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J.D. Power and Completes Strategic Combination with Baker & Co.

21 April 1999

J.D. Power and Associates Completes Strategic Combination with Baker & Company; Richard Baker to Head New Business-to-Business Consulting Division

    AGOURA HILLS, Calif.--April 21, 1999--J.D. Power and Associates Wednesday announced that it has completed its strategic combination with Baker & Company, a worldwide management consulting firm specializing in business-to-business strategy and operations.
    J.D. Power and Associates, which has nearly doubled its annual revenue since 1996, is recognized as one of the fastest-growing global market research firms in terms of nonacquisition-based growth.
    "This strategic move will not only enhance our already strong assessment and consulting capabilities, but also expands our portfolio of customers and specialized services both domestically and internationally," said Steve Goodall, president and chief operating officer at J.D. Power and Associates.
    "We now posses a unique set of skills in terms of business-to-business customer satisfaction assessment, client management, commercial market strategy and supply chain management."
    Baker & Company President and Founder Richard Baker said: "My colleagues and I are very excited to be part of a company with the reputation and resources of J.D. Power and Associates. We look forward to bringing broader capabilities to our clients as a result of this strategic combination."
    With headquarters in Dallas, Baker & Company has been a long-time alliance partner of J.D. Power and Associates and has extensive consulting experience in the automotive and telecommunications industries. The firm develops business models and marketing strategies to help clients identify and implement new initiatives for evolving competitive situations.
    Baker & Company will be operated as a wholly owned division of J.D. Power and Associates. The new Dallas-based division represents the firm's first office in the Southwest region of the United States. Baker will head the new division as a senior partner at J.D. Power and Associates.
    Since founding Baker & Company in 1978, Baker has consulted to senior and executive management for numerous companies in the transportation and automotive arena including Arco, Exxon, Textron, TRW, Delphi Automotive Systems, NASA, Chrysler and Bosch. He also has consulted for a number of telecommunications/information companies including AT&T, NYNEX, U.S. West, SBC Communications, DRI/McGraw-Hill, Chase Information and GTE.
    His research has led to the development of the GETTING COMPETITIVE(r) model, which is the seminal work on how mature organizations identify and implement new strategies in evolving competitive situations. Baker also co-developed a widely used model for business-to-business marketing strategy, LEADERSHIP IN CUSTOMER SATISFACTION(tm).
    Prior to establishing Baker & Company, Baker was vice president of SMS, a Boston-based consulting firm. He also served as an officer in the U.S. Navy after graduating valedictorian from the University of Dallas in 1965.
    With headquarters in Agoura Hills, J.D. Power and Associates is a privately held global marketing information services firm operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting and customer satisfaction. The firm's quality and satisfaction measurements are based on actual customer responses from more than 1 million consumers annually.
    J.D. Power and Associates has U.S. offices in Torrance, Calif.; Dallas; Detroit; and Westport, Conn. The firm also has international offices serving Canada, the United Kingdom/Europe and the Asia Pacific region. J.D. Power and Associates can be accessed through the World Wide Web at www.jdpower.com. Media e-mail contact: matthew.scroggs@jdpower.com.