TORONTO, March 1, 2001 -- TORONTO - The founder of one of Canada's leading eBusiness consulting companies has been appointed as the e-Executive in Residence at the University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management. As President and Founder of Liberty Technology Services Ltd., a member of the Norigen Group of Companies, Larry Baldachin is the first executive to hold the newly created position. Mr. Baldachin graduated from the Rotman School's Executive MBA program in 1994.

"Larry will bring to the Rotman School cutting-edge strategic knowledge of the new economy at a time when we are striving to re-invent business education," says Dean Roger Martin of the Rotman School. " I am also delighted that an alumnus on the leading edge of the new economy was able to step into this position. Throughout his career, Larry has shown the type of innovative leadership that is so essential to Canada's future prosperity."

In his new role Baldachin, who also serves as a director on the Rotman School Alumni Board, will help enhance the Rotman School's e-commerce strategy, providing advice both inside and outside the classroom. In addition to helping Rotman to develop its e-commerce curriculum, Baldachin will assist the School to enhance the online Rotman community and network for students, faculty and alumni through the School's various web projects.

Recently the Rotman School has launched several e-commerce initiatives. In March 2000, the Rotman School launched Rotman E-Biz Forum, a series of late-afternoon workshops featuring leading e-commerce strategists who focus on the most pressing issues in e-commerce in both the business-to-consumer and business-to-business markets. On the curriculum side, courses in e-commerce were added to the Executive MBA program and a stream in e-commerce was added to the Rotman MBA program. Rotman's Canadian Centre for Marketing Information Technology, a research center, has substantially revised its vision to focus research on Internet-based marketing.

As the President and Founder of Liberty Technology Services Ltd., Larry Baldachin is the driving force behind the strategic direction and corporate development of the company. He will continue to steer the dramatic growth of Liberty following the recent acquisition of Liberty by Norigen Communications.

His strong understanding of the technology market and experience in operations and management information systems have been key components in Liberty's success to date, and these skills are now being applied within the broader scope of the Norigen Communications Group services, ranging from ebusiness through telecom to IT systems integration services.

Prior to founding Liberty, Baldachin was the chief operating officer (COO) at Compugen Systems Ltd. where he oversaw all national operations including sales, marketing, human resources, technical services and professional services. He was promoted to COO of Compugen in 1998 after successfully holding a number of positions at the company including Vice President of Sales and Marketing.

Baldachin holds a Master of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Arts degree, both from the University of Toronto. He is also the founder of the Compugen 10K Road Race that raises revenues and awareness of the conditions experienced by disadvantaged youth in downtown Toronto.

Recently ranked by Business Week in the top tier of business schools in the world, the University of Toronto's Rotman School offers leading-edge research and undergraduate and graduate degree programs, including the prestigious Rotman MBA, the newly redesigned Part-Time MBA, the Executive MBA, a first-rate Doctoral Program, the distinctive Master of Management & Professional Accounting program, combined programs with the University of Toronto faculties of Law, Engineering and Nursing, and an innovative series of Executive Programs tailored to the current needs of businesses and individual managers.

About Norigen

Norigen Communications Inc., a subsidiary of Norigen Communications Group Inc., is a privately held Canadian integrated telecommunications provider offering a complete portfolio of services for the business community. Headquartered in Toronto, Norigen offers services in Toronto, Montreal, Calgary, Vancouver, Edmonton, Ottawa and Hamilton. Norigen Communications Group Inc. also owns Compugen Services Limited, an IT systems integrator and Liberty Technology Services Ltd., a web-portal services company. For more information, visit the Norigen Web site at www.norigen.com.

Ken McGuffin
Media Relations Officer
Rotman School of Management
Voice: (416) 946-3818
E-mail: mcguffin@rotman.utoronto.ca

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