


Annual Report 2007
Ordina specifically focuses on three markets: Finance, Public and Industry. Finance and Public have shown the most significant growth. Within these markets, we deliver specialist services geared to business-critical processes and issues relevant to our clients. We offer a coherent portfolio of Consulting, IT and Outsourcing services to strongly support our clients’ success. In order to deliver excellent solutions to clients, we are seeking to team up with leading technology partners.
Our objective is to increase revenue from Finance and Public over the next few years.
We seek to forge strategic partnerships with large organisations. To achieve this, we intend to increase our market share with our ten largest clients and strengthen our presence in 40 of our key accounts. Our long-term target is to generate at least 75% of total revenue from this group of clients. In addition, our Top 10 largest clients should account for at least 40% of our revenue, evenly distributed over the accounts.
We are making targeted efforts to be less vulnerable to cyclical movements by bringing stability to our revenue structure and profitability. This is why we endeavour to sign multiple-year outsourcing contracts, focusing on Application Outsourcing and BPO.
We plan to achieve organic growth and growth through acquisitions in order to strengthen our position with strategic clients in the Netherlands and Belgium. Any future acquisitions will need to add value to our core Consulting and Outsourcing activities in terms of scale and specialist profile, and more importantly, focus on the Public and Finance markets. In Belgium, we intend to accelerate growth of all our three core activities through acquisitions. The companies that we acquire are integrated into our business in order to join forces and achieve sustainable gains.
Revenue from Finance and Public has risen sharply, accounting for 64% of total revenue. Ordina is engaged in talks with clients in both markets on a continuous basis, from boardroom level down to project management and procurement. This enables us to be proactive regarding new developments and offer focussed input throughout the project: from design to implementation and management.
In 2007, we won several prestigious contracts. Examples include the Rabobank contract, which has strengthened our position and reputation in the Finance market. Rabobank has outsourced a range of its application development and management activities to Ordina for a period of seven years. Under the contract, 150 Rabobank employees were transferred to Ordina in May 2007.
In the Public market, we are active and successful in nearly all areas identified by the government as key policy areas. Other major contracts are shown on page 31.
As shown in the list of our Top-10 largest clients, the composition of our client base has changed very little over the years. We devote a great deal of our time to nurturing the quality of our relationships with strategic clients, developing these partnerships into longstanding alliances. The emphasis we place on professional account management has delivered the results we expected: we are increasingly involved in our clients’ strategic projects. Our 40 most important clients currently account for 69% of our revenue (2006: 68%), which means that this share of revenue is growing at a faster pace than our total revenue. Our ten largest clients accounted for 43% of revenue in 2007 (2006: 41%).
Achmea Group
ING Group
Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality
Ministry of Finance
Ministry of Justice
Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management
Police
Rabobank
Shell
Social Security Administration Board (UWV)

Within our BPO services, we gave priority to implementing a multi-client basic banking platform, the most important aspects of which were completed at the end of 2007. Regarding the initial timeframe scheduled to transfer clients to the new platform, we expect to experience some delay during 2008. The reason for this delay lies in the fact that the interfacing and integration on the clients’ side is taking longer than anticipated. Only once the transformations have been made we will achieve the planned rationalisation and economies of scale. During the preparatory stage, we are committed to maintaining an excellent level of service to existing clients. The integration of approximately 140 new staff members, hired under the new BPO contracts, also received a great deal of our attention in 2007. Alignment of their terms of employment also took place in 2007.
There is great demand for BPO services in the market. In the short-term, however, investments in BPO services will be greater than the benefits reaped. In the coming years, we will give priority to building a solid organisation, developing standardised platforms and achieving further growth so as to bring extra stability to our portfolio and lay a foundation for our substantive performance.
