TMWD Tumbleweed Communications Corp (MM)

Tumbleweed Announces Executive Changes and Promotions REDWOOD CITY, Calif., April 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Tumbleweed(R) Communications Corp. today announced executive management changes and promotions. Tumbleweed announced that John Vigouroux will resign from his role as President and Chief Operating Officer of Tumbleweed, effective April 30, 2004. "John's leadership, both as President and COO at Tumbleweed and previously as CEO at Valicert, has been central in the success of integrating Valicert and Tumbleweed," said Jeffrey C. Smith, Chairman and CEO. "We thank John for his dedication and commitment to Tumbleweed, and we wish him well as he pursues new endeavors." Mr. Smith has assumed Mr. Vigouroux's responsibilities. Tumbleweed also announced the promotion of several key executives. "These management team members are proven leaders who have been instrumental in expanding Tumbleweed's position in a highly competitive marketplace," said Jeffrey C. Smith. "They have each played a significant role in growing our business through applying their talent, energy, and keen understanding of our customers. Through their leadership, we've expanded our products, mindshare, and long-term potential." Dave Jevans is promoted to Chief Marketing Officer, reporting to CEO Jeffrey C. Smith. Since joining the company in connection with the Valicert merger in June 2003, Dave has served as Senior Vice President, Marketing. Before joining Valicert in 1999, Dave served in management positions at Receipt.com, Catapult Entertainment, and Apple Computer. Dave also serves as the Chairman of the Anti-Phishing Working Group, a public and industry resource for information about the problem of phishing and email fraud, including identification and promotion of pragmatic technical solutions that can provide immediate protection and benefits against phishing attacks. Mr. Jevans holds a B.S. and an M.S. in computer science from the University of Calgary, Canada. John Thielens is promoted to Chief Technology Officer, reporting to CMO Dave Jevans. Since the Valicert merger in June 2003, John has served as Director of Product Management for the SecureTransport product line, following seven years in Professional Services management for both Valicert and Worldtalk Communications Corporation, which Tumbleweed acquired in January of 2000. John's earlier experience includes more than ten years in software development with Unisys and Lotus. Mr. Thielens holds an A.B. in applied mathematics from Harvard University. He replaces Jean-Christophe Bandini, who remains with the company but is stepping down to take a personal and unpaid leave of absence. Tim Conley is promoted to Senior Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer. Since July 2003, shortly after joining Tumbleweed in connection with the Valicert merger, Tim has served at Vice President, Finance, and Chief Financial Officer of Tumbleweed, reporting to CEO Jeffrey C. Smith. He has over twenty years of CFO experience, including three years as CFO and Vice President of Finance of Valicert, Inc. Previously, Tim served as the CFO of Longboard, Inc., a provider of telecommunications systems; Logicvision, a provider of intellectual property for use in the design and testing of semiconductor devices; and Verilink Corporation, a manufacturer of network access equipment. Mr. Conley holds a B.S. in business administration from Wisconsin State University and is a certified public accountant. Joe Fisher is promoted to Vice President, Product Management, reporting to CEO Jeffrey C. Smith. Joe has been a senior product manager at Tumbleweed since 1999, managing the company's successful email firewall product line. Prior to Tumbleweed, Joe spent 4 years and Schlumberger/CellNet where he managed an extensive line of state-of-the-art wireless network communication devices. Joe has held senior product positions at Furukawa Electric and IBM. Mr. Fisher holds a B.S. in electrical engineering and an M.B.A. in finance and marketing from Santa Clara University. Ehren Maedge is promoted to Vice President, Operations, reporting to CFO Tim Conley. Ehren was the Vice President, Operations and a co-founder of Corvigo, Inc., and joined Tumbleweed in connection with the Corvigo merger in March 2004. Prior to Corvigo, Ehren was CEO of a Radiate, Inc. Mr. Maedge holds a B.A. in mass communications from St. Ambrose University. Jeff Ready is promoted to Vice President, Marketing, reporting to CMO Dave Jevans. Jeff was the CEO and a co-founder of Corvigo, Inc. and joined Tumbleweed in connection with the Corvigo merger in March 2004. Prior to Corvigo, Jeff was Vice President of Marketing and COO of Radiate, Inc. Mr. Ready holds a B.S. degree in computer science from the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. About Tumbleweed Communications Corp. Tumbleweed is a leading provider of secure Internet messaging software and appliances for enterprises and government agencies. By making Internet communications secure, reliable and automated, Tumbleweed's anti-spam email firewall, secure file transfer, secure email, and identity validation solutions help customers significantly reduce the cost of doing business. Tumbleweed products are used to communicate with millions of end-users and tens of thousands of corporations. Tumbleweed has more than 900 enterprise customers, including ABN Amro, Bank of America Securities, Catholic Healthcare West, JP Morgan Chase & Co., The Regence Group (Blue Cross/Blue Shield), St. Luke's Episcopal Healthcare System, the US Food and Drug Administration, and the US Navy and Marine Corps. Tumbleweed Communications was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Redwood City, California. For additional information about Tumbleweed go to http://www.tumbleweed.com/ or call 650-216-2000. SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT Tumbleweed cautions that forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based on current plans and expectations, and that a number of factors could cause the actual results to differ materially from the guidance given at this time. These factors are described in the Safe Harbor statement below. Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected, particularly with respect to Tumbleweed's executives and leadership in its market, as well as its products, services, and future success. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "may," "will," "should," "potential," "continue," "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates," and similar expressions. For further cautions about the risks of investing in Tumbleweed, we refer you to the documents Tumbleweed files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission, particularly Tumbleweed's Form 10-K filed March 15, 2004. Tumbleweed assumes no obligation to update information contained in this press release, including for example its guidance regarding its future performance, which represents the Company's expectations only as of the date of this release and should not be viewed as a statement about the Company's expectations after such date. Although this release may remain available on the Company's website or elsewhere, its continued availability does not indicate that the Company is reaffirming or confirming any of the information contained herein. DATASOURCE: Tumbleweed Communications Corp. CONTACT: James Hannon of Atomic PR, +1-415-703-9454, , for Tumbleweed Communications Web site: http://www.tumbleweed.com/

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