Cognos and Deloitte Team to Offer Performance Blueprint for Financial Management

– New ‘Powered by Cognos’ Solution addresses the Close, Consolidate and Report Challenge for customers –

BURLINGTON, MA - May 11, 2006— Cognos (Nasdaq: COGN; TSX: CSN), the world leader in business intelligence and performance management solutions today introduced the Close, Consolidate, Report Performance Blueprint (CCR Blueprint).

The CCR Blueprint was developed jointly with Deloitte Inc. and is powered by Cognos 8 Controller enterprise financial consolidation and corporate reporting software. It combines process and technology best-practices that organizations can apply to optimize the closing process and improve financial controls.

Available now, the CCR Blueprint is designed to help organizations face the modern challenge of ensuring integrity and improving the quality and auditability of their financial information while increasing the speed of delivery to internal and external stakeholders. It maps each step in the financial close to the appropriate financial control activity, providing a view of an end to end financial close cycle necessary for organizations to achieve greater data integrity, shorten the cycle and reduce compliance costs.

Within the CCR Blueprint, Deloitte has applied its extensive knowledge of risk and controls to itemize 30 financial control objectives linked to the framework established by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO), a private sector organization dedicated to improving the quality of financial reporting.

“This joint work represents leading practices compiled from related engagements with hundreds of clients,” said Ray Pineda, Enterprise Applications - Performance Management Leader, Deloitte. “The Close, Consolidate, Report process embodies the entire end to end process of the financial close cycle. The process incorporates Cognos Controller as a financial consolidation solution that deals with complex processing such as currency translation, intercompany eliminations and minority interest. It is an important piece for measuring and monitoring performance of the organization. Applying the blueprint’s best-practices and control activities to streamline this process shortens the close cycle and reduces the risk of material misstatements in financial reporting for customers.”

 The CCR Blueprint provides a solution for companies to quickly address gaps and weaknesses in the financial close process, make focused investments and optimize the use of technology. It identifies controls that are dependent upon integration between the financial close process and technology. Cognos 8 Controller financial consolidation and corporate reporting software powers the control objectives that are included.

“This blueprint provides a road-map for customers that includes the necessary process and application controls to implement a consolidation system,” said Renee Lorton, senior vice president and general manager, Performance Management Applications. “With this approach, our customers can be assured that business process best practices are driving optimal use of the technology. Cognos Controller’s automated controls provide greater data integrity, help contain costs around SOX compliance and streamline the entire close, consolidate and report process.”

Performance Blueprints
Cognos offers a full suite of Performance Blueprints to address planning and performance management process areas that directly impact an organization’s ability to create business value. Both functional and industry specific process areas can now be automated, streamlined and transformed to help organizations quickly create more business value.  The Cognos Performance Blueprints are a key component within the Cognos Performance Management System, which combines technology, best practices, analytical applications and solutions, and a broad network of partners into a single performance management solution. For further information on the Cognos Performance Blueprints see: http://www.cognos.com/innovationcenter/blueprint.html.

Cognos 8 Controller
Cognos 8 Controller offers strengthened financial management and control capabilities for enterprise financial consolidation and corporate reporting. Integration with Cognos 8 BI provides proven reporting, analysis, metrics, and event management for distribution of certified financial metrics . For further information see: http://www.cognos.com/products/planning_consolidation/controller/index.html.

Powered by Cognos is an elite program for partners who deliver performance management solutions that combine Cognos technology with their deep domain expertise. These partners deliver solutions focused on key areas, including industry groups, enterprise performance and system infrastructure, all with the objective of enabling and engaging their customers’ to better manage company performance. Members of Powered by Cognos are integral players in delivering fast, proven performance management solutions to Cognos customers.

About Cognos:
Cognos, the world leader in business intelligence and performance management solutions, provides world-class enterprise planning and BI software and services to help companies plan, understand and manage financial and operational performance.

Cognos brings together technology, analytical applications, best practices, and a broad network of partners to give customers a complete performance system. The Cognos performance system is an open and adaptive solution that leverages an organization’s ERP, packaged applications, and database investments. It gives customers the ability to answer the questions -- How are we doing? Why are we on or off track? What should we do about it? – and enables them to understand and monitor current performance while planning future business strategies.

Cognos serves more than 23,000 customers in more than 135 countries, and its top 100 enterprise customers consistently outperform market indexes. Cognos performance management solutions and services are also available from more than 3,000worldwide partners and resellers. For more information, visit the Cognos Web site at http://www.cognos.com.