Cognos Innovation Center Expands to Europe

– New European Programme Office to advance best practices in performance management; expand thought leadership,
customer focus for European-based organizations –

LONDON and BURLINGTON, MA— May 17, 2005 - Cognos (Nasdaq: COGN; TSX: CSN), the world leader in business intelligence and corporate performance management (CPM), is extending the reach of its Innovation Center for Performance Management by launching the Center’s European Programme Office today. This office will advance the understanding of proven planning and performance management techniques, technologies, and practices of organizations in Europe.

The European Programme Office is an integral part of the Cognos Innovation Center for Performance Management, founded in June 2004 to drive innovation and best-practices in performance management. This latest investment further expands Cognos’ commitment to the Office of Finance by bringing successful customer-centric programs and solutions to European customers. Along with the Americas Program Office, it provides an innovation environment to help customers turn performance management ‘next practices’ into everyday practices for improved productivity and growth, return on investment, and alignment of business goals and objectives.

Sonax Group founder, co-founder of The Hackett Group, and renowned author of the popular “Best Practices in Planning and Management Reporting”, David Axson, is an industry advisor to the Cognos Innovation Center for Performance Management.

“I admire Cognos for taking a leadership position in establishing this global network of best-practices centers. Through the Cognos Innovation Center, they’ve taken software from a product-centric, sales-centric business conversation and put it into the context of how customers use it. Cognos also provides customers with content above and beyond software functionality that helps them understand how to use the tools to maximize their investment,” said Axson. “This type of partnering relationship with customers is absolutely key to success in the CPM space.”

The new European Programme Office will mirror the success of the Americas Program Office in serving as a trusted advisor to customers, delivering best-practices techniques and solutions, and partnering with established thought leaders in performance management. After nearly a year, the Cognos Innovation Center for Performance Management has:

• Added over 200 organizations as members, including 7-Eleven, Manpower, Pfizer, Discovery Communications and Lucent.
  
• Delivered Cognos Plan-to-Perform Blueprints: Pre-defined data, process and policy models based on proven best-practices in enterprise planning and designed to help customers’ link operational and financial plans to improve forecast reliability and jump-start deployments.
  
• Enrolled thought leaders David Axson, Beyond Budgeting Round Table’s Research Director Jeremy Hope to its advisory board.
  
• Held more than 10 Innovation Roundtables and Workshops worldwide for over 250 companies to learn from best-practice examples and share insights for planning and performance management innovation.
  
• Regularly published customer case studies and exclusive thought leadership editorial content for members on transforming the Office of Finance to deliver greater value.

Princess Cruise Lines uses Cognos performance management solutions across its financial, human resources and boutiques operations for streamlined financial reporting, ongoing monthly forecasts and overall information transparency for greater visibility across the business. The most recognized cruise line in the world, Princess has been a member of the Cognos Innovation Center for Performance Management since its inception.

“We’ve thoroughly enjoyed sharing best-practices in planning and performance management with other large organizations that are deploying innovative, modern technology to drive corporate performance,” said Greg Bozigian, director of financial planning, Princess Cruises. “The Innovation Roundtables have provided us with a great opportunity to build a network of fellow customers, with similar issues and challenges. Both the external peer perspective and the clear direction provided by Innovation Center experts and thought leaders have helped us speed our deployment.”

Cognos solutions for performance management combine the forward management view of the business (planning, budgeting and forecasting) with the current and historical view of the business (financial consolidations, scorecarding, reporting, and analysis.) These integrated operational and financial views across all relevant time horizons lets customers proactively address business challenges for greater operational effectiveness.

“Driven by its member consortium of thought leaders, forward-thinking executives and finance practitioners, the Cognos Innovation Center for Performance Management is successfully advancing next-generation best-practices in performance management for customers in the Americas,” said David Kleinhans, vice-president, Performance Management Applications, Cognos. “The new European Programme Office will build on this momentum to help customers engage with industry peers and thought leaders, take cutting-edge approaches and adopt and sustain innovative practices for improved performance across the organization in Europe.”

About Cognos:

Cognos delivers the next level of competitive advantage - Corporate Performance Management (CPM) - achieved through the strategic application of BI on an enterprise scale. Our integrated CPM solution helps customers drive performance through planning; monitor performance through scorecarding; and understand performance through business intelligence.

Cognos serves more than 23,000 customers in over 135 countries. Cognos enterprise business intelligence and performance management solutions and services are also available from more than 3,000 worldwide partners and resellers. For more information, visit the Cognos Web site at http://www.cognos.com.