WEBM Webmediabrands (MM)

webMethods, Inc. (Nasdaq: WEBM), a leading business integration and optimization software company, today announced that Lenders First Choice, a national provider of settlement services and title insurance, has selected webMethods Fabric 7.0 as its next generation platform for developing its new title insurance and settlement services application. webMethods Fabric is being used by Lenders First Choice to create a custom, state-of-the-art application through which tens of thousands of orders will be processed each month. Because Lenders First Choice provides numerous products and services to hundreds of lenders nationwide, and because the mortgage business is regulated at the national, state and local level, the new application requires a robust developmental platform on which to be built. Lenders First Choice chose webMethods Fabric 7.0 precisely because it meets their strict developmental needs. �Our new title insurance and settlement services application will set the industry benchmark for what mortgage lenders should expect from their title and escrow provider. With its deployment, Lenders First Choice will further differentiate itself as offering the industry�s fastest, most reliable and most comprehensive service,� Norman E. Gottschalk III, senior vice president, Application Development, Lenders First Choice. �By building this application on webMethods Fabric, we�re able to more easily develop automated processes within the new application; integrate with lenders and third-party providers; create flexibility within the application to meet the ever-changing regulatory requirements; and maintain the accuracy and service levels that mortgage lenders expect from Lenders First Choice.� By building its title insurance and settlement services application on webMethods Fabric 7.0, Lenders First Choice will further automate and institutionalize existing processes for improved reliability, efficiency and compliance. More specifically, webMethods Fabric is being employed by Lenders First Choice to: Reduce processing costs through out-of-the-box integration with government agencies, which makes it possible to expand usage of automated electronic fillings and other cost-saving approaches. Streamline fulfillment with more adaptive business processes that can automatically comply with the unique filing and underwriting requirements associated with each transaction. Ensure that commitments and deadlines are consistently and accurately met by providing customers and vendors with real-time visibility into process status. Maintain operational compliance with applicable industry and regulatory mandates through the integrated use of an automated Business Rules Management System. Improve employee productivity and accuracy through the use of AJAX-based composite applications to consolidate multiple applications into a single, role-based user workspace. As the platform is based upon a service-oriented architecture (SOA), existing business processes can also be easily reconfigured to deliver new, highly targeted and customized products and services. Added Gottschalk, �webMethods Fabric allows us to move to a fully automated process in which required interventions are triggered by established business rules, which greatly improves both our efficiency and accountability. What�s more, our integrated use of real-time monitoring to analyze each step in the process will allow us to more quickly fix defective orders while providing us with the benchmarking needed for subsequent improvements.� According to Gartner, Inc., �[t]he management disciplines of business process management (BPM), and the technological advancements that enable those disciplines, support the needs of the real-time or adaptive enterprise of the near future. Organizations that begin their transformation for BPM during 2006 and 2007 will be rewarded by industry dominance by 2010. Having a process architecture (part of a business architecture) and aligning BPM initiatives with service-oriented architecture (SOA) initiatives are key activities to undertake in 2007.� [src: Predicts 2007: Align BPM and SOA Initiatives Now to Increase Chances of Becoming a Leader by 2010 by Jim Sinur and Janelle B. Hill (November 10, 2006)] webMethods Fabric delivers within an industry-leading service-oriented architecture (SOA) a lifecycle and holistic approach for integrating disparate systems and trading partner networks; automating complex business processes; and proactively monitoring service levels from both an IT and business perspective with predictive analytics helping users anticipate and respond to real-time change. By bringing all of these capabilities together within a single, fully-integrated product suite, webMethods Fabric is expected to provide Lenders First Choice with a 30% cost savings over conventional development. �Anyone that has ever bought or refinanced a home recognizes the significant complexity that Lenders First Choice addresses every day. Multiply these variables against the countless regulations and fees that apply throughout the U.S. and you can begin to grasp how adaptive their fulfillment process needs to be,� said Anthony Coker, vice president, Global Industry Solutions, webMethods, Inc. �However, by leveraging technology to take a more systematic approach to addressing these requirements, Lenders First Choice is disrupting the status quo. More specifically, they�ve been able to componentize each step in their process so that each customer request can be more quickly and accurately met. At the same time, this approach is also allowing them to more easily create derivative products that allow them to capitalize on existing investments within new markets. We�re excited to partner with Lenders First Choice as their deployment is a perfect showcase for the unique capabilities offered by the latest version of webMethods Fabric.� About Lenders First Choice Lenders First Choice provides settlement services and title insurance to regional and national lenders throughout the United States and operates from centers in California, Florida and Texas. For more information, visit www.lendersfirstchoice.com. About webMethods, Inc. webMethods (Nasdaq: WEBM) provides business integration software to integrate, assemble and optimize available IT assets to drive business process productivity. webMethods delivers an innovative, enterprise-class business integration platform that incorporates proven integration technology with next generation capabilities into one interoperable set of tools that delivers a unique combination of efficiency, agility and control. webMethods combines industry leadership with a zealous commitment to customers to deliver tangible business value to more than 1,500 global customers. webMethods is headquartered in Fairfax, Va., with offices throughout the U.S., Europe, Asia Pacific and Japan. More information about the company can be found at www.webMethods.com. The webMethods name and logo are registered trademarks of, and webMethods Fabric is a trademark of, webMethods, Inc. All other marks mentioned are trademarks or service marks of their respective companies.