In 2007, Application Outsourcing accounted for 12% of total revenue (2006:11%). Our organisation is structured in such a way that we can execute these contracts by deploying the right expertise across the various disciplines. To manage these contracts, we have built up a robust management organisation with a strong client focus. We offer our clients in the Netherlands the assurance that we can take full responsibility for the IT operations that they outsource to us. We assist our clients in preparing for outsourcing by supporting them in their shift from “client” to “contract principal”, i.e. professionalising their contract management capability. In addition to intensive client interaction, we can offer scalability and continuity in the day to day running of their project, both in the Netherlands and abroad via Cognizant, our offshore partner.

| Consulting and IT: | development of fraud detection system for Delta Lloyd |
| Outsourcing: | signed new BPO contracts with Robeco Direct, BNG, and Reaal Verzekeringen |
| Outsourcing: | implementation of the Rabobank contract and integration of staff into our organisation |
| Outsourcing: | school funding system for the Ministry of Education |
| Consulting and IT: | streamlining of farmers’ subsidies for the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality |
| Consulting: | design of sourcing organisation for the Directorate-General for Public Works and Water Management |
| Outsourcing: | SAP sourcing contract with Ministry of Education |
| Outsourcing: | sourcing of primary process systems for the Public Prosecutor’s Office |
| Outsourcing: | SAP sourcing contract with the National Police Service |
| Consulting: | improved co-operation between youth care inspection agencies |
| Outsourcing: | SAP sourcing contract with the Rotterdam Port Authority |
| Consulting: | detailing of business intelligence strategy for Essent Netwerk |
| Outsourcing: | co-sourcing agreement with Ricoh |
| Outsourcing and IT: | systems development and management for TNT |
In line with our acquisition strategy, we acquired two companies in 2007; one in the Netherlands and one in Belgium.
YoungWood IT Group is a specialist provider of high-quality IT and consulting services to the Financial Services Industry. It is one of the few specialist companies in the Netherlands when it comes to guaranteeing the continuity of key business-critical applications, such as Internet banking, cash dispensers and automated teller machines and international payment transactions.
With the acquisition of ITG Consulting Group in Belgium, we have gained a foothold in the financial services markets in Belgium and Luxembourg. These are markets where we have had a limited presence in the past. Our goal is to achieve robust growth in these markets over the next few years. To effect this, we will certainly use the knowledge and long-standing experience that we have gained in the Netherlands. We will also be exploring opportunities for BPO and Application Outsourcing in the Finance markets in Belgium and Luxembourg.
We make acquisitions to strengthen the business as a whole. That is why, usually after an earn-out period, we integrate newly acquired companies into our business. We invariably work with the acquired company’s management to ensure a successful integration. The first step in the integration process is to achieve joint commercial success. As a logical following on, we further integrate organisational and accounting processes. Issues such as the alignment of employment terms are addressed at this stage. We have extensive experience in this area, having recently integrated Vertis, YoungWood IT Group and Wisdom into our business. In 2008, we will begin to integrate Be Value.
In Belgium we successfully integrated all acquisitions from prior years, including Evosoft and Iterum Services, during 2007. ITG Consulting Group will be embedded into our Belgian operations after 2008.
At Ordina, we seek to be recognised by professionals operating in our markets and core activities as the employer of choice. It is our aim to attract top professionals from all three Benelux countries and retain them by providing an exciting work environment. To achieve this, we offer our staff the best possible potential for advancement, assigning them to interesting projects for major clients. We give our employees every opportunity to develop their careers through training, certification or management development. Above-average employee satisfaction is our ultimate goal. We have put an active health-at-work policy in place, which has led to absenteeism levels that are below market average.
Partnerships and joint efforts are becoming increasingly important. We publish our strategy and objectives clearly. We all work together to achieve this shared goal and make our organisation a success. This is the basis of our leadership philosophy, our management style and our remuneration structure. This should lead to a smoothly and effectively run business, raising the bar as we go, that delivers ever-stronger results.
Management development is essential to develop the leadership capabilities that we need, both now and in the future. We work hard to professionalise our management and encourage staff to aspire to higher-level management functions through internal promotion. Management rotation across the company is also used to develop management skills.
