Exploitation, Program & Change Management, Regulation & Compliance, and Mergers & Acquisitions.

"Joining with Hitachi Consulting allows us both to offer our existing clients greater capacity and a richer blend of capabilities, and to extend our services to a broader marketplace," said David Bailey, co-founder and joint managing director of Impact Plus. "Through Hitachi Consulting's strength in both the United States and in Asia, we can now serve better the global needs of our clients." Mr. Bailey will become managing vice president - Industry & Markets for the U.K. practice. He will have primary responsibility for Hitachi Consulting's industry programs for the U.K. as well as lead its Go-To-Market team. Mr. Bailey has 17 years at executive level in the consulting industry and was recently President of the UK Management Consultancies Association.

Allan Duguid, currently responsible for Impact Plus' work in the Public Sector, will become vice president, Public Sector. Prior to joining Impact Plus, Mr. Duguid spent 20 years with an international management consultancy where, as partner/vice president, he led the business units responsible for Government and for Aerospace & Defense. Alan Walker, vice president, will continue to lead the Financial Services Sector practice.

"We are excited about the addition of great personnel, clients and capabilities in the U.K., and we are already integrating the Hitachi Consulting U.K. consulting team with the Impact Plus team to better service our joint clients and the market," said Jim Schuchard, Hitachi Consulting Europe chief operating officer. "With more than 80 consultants now in the U.K. and eight experienced vice presidents, Hitachi Consulting is well positioned to serve our U.K.-based clients as well as the needs of our global clients in the U.K."In the combined organization, executives from both Impact Plus and Hitachi Consulting U.K. will have significant leadership roles. In addition to Mr. Bailey leading the Industry & Markets initiatives, Charles Reekie, who was involved in the start-up of Hitachi Consulting U.K.'s operations one year ago, will be responsible for the Company's Solutions and Services. In this role, Dr. Reekie will focus on further developing specific solution areas, including Knowledge and Program Management, Business Intelligence and Operational Effectiveness, and will also continue to lead efforts on select accounts in the Public Sector.

"Now that our business here in the U.K. is established, adding the proven capabilities of Impact Plus is the next critical step in our growth plan," said Michael Travis, president and CEO for Hitachi Consulting. "The two companies are well aligned in terms of targeted industries and our portfolios of consulting capabilities are very complementary. There is also a strong cultural fit between the two companies."

Hitachi Consulting began operations in Europe in March of 2006 with offices in London; Madrid and Barcelona, Spain; and Lisbon, Portugal. Earlier this year, an office in Frankfurt, Germany was also opened.

About Impact Plus

Impact Plus was formed in 1990 and is a specialist, independent business and technology consultancy. Its mission is to make a positive impact on the business of its clients, shaping and delivering change in partnership with them. The firm focuses principally on the Financial Services Sector and the Public Sector.Hitachi Ltd.