NineSigma Adds President to Executive Team

CLEVELAND, OH--(Marketwire - September 3, 2008) - NineSigma, the leading provider of open innovation solutions for Global 1000 companies, today announced the appointment of Matthew Heim, Ph.D., as company president. Heim has more than 25 years of international management experience in the consulting and strategic planning industries, including serving as a managing partner of Clarkston Consulting, a leading management and technology consulting firm. At NineSigma, Heim will be responsible for global sales and marketing, business and new product development, alliances and the implementation of best practices across the company's Japan, Europe and U.S. offices.

Heim spent the majority of his career working in the areas of strategic visioning, corporate turnarounds, innovation planning and large-scale systems change. At Clarkston Consulting, Heim served for nine years as managing partner of the strategic services group, where he was responsible for P&L, development, sales and delivery of all client-related strategic services. His clients included Kimberly-Clark, Brown-Forman, ConAgra, Bayer, Johnson & Johnson, McKesson and General Electric.

"Matthew's impressive professional background, leadership experience and strategic perspective make him an excellent choice to serve as president of NineSigma," said Paul Stiros, chief executive officer of NineSigma. "He has worked extensively with Global 1000 companies and has a firm grasp of what it takes to help companies create an environment that can fully leverage external technology and knowledge. We look forward to his leadership as we continue to expand our open innovation offerings and reach into new industry segments and regions around the world."

Heim began his career in the United States Army as a German interpreter and telecommunications specialist. Following his military service, he worked in a variety of management and executive roles, including managing director with Coopers & Lybrand/PriceWaterhouseCoopers; principal at KPMG Peat Marwick Consulting in Frankfurt, Germany; and senior project director at TechDyn Systems Corporation in Heidelberg, Germany.

"I am truly excited about the opportunity to work with Paul and the rest of the NineSigma team to build upon their success in open innovation," stated Heim. "There is tremendous potential for our industry as companies around the world are hungry for new products, ideas and technology. NineSigma is well positioned to capitalize on this enthusiasm and growth, with top tier customers, the largest open network of solution providers and proven expertise and methodologies."

Heim recently authored the book, "Breaking the Musashi Code: Transcending Competition through Visionary Strategy" and currently serves as adjunct Professor at Dominican University of California's School of Business and Leadership. He earned a bachelor's degree in information systems management from the University of Maryland, a master's degree in human development from Fielding Graduate University, a master's degree in systems management from the University of Southern California and a Ph.D. in human and organizational systems from Fielding Graduate University.

About NineSigma

NineSigma partners with Global 1000 companies to help them overcome business and technology challenges by connecting them with innovative solutions not readily available in the public domain. NineSigma's open network of innovators is the largest of its kind and spans industries, geographies and technical disciplines. Companies such as DuPont, GlaxoSmithKline, Kraft, P&G, Philips, Unilever and Xerox engage NineSigma to build new innovation capabilities that leverage global research and innovation to deliver greater value to their customers. In 2008, NineSigma ranked among the top 20 percent of companies on the Inc. 5000 list of fastest growing private companies in the United States. The company also has offices in Belgium and Japan. For more information, visit www.ninesigma.com.

Contact Information: Media Contact: Dan Dyer 513-478-7818