Atlanta, GA—January 9, 2003 - Six Continents Hotels, Inc. (www.sixcontinentshotels.com), the world’s most global hotel company, announced that Doug Lewis, executive vice president and chief information officer, has been recognized by IDG’s Computerworld, the weekly newspaper for IT leaders, as one of the business world’s Premier 100 IT Leaders. The award honors individuals who have creatively applied technology to execute their organizations’ business strategies.

The Premier 100 IT Leaders award, now entering its fourth year, recognizes exceptional technology leadership, innovative approaches to business challenges, and effective execution of comprehensive IT strategies. Lewis will be honored at the Computerworld Premier 100 IT Leaders Conference, February 23-25, 2003, at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Lewis was selected from hundreds of nominees based on those leaders who most closely matched Computerworld’s Leadership Index, a set of characteristics that describes business and technology people who guide the effective use of IT in their organizations.

In his position at Six Continents Hotels, Lewis manages the company’s global information technology strategic design, service delivery and organization supporting the global reservation system for more than 3,300 hotels worldwide. In 2002, Lewis was integral in the implementation of the new HOLIDEXPlus system, an advance central reservation system, which was installed in more than 140 InterContinental hotels worldwide.

Throughout 2003, Lewis will accelerate the rollout of the Integrated Technology Solution to all hotels in the Six Continents Hotels system, which includes InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express and Staybridge Suites hotels. The Integrated Technology Solution is a fully integrated suite of technology systems comprised of HOLIDEXPlus, next generation property management systems (Pegasus and OPERA), and HIRO, an industrial strength revenue management system. Under Lewis’ leadership, Six Continents Hotels has targeted full conversion of all hotels to the Integrated Technology Solution by the end of 2006.

“The Six Continents Hotels family is pleased and proud that Doug has been recognized by Computerworld as a Premier 100 for his leadership and strategic innovation in the IT arena. At Six Continents Hotels, Doug has been instrumental in building the technological foundation that will help to ensure the success of our hotels well into the future. Doug has long championed that technology should enable fast, focused and high value revenue management, as well as, enhance our ability to serve our customers with more personalized service in a more timely manner. Doug’s technological savvy and strategic forethought places Six Continents Hotels at the forefront of technology innovation within the hotel industry,” said Richard North, chief executive,
Six Continents Hotels.

“Computerworld’s Premier 100 IT Leaders have demonstrated a real depth of understanding about the value of IT investments, and that connects them very effectively with other senior business executives,” said Maryfran Johnson, editor in chief of Computerworld. “As IT executives at the top of their profession, they create best practices in technology use and translate those into business success.”

The complete list of Premier 100 IT Leaders can be found in the January 6, 2003, issue of Computerworld and online at www.computerworld.com. The issue includes several feature articles summarizing the challenges IT Leaders expect to face in the coming year including managing the IT workforce, improving core systems, vendor management, and aligning technology projects with business goals.

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