Week in Review -- 3/21/03

M&A Update Skywire Software, a privately owned software company that provides enterprise software and integration applications, this week acquired Attenza, provider of online CRM software, in a cash and stock transaction. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Amdocs, a provider of CRM and billing software, this week announced it has acquired the assets of now defunct CRM provider Xchange. Terms were not disclosed, but industry sources value the deal at just over $5 million. The company says it plans to add Xchange's features into its ClarifyCRM suite. Cisco Systems has signed a definitive agreement to acquire privately held SignalWorks, a developer of IP Telephony software. Under the terms of the agreement, Cisco common stock, worth an aggregate value of approximately $13.5 million, will be exchanged for all outstanding shares and options of SignalWorks. The acquisition of SignalWorks is expected to close by the fourth quarter of Cisco's fiscal year 2003. In the News More than 60 percent of retail companies anticipate a significant increase in their expenditures for CRM during the next two years, according to the CRMretail Survey, conducted for the National Retail Federation by Gartner Dataquest in conjunction with Ogden Associates. The study also found that 80 percent of retailers are endorsing CRM as a strategy to extend business, up from 74 percent last year. Also, 64 percent of retailers are using CRM to boost current initiatives, up from 62 percent last year. Surebridge, a Microsoft Business Solutions Inner Circle member and mid-market CRM outsourcer, made the claim this week that it is the first application outsourcer to offer Microsoft CRM in a hosted environment. Surebridge says its online MS CRM product was made possible through the company's recent acquisition of ManagedOps.com., a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner for Hosting and Application Services. Executive Changes C360 solutions, a consulting firm specializing in Microsoft CRM deployments, has announced the appointment of Scott Millwood to the role of CEO. Millwood previously served as the executive vice president of corporate sales and alliances at Datastream Systems. Sento, a provider of integrated, multichannel customer support, announced Monday the appointment of Russell Baird as vice president of solutions development. Prior to joining Sento, Baird served as director of development for Candessa Interactive Darren Peterson was named the new vice president of marketing at E-Z Data, which provides insurance and investment-related CRM solutions.