JOINT DISCUSSIONS ENDED AT SYSOPEN

SysOpen Plc 
STOCK EXCHANGE RELEASE
16 June 2003, at 10,00 a.m.

JOINT DISCUSSIONS ENDED AT SYSOPEN

The joint discussions held with SysOpen’s employees, due
to the temporary reduction in manpower requirements
within the Group, came to an end on 9 June 2003. Owing to
the rapid decline in demand for IT services at the end of
the spring of 2003, SysOpen will make 9 employees
redundant and lay off 89, or 30 per cent of all staff,
for a maximum of 90 days, with a view to adjusting its
operations to the prevailing market conditions.

The redundancies will mainly apply to those involved in
administrative duties, while the layoffs will mainly
concern staff who, in times of normal demand, would be
engaged in billable customer projects. Depending on the
unit and near-term market prospects, the layoffs will
vary from one week to 90 days.

As a result of the discussions, SysOpen has also decided
to merge its unit in Varkaus with that based in Kuopio,
in order to enhance the Group’s business opportunities
and cost-efficiency within the region. While the
discussions were underway, the company also identified
other tools for securing its profitability and
competitiveness. Accordingly, SysOpen will immediately
begin taking measures to achieve other, minor cost-
savings.

Through these measures, SysOpen estimates that it will
achieve cost-savings totalling MEUR 0.6–1.0 during 2003.
It also aims at other cost-savings in the years to come
through restructuring its businesses. The total cost-
savings for 2003 will depend on the actual duration of
the layoffs. If demand for SysOpen’s IT services returns
to its normal level, the company will avoid implementing
the layoffs in terms of their planned scope and duration.

These measures, on which the company has now decided,
will have no effect on the level of customer service. In
the main, the layoffs will be put into effect from July
to October, their effects on cost-savings, including
those stemming from redundancies, being reflected in the
third and fourth quarter results.

SysOpen estimates that, on the one hand, due to subdued
demand for IT services within the industry and, on the
other, the company’s previous divestment of unprofitable
businesses, consolidated turnover for 2003 is likely to
be 5-10 per cent less than last year. It also regards the
previous year’s profit levels as remaining within its
grasp.

Helsinki, 16 June 2003

SYSOPEN PLC

Arto Sahla
Managing Director

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT
Arto Sahla, Managing Director, tel. +358 424 2020 339,
gsm +358 40 521 442.986, email: arto.sahla@sysopen.fi

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