LONDON — 22 March 2010 — [@PR2WEB] - Hitachi Consulting UK today announced the deployment of a Performance Management Portal for Luton Borough Council (LBC) based on Microsoft’s Business Intelligence platform. The key objective was to help Luton Borough Council monitor and manage its performance by making it easier for LBC staff and partners, including local Primary Care Trust (PCT) and Police to collate and share the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) easily.

Out of 198 national indicators – as defined by the Audit Commission – up to 35 are chosen by each council to be achieved by 2011 and these form part of their Local Area Agreement (LAA). However, a recent report by the Audit Commission found that councils are sometimes basing important decisions on unreliable information.

LBC was heavily reliant on manual processes – reporting systems were labour intensive and access to information by relevant stakeholders and partner organisations, such as the Police and PCT, was not straightforward or readily available.

Hitachi Consulting UK provided business consulting, analysis and development services to assist LBC in the following areas:

- Define the business requirements for a Performance Management solution and
develop a roadmap, business case and strategy for the deployment of the solution

- Verify the use of the Microsoft Business Intelligence (BI) platform to support the
Performance Management strategy and business requirements

- Initiate Phase 1 of the Performance Management Portal solution including the design, development and deployment of the solution to the LBC performance management corporate reporting team, departmental performance officers and LBC partners; Police and PCT

- Install and configure the Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 environment to support the Performance Management Portal solution and other strategic portal applications

- Plan Phases 2 and 3 of the Performance Management Portal scheduled for 2010

Hitachi Consulting UK implemented a Performance Management solution using the Microsoft Business Intelligence platform to support LBC performance management requirements today and in the future. It provides a joined-up and common framework to be used across all LBC’s 18 service areas, as well as external partner organisations, via a Web-based portal, to access and input data. Not only does the system reduce the need for manual processes, increase day to day business and process efficiency associated with data collation from telephone calls, emails and Excel spreadsheets, and improve reporting capabilities, the Performance Management solution is a way in which LBC can realise the benefits and value of its Microsoft deployments since signing up to a 3-year Microsoft Enterprise Agreement in July 2008.

The council has also used the technologies purchased in the Microsoft Enterprise Agreement, which has seen a saving of some £2.8 m over a 3-year period to implement this system. For the Portal, it is expected that further benefits will be seen, once this system is then utilised across the council, as the corporate system for the production and sharing of any information related to the performance of services across the Council.
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About Hitachi Consulting Corporation
As Hitachi, Ltd.'s (NYSE: HIT) global consulting company, with operations in the United States, Europe and Asia, Hitachi Consulting is a recognized leader in delivering proven business and IT strategies and solutions to Global 2000 companies across many industries. With a balanced view of strategy, people, process and technology, we work with companies to understand their unique business needs, and to develop and implement practical business strategies and technology solutions. From business strategy development through application deployment, our consultants are committed to helping clients quickly realize measurable business value and achieve sustainable ROI. Hitachi Consulting's client base includes 25 percent of the Global 100 as well as many leading mid-market companies. We offer a client-focused, collaborative approach and transfer knowledge throughout each engagement.

For more information, call 1.877.664.0010 or visit www.hitachiconsulting.com

About Hitachi, Ltd.
Hitachi, Ltd., (NYSE: HIT / TSE: 6501) is a leading global technological and industrial company with total revenues of ¥10,000 billion ($102.0 billion) for the year ended March 31, 2009. Hitachi’s business is highly diversified, encompassing operations in the following seven segments: Information & Telecommunication Systems; Electronic Devices; Power & Industrial Systems; Digital Media & Consumer Products; High Functional Materials & Components; Logistics, Services & Others; and Financial Services.

For more information on Hitachi, please visit Hitachi's website at http://www.hitachi.com

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For further information, please contact:
Vanessa Land
Devonshire Marketing
Tel: 0870 242 7469
Email: vanessa[at]devonshiremarketing[dot]com

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