CKCM Click Commerce

Click Commerce, Inc. (Nasdaq:CKCM), a leading provider of collaborative portals for hospitals and research institutions, announced today that The Methodist Hospital Research Institute has selected the Click Commerce eResearch Portal as its platform for a comprehensive electronic research administration initiative. The Institute, a cornerstone of The Methodist Hospital's strategic vision for its future as a top-ranked academic medical center, will use the eResearch Portal to automate the major research administration functions of the organization including the Institutional Review Board (IRB), Grants and Contracts, Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC), and Conflict of Interest functions. The system provides researchers a seamless Web interface to manage their complete research portfolio. "The goal of the new online system is to streamline the administrative processes and allow the investigators to focus their time on research," said Edward A. Jones, vice president and associate director for administration for the Methodist Hospital Research Institute. "The new system will let us quickly automate our core research administration processes before the NIH (National Institutes of Health) requires all grant submissions to be submitted electronically by the end of the 2006. We hope this new system will make NIH submissions simple right from the start for our researchers." The Institute plans to move the IRB module into production this month, followed by the Grants & Contracts module. With the Click Commerce eResearch Portal, The Institute will route and review IRB applications and funding proposals internally before the funding requests are submitted electronically to the Federal government's new site, www.grants.gov. In addition, researchers will have increased access to electronic tools for closer collaboration with budget analysts and financial specialists. This closer collaboration will help researchers accurately complete new government funding forms and research grants, such as the SF424, to ensure a smooth application submission process. "Research procedures are becoming increasingly complex, and forward-looking institutions like Methodist are turning to Internet-based systems to help them save time and reduce errors," said Nancy Koenig, executive vice president of operations for Click Commerce. "The Click Commerce eResearch Portal was specifically designed to streamline complexity by uniting grants, IRB and other processes on a single platform." In addition to the Methodist Hospital Research Institute, some of the leading research institutions in the United States such as the Mayo Clinic, Johns Hopkins University, the University of Pittsburgh, Columbus Children's Research Institute, and the University of Michigan use the Click Commerce eResearch Portal for Grants, IRB, IACUC, and Conflict of Interest processes. All have joined together to form the Click Compliance Consortium, where they share best practices and collaborate on key issues in eResearch and compliance. About The Methodist Hospital Research Institute The Methodist Hospital Research Institute is a cornerstone of The Methodist Hospital's strategic vision for its future as a top-ranked academic medical center. The Methodist Hospital Research Institute conducts groundbreaking translational and clinical research to provide the best possible care for patients. Their goal is to make the latest laboratory findings available to patients in the form of new treatments and clinical trials as rapidly as possible. The Institute is committed to moving the latest discoveries in the laboratory to the bedside in order to provide a new standard of care for patients and those in other parts of the country. About Click Commerce, Inc. Click Commerce (Nasdaq:CKCM) collaborative portal solutions enable research and healthcare professionals to streamline complex review processes, eliminate hardcopy paperwork, and improve quality and accuracy through electronic submissions. Six of the top 10 research institutions in the United States, including Johns Hopkins, Washington University, and the University of Michigan, use the Company's research administration software to automate regulatory compliance, grant management, and clinical trial processes. More information can be found at http://research.clickcommerce.com. Click Commerce supply chain management solutions enable millions of users in 70 countries to collaborate, in real time, with business partners across the extended enterprise. The Company helps corporations such as Alaska Airlines, BASF, Citibank, Delphi, Eastman Kodak Company, Jabil Global Services, Lockheed Martin, Microsoft, Pier 1, Ryder, and Verizon coordinate and optimize business processes, accelerate revenue, lower costs, and improve customer service. More information can be found at www.clickcommerce.com.