Neoware and Unicru Form Alliance to Serve the Hiring Needs of Leading Employers

New alliance pairs Neoware thin client appliances with Unicru hiring management system for a turn-key in store hiring solution for the retail, supermarket, call center and transportation industries


KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa., May 13, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Neoware Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:NWRE), the leading supplier of award-winning software, services and managed thin client appliances, and Unicru, Inc., the leading provider of Workforce Selection and Optimization Systems, have joined forces to give hiring managers in the retail, supermarket, call center and transportation industries a total solution to attract, select and retain the most productive hourly employees while lowering recruitment and operating costs.

During the average U.S. workday, the Unicru Workforce Selection and Optimization System processes and evaluates approximately one application per second. Running on on-site Application Centers and corporate Web sites, Unicru has processed more than 15 million job applications. On average, Unicru customers see 10-40 percent decreases in employee turnover and a reduction in the hiring process by as much as half. Customers currently utilizing Unicru's products include CVS, Albertsons, Bennigan's, Universal Studios, Blockbuster and Marriott.

Under the agreement, Neoware and Unicru have already deployed solutions to leading retailers, and the two companies will jointly promote their products and participate in sales opportunities together.

Unicru's in-store Application Center, which is powered by a Neoware thin client appliance, requires prospective employees to fill out background information and qualifying experience that is captured by the Unicru Workforce Selection and Optimization System. Instead of managers manually sorting through multiple pages of often-illegible paper applications to find the most qualified people, the Unicru system quickly analyzes applicant data and delivers the best matches to the hiring professionals, who can then begin the interview process often while the candidates are still in the store.

Instead of deploying PCs, retailers can now utilize Unicru's solution with secure, centrally managed thin clients with lower up-front and total lifecycle costs and significantly greater security. According to Chris Marsh, president and CEO at Unicru, "Neoware's secure thin clients provide a robust delivery vehicle for the Unicru hiring management solution, as they can withstand the rigors of diverse environments such as those present in retail stores. In addition, we have selected Neoware as our partner based on the Company's proven product performance and leading position in the thin client market."

The Unicru automated hiring solution provides employers with an unprecedented level of candidate quality control through tailored job-specific assessments and occupation related employment application questions. The Company's Workforce Selection and Optimization System lowers hiring and labor costs by presenting only the most qualified candidates to hiring managers, streamlining tax credits, screening out prior theft applicants and eliminating payment of non-qualifying unemployment claims. Coupled with Neoware's thin client appliance as a platform for its in-store system, Unicru is a turn-key solution for hiring and retaining world-class employees.

"Employers will quickly reap the benefits of Unicru's closed-loop hiring system, as well as Neoware's centrally-managed, secure thin clients, which will further reduce the cost of assessing potential employees," said Michael Kantrowitz, Chairman and CEO of Neoware Systems. "Implementing thin client appliances and an automated workforce selection system will enable our clients to save money and focus on what they do best - servicing their customers."

Neoware's thin client appliances are ideal for organizations that are looking for a cost effective way to provide access to applications running on servers across local, wide-area and wireless networks or over the Internet. Neoware's unique, managed software approach to thin client computing provides customers with an easily administered, centrally managed, secure thin client solution, providing lower costs, more functionality, greater expandability and higher quality than comparable solutions.

About Unicru

Unicru is the leading provider of Workforce Selection and Optimization solutions that enable enterprises to efficiently attract and systematically select world-class employees. Through its comprehensive Web-based service, Unicru evaluates over six million job applicants a year for their prospective productivity, reliability, and job fit. Unicru combines scientifically-proven employee selection assessments, applicant recruitment, hiring management decision support, and complete data capture for measurement and continuous improvement of business results for over 60 enterprises and brands including CVS, Albertsons, Bennigan's, Universal Studios, Blockbuster, Marriott, Kroger, and Southeastern Freightlines. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.unicru.com.

About Neoware

Neoware provides software, services, and solutions to enable Appliance Computing, a proven Internet-based computing architecture targeted at business customers that is designed to be simpler and easier than traditional PC-based computing. Neoware's software and management tools power and manage a new generation of smart computing appliances that utilize the benefits of open, industry-standard technologies to create new alternatives to personal computers used in business and a wide variety of proprietary business devices.

Neoware's products are designed to run local applications for specific vertical markets, plus allow access across a network to multi-user Windows servers, Linux servers, mainframes, minicomputers, and the Internet. Computing appliances that run and are managed by Neoware's software offer the cost benefits of industry-standard hardware and software, easier installation, and have lower up-front, maintenance, and administrative costs than proprietary or PC-based alternatives.

More information about Neoware can be found on the Web at http://www.neoware.com or via email at invest@neoware.com. Neoware is based in King of Prussia, PA.

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements regarding: the growth of the thin client market; our position as the fastest growing player in the thin client computing market; our position as the leading supplier of software, products, services and solutions for the Appliance Computing market; and the benefits of our software-focused business model allowing customers to preserve capital investment and lower ongoing costs of ownership. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted in any such forward-looking statement include our ability to continue to lower our costs, our timely development and customers' acceptance of our Appliance Computing products, pricing pressures, rapid technological changes in the industry, growth of the Appliance Computing market, increased competition, our ability to attract and retain qualified personnel, our ability to identify and successfully consummate and integrate future acquisitions, adverse changes in customer order patterns, adverse changes in general economic conditions in the U.S. and internationally, risks associated with foreign operations and political and economic uncertainties associated with current world events. These and other risks are detailed from time to time in Neoware's periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, but not limited to, its report on Form 10-K for its fiscal year ended June 30, 2002 and Form 10-Q for the quarter ended December 31, 2002

Neoware is a registered trademark of Neoware Systems, Inc. All other names products and services are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.

From:
Gregory FCA Communications, Inc.
27 W. Athens Ave.
Ardmore, PA  19003

Contact:
Tim Cifelli
(610) 642-8253
email: tim@gregoryfca.com

For:
Neoware Systems, Inc.
400 Feheley Drive
King of Prussia, PA  19406

Contact:
Sharon O'Shea
(610) 277-8300, ext. 1743
email: sharon.oshea@neoware.com