AkzoNobel Selects Datacert Passport to Elevate Strategic Insight into Global Operations

-- Datacert's global expertise, best practices, and robust technology drove company's decision to select Passport

LONDON, April 2, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Datacert, Inc., the premier global provider of enterprise legal management solutions, today announced that AkzoNobel, a leading global paints and coatings company and a major producer of specialty chemicals, headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, has selected Passport® Matter Management and Legal Spend Management to add more efficiency and accountability to its legal department operations.  The selection supports the continuation of an intensive modernisation effort by the company's legal department, which includes the recent successful completion of an extensive knowledge management initiative.

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AkzoNobel selected Datacert based on its global expertise, best practices, and technology leadership.  With Passport Matter Management and Legal Spend Management, AkzoNobel will be able to introduce more strategic insight and process into its legal operations.  The company will also implement the Passport Data Warehouse, Outlook® Module, Global eBilling Tax Compliance Module, and internal time tracking capabilities.  Additionally, the company will integrate Passport with CPi, AkzoNobel's intellectual property management system, and with its internal procurement system to meet mandated corporate business requirements.

According to Robin Hall, Senior Counsel at AkzoNobel, "Following the successful rollout of the Legal Academy, our new knowledge management program, we are continuing our legal department modernisation efforts by introducing additional technology and processes that will allow us to strategically source and evaluate legal operations.  After a comprehensive RFP and vendor evaluation process, we determined that Datacert was the company that could meet our long-term needs.  We selected Datacert for its unique ability to truly support global ebilling, its comprehensive portfolio of best practices, critical capabilities such as behind-the-firewall deployment, and its extensive training program offered by the Datacert Learning Institute." 

Passport will be deployed in the first half of 2013 to AkzoNobel legal operations in the Netherlands, UK, and US.  Following this initial rollout, the Passport implementation will be extended to the remaining 12 countries around the world where AkzoNobel has legal staff. 

"The complexities of global legal operations demand a robust technology foundation that can meet AkzoNobel's growing and evolving requirements.  With our long-established presence in Europe, advanced global ebilling capabilities, and in-depth knowledge of legal operations, only Datacert has the expertise and worldwide presence to meet and exceed AkzoNobel's needs," said Jim Tallman, president and chief executive officer, Datacert.

Passport complements AkzoNobel's efforts to create a more efficient and accountable legal department.  With it, the company will have insight into legal operations that enables effective management of global projects, operational structure, personnel, and internal processes.  Passport Matter Management and Legal Spend Management, combined with capabilities such as internal time tracking and integration with Outlook, will allow the company to improve efficiencies and obtain a higher-level view of business by giving a complete picture of in-house and outside counsel operations.  This includes the ability to easily ascertain firm engagements and workloads, assignments, and capacities in relation to their businesses worldwide. 

With the Passport Data Warehouse, AkzoNobel will have comprehensive reporting capabilities across data from Passport and external systems.  For example, with the planned integration of data from AkzoNobel's IP management system into the Passport Data Warehouse, the company will be able to analyse intellectual property data in context with its legal matter and spend data.  By uniting multiple sources of data, AkzoNobel will gain new insight into the management of matters, risk and spend.

For more information about Passport, please contact Datacert at 800-780-3681 or e-mail nasales@datacert.com (North American inquiries) or emeasales@datacert.com (international inquiries).

About AkzoNobel
AkzoNobel is a leading global paints and coatings company and a major producer of specialty chemicals.  AkzoNobel supplies industries and consumers worldwide with innovative products and is passionate about developing sustainable answers for its customers.  AkzoNobel's portfolio includes well-known brands, such as Dulux, Sikkens, International, and Eka.  Headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, AkzoNobel is consistently ranked as one of the leaders in the area of sustainability.  With operations in more than 80 countries, the company's 50,000 people around the world are committed to excellence and delivering Tomorrow's Answers Today™.

About Datacert, Inc.
Datacert is a global technology innovator and the premier provider of enterprise legal management software and services that empower corporate legal, compliance, and risk departments and claims organizations to operate more efficiently, support changing business needs and global workforces, and collaborate with external service providers.  Datacert's offerings include its patent-pending technology platform, Passport®, solutions to manage legal matters, mitigate risk, and control legal and claims spend, as well as innovative business intelligence offerings for organizations that require advanced legal decision support.   Datacert solutions are used by Fortune 500 and Fortune Global 500 corporations, 100 percent of the AmLaw 200, and thousands of legal suppliers around the world.  Headquartered in Houston, Texas with offices throughout North America, EMEA, and APAC, Datacert has law firm, vendor, and agent connections in more than 150 countries.  Visit http://www.datacert.com for more information and follow us on Twitter for real-time updates http://twitter.com/Datacert.

Media Contact:

Debra Marino
Datacert, Inc.
+1-832-369-6171
pr@datacert.com