CHETEK, WISCONSIN - 18 December 1998 - Wisconsin-based Competitive Intelligence (CI) firm, Aurora WDC, has announced the appointment of Managing Director, Arik R. Johnson, as Wisconsin Chapter Coordinator of the Society of Competitive Intelligence Professionals (SCIP).

"I'm excited to be coordinating activities for the SCIP Wisconsin Chapter," Johnson said. "There is a long tradition of applying CI in business at many Wisconsin-based firms, and others with branches or subsidiaries in the state. I'll be working with SCIP to gear up activity around Wisconsin as the profession continues to grow and highlight some of Wisconsin's cutting-edge examples of competitive strategy. I'm really very honored to be selected."

News of Johnson's appointment comes on the heels of the launch of the company's "Scholastica" Web-based CI training and its integration with Aurora's Recon suite of CI solutions. Scholastica is designed to deliver a cost-effective alternative to classroom training via the Internet using video-conferencing and shared workspace technology.

"There's been a lot of enthusiasm about Web-based and computer-based instruction recently - not particular to continuing education in CI, but all kinds of training. We spent a lot of time evaluating solutions available for delivery of Web-based learning. The most interesting thing we found is that, the key to delivery is a live instructor. Most of the applications out there today don't provide that for students and we can deliver that with Internet videoconferencing."

Existing courses are being converted from Aurora's live classroom format for delivery via the Net, Johnson said, and the new format helps clients avoid travel and lodging costs and interruption of work activity, while providing a longer-term learning experience. "Most seminar-style courses last a day or two and you likely have to travel away from home or spend money on lodging. Scholastica is a way to deliver a class over a period of a full month or more - and that means participants are going to be able to apply the principles learned in class over time. That's a big difference from sending people home with a manual and a some notes and expecting people to apply what they've learned."

"The most important law of modern business today is that the rate of change continues to accelerate," Johnson said. "As we see increased merger and acquisition activity in industry sectors like telecommunications, computers and software, healthcare and financial services the importance of knowing the future plans of your business rivals is more important than ever. Wisconsin's no exception to that law and CI provides the tools to profit from those changes."