NEW YORK, June 13, 2000 (PRIMEZONE) -- Consistent with its aggressive growth strategy, VISION, an international Web integrator, recently announced the addition of Alisdair K. M. Birch as its new chief technology officer. Birch's arrival at VISION highlights the company's success in attracting world-class Internet experts to its flourishing talent pool, strengthening its market position and ensuring continued success for the future.
Birch comes to VISION from US Interactive where, as vice president of technology and engineering, he grew the company's technology and engineering department from a staff of five to 30. In this position, Birch directed the architecture, design and development of multi-million dollar e-commerce sites, as well as coordinating strategic alliances with IBM, Oracle, Vignette, Sun and Microsoft.
"I was attracted to VISION's extraordinary history within the Internet arena and its remarkable foresight," said Birch. "VISION's deep technical experience in systems and back-end integration, e-CRM, business process re-engineering and extensive international history of delivery, give it a foundation which few other Internet professional services firms can match or provide. I am extremely excited about joining this impressive group of talented professionals and look forward to helping the company continue to broaden and strengthen its end-to-end services."
Birch, who holds an M.S./Ph.D in computer science from La Salle University, has a long history within new media and a significant technology background that includes professional endeavors with several Fortune 500 companies. In 1985 Birch founded and served as director of Sounds Digital Ltd., where he oversaw projects for companies such as Sun Microsystems Ltd., Microsoft U.K. Ltd., Microcomputer Unit Ltd. Most notably, he was the leading consultant and technical architect for three worldwide projects for Ford Motor Company Ltd., between1986-92, and served as technical consultant and architect for IBM Corporation USA and IBM U.K. Ltd., between 1994-99.
"Birch's extensive global experience to date along with his energy and exciting visions for the future makes him a valued new member to the already highly skilled and creative team we are building here at VISION," said John Crowley, president of U.S. operations for VISION. "We've got ambitious plans for our future as a new breed of Web integrator, and this appointment is key to their realization."
About VISION
Established in Dublin in 1984, VISION (www.vision.com) is a leading international Web systems integrator with over 400 consultants working in New York, Los Angeles, London, Dublin, Belfast and Edinburgh. The company's North American headquarters are located in New York City. VISION has provided Internet based solutions for some of the largest financial institutions in the world including Citibank, Intelligent Finance - a division of Halifax plc, JP Morgan and Ulster Bank (a subsidiary of NatWest); for entertainment giant Warner Music Group; and Web start-ups including TheStreet.com, Predict It, Big Star Entertainment, Network Solutions Inc. and ME.net.