FeaturePlan enables Orrtax to better collaborate between Product Management and Development.

Montreal, Quebec – October 1, 2004 – Ryma Technology Solutions Inc., the first company to deliver an Enterprise Product Management (EPM) solution for Product Managers that employs best practices from the Pragmatic Marketing® Framework, announced today that Orrtax Software Solutions, has chosen FeaturePlan to help them manage their product requirements information gathering and product planning for their Product Management team based in Bellevue, Washington.

Orrtax Software Solutions is one of the top tax preparation software companies in the country, as well as a leading electronic tax filing center, filing millions of tax returns with the IRS each year. Orrtax develops, publishes and markets IntelliTax software for income tax preparation, electronic filing, and bank products associated with income tax refunds.

Prior to implementing FeaturePlan, Orrtax Software Solutions’ Product Management team utilized a less sophisticated process that often resulted in product managers not being able to effectively track features being built into new releases of their products as well as limited collaboration between product groups. During a restructuring process, the Product Management team sought a critical time-quality approach that focused product managers on product functionality with a short time-to-market and high usability quality. Their goals also included focusing on strategy – input gathering, guiding the direction of development, priorities and managing the outputs and audience of their product messaging.

“When looking for a Product Management solution, we wanted to be able to allow our Product Managers to become more effective and efficient at managing their products, rather than just administering them,” explained Stuart Lisk, Director of Product Management. “We also needed an application that could become a single repository of information and knowledge for the team and facilitate an environment for collaboration between product management, development, sales and customers.”

With six product managers, Orrtax’s evaluation of FeaturePlan concluded that it was the last missing piece to bridge collaboration efforts. Recognizing it wouldn’t change the quality of the requirements, Orrtax benefits from FeaturePlan as it prompts product managers to provide development the information they need to produce better products. FeaturePlan also provides Orrtax a new vehicle for direct customer contact, providing enhancement requests and instant confirmation of receipt. As a result, account managers can be confident their customers are being heard and that ultimately reinforces customer satisfaction and Orrtax’s reputation.

“As a result of using FeaturePlan, I expect that next year at this time there will be an on-going dialog between product management and development throughout the year, rather than the periodic meetings,” said Lisk. “With FuturePlan we now also have an easily managed venue for customers and sales to provide product.”

“We are pleased that Orrtax Software Solutions has selected FeaturePlan as their Enterprise Product Management solution to enable them to better collaborate between Product Management and Development,” stated Andre Levesque, President of Ryma Technology Solutions. “We know from experience if your product managers aren’t listening to their customers, their competitors will. In that regard, we built FeaturePlan with a flexible and robust input gathering capability so product managers will be able to quickly sift through requests and prioritize them effectively… collaborating with their development teams to bring to market a great solution that satisfies their customers needs.”

About ORRTAX Software Solutions

Orrtax Software Solutions develops, publishes and markets software for income tax preparation, electronic filing and bank products associated with income tax refunds. One of the nation’s leading tax preparation software companies, Orrtax is also recognized as a leading electronic filing center, filing millions of tax returns annually.

A 20-year veteran in tax preparation software, Orrtax is an innovator in the electronic tax preparation marketplace. As software technology transitioned through the years, Orrtax Software remained consistent with its corporate goals of producing high-quality software while pursuing business opportunities through new product development.

Orrtax Software Solutions Press Contact:

Contact: Cindy Salazar
email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
voice: 425.957.8115
website: http://www.orrtax.com

About Ryma Technology Solutions, Inc.

Ryma Technology Solutions Inc. is the first company to deliver a solution for Product Managers that employs best practices from the Pragmatic Marketing Framework. In addition to Ryma's flagship product, FeaturePlan, Ryma provides a full range of professional services that assist organizations in implementing market-driven best practices for their product management team. Headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Ryma Technology Solutions is led by an experienced management team and serves a rapidly expanding customer base.