SEATTLE, WA.,- October 16, 2000 - ConneXt®, a Seattle-based software developer of billing and customer care solutions for the utility industry, announced today that Irene M. Stillings has been appointed vice president of business development. In her new position, Stillings will be responsible for developing business opportunities at an executive level with ConneXt prospects and alliance partners.

“Irene brings a fresh perspective and a wealth of experience to our operation,” says Bob Dryden, chief executive officer of ConneXt. “Her expertise in customer care, marketing and sales within the energy industry will make a significant contribution to our business strategies.”

Prior to her appointment at ConneXt, Stillings was the director of customer care at Navigant Consulting. At Navigant, she created a customer care practice and developed and sold a customer care performance, cost, and satisfaction benchmarking study to energy companies. From 1997-1999, Stillings founded and ran imsMENTOR, a firm dedicated to enhancing individual and organizational effectiveness, with a focus on revitalization and retention of key employees and call center performance improvement.

Ms. Stillings’ career in the energy industry began in 1976, at New York State Electric & Gas where she focused primarily on the marketing, sales, and customer service aspects of the business. In various executive roles, including assistant vice president of customer service & communications and vice president of marketing & sales, she developed and implemented a menu of outreach, education, marketing and customer service programs that brought awards to NYSEG, gained praise from regulators and were adopted by other companies across the country.

Ms. Stillings has been an active participant in industry organizations, including the Edison Electric Institute (EEI), the American Gas Association (AGA) and the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). She served as chair of the EEI Consumer Affairs Committee, the EEI Negotiation Task Force, the EEI E-Seal Committee, The National Food and Energy Council and the EPRI Demand Side Management Task Force. She was a member of the EEI Executive Advisory Committee, the AGA Consumer Affairs Committee and the EPRI Customer Systems Division Committee. She also has chaired the Marketing Executive Conference.

Ms. Stillings is an accomplished public speaker, delivering presentations on employee and customer care, outsourcing and organization change to audiences all over the country. Among her many accomplishments, Stillings was installed in the Wall of Fame at the National Women’s Hall of Fame in recognition of her strong leadership role in the development and advancement of women. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Rochester, Magna cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa. She also holds a Master of Social Science degree from Syracuse University.

About ConneXt:
ConneXt is a provider of sophisticated, packaged CIS software targeted to utilities. Comprehensive, flexible and scalable, ConneXt billing and customer care solutions allow utilities to thrive in a deregulating energy market. Its flagship product, ConsumerLinX, is a powerful CIS featuring high-volume product billing for residential, commercial and industrial customers.

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