The response rate to the employee satisfaction survey held in late 2007 was exceptionally high. Of the 4,800 surveyed employees, 3,800 submitted their response (i.e. 77%). This demonstrates the high level of employee involvement at Ordina. Employees from companies acquired by Ordina also actively participated in the survey. The survey findings show that Ordina is on the right track. The average employee satisfaction rate rose for the second year running to 7.0 (year-end 2006: 6.8). It goes without saying that the survey also identified areas for improvement, which we have every intention of addressing (see table). Absenteeism, an indicator of employee satisfaction, is below market average at just above 3%. Our prevention programme would undoubtedly have contributed to this excellent result. The programme entails an active health-at-work policy, focusing on prevention and working conditions.
Despite the shortage of IT skills, Ordina has successfully recruited new staff during 2007. The net influx (excluding influx related to outsourcing contracts) constituted 281 FTE’s. The light-hearted recruitment campaign launched in October undoubtedly enhanced Ordina’s appeal as a potential employer. Staff members were invited to use the Ordina website to send a video to family and friends, who could in turn forward it to their family and friends, and so on. This was done more than 100,000 times. The number of hits on our jobs portal rose sharply in the last quarter of the year.
During the financial year, we welcomed hundreds of new staff members, including 150 Rabobank employees and 140 at Ordina BPO. We devoted a great deal of time to integrating the new arrivals. It is important for them to feel at home at Ordina and for them to see a future filled with opportunities. At 31 December 2007, the total number of employees (FTE’s) was 5,702.
| 2007 | 2006 | |
| Highlights from the employee satisfaction survey | ||
| Overall satisfation | 7.0 | 6.8 |
| Strengths | ||
| Career prospects | 121% | 115% |
| Communication about important matters | 130% | 132% |
| Sufficient time to complete assignments | 114% | 112% |
| Areas for improvement | ||
| Collaboration within divisions | 78% | 73% |
| Appreciation by management | 96% | 93% |
| National Satisfaction Index = 100% | ||
We intend to strengthen Ordina’s position through a culture and management style that enhance cooperation and entrepreneurialship. At the same time, we wish to highlight the personal advancement and employment relationship with individual employees. Our guiding principle being freedom of choice. This has led to the introduction of the Benefit Shop as a means of offering flexible employment conditions. Seeking to accommodate the wishes and requirements of our staff, we allow them to select their own benefits based on their personal situation. Under the new system, employees can use their own discretion to allocate a personal budget for example on extra days leave, more expensive company cars or a sabbatical leave.
In line with Ordina’s performance-driven culture, the level of performance-related pay to professionals and management continued to increase in 2007. This development is greatly appreciated by our staff. For further details, please refer to page 37 of this report.
To encourage staff to interact, cooperate and be creative, we devised a housing concept that has now been fully implemented at our Nieuwegein office. The new work environment offers excellent facilities and makes people feel at home with Ordina, allowing them to do their work anywhere. The use of colours and materials, furniture and space radiate a timeless dynamic that perfectly reflects everything we stand for.
2007 also saw the launch of Young Ordina, a new company-wide network of young employees from all echelons of the company. The network stages information sessions as well as sports events in order to promote cooperation and interaction.
We aim to apply our knowledge to contribute to society. In 2007 we have helped to initiate ‘Testen met Autisten’, an organisation seeking to employ autistic people as test engineers in the IT industry and contributed to the ‘Muiswijs’ foundation, which promotes healthy computer use. Our staff greatly appreciates the possibility of offering their input to projects of this nature.
Ordina launched an extensive management development programme in 2007. This was implemented by our subsidiary Ormit. Managers participated in development assessment sessions, with members of the Executive Committee acting as assessors. In 2007, 150 managers took part. These sessions have given us an up-to-date view and good understanding of the quality and development potential of our managers. Information necessary in order to achieve our future plans as well as appoint good successors when staff leave, ensure that talented employees progress to higher-level functions and to allow for proper management rotation. On an individual basis, managers are encouraged to choose a focussed development path.
In 2007, we held open and constructive consultations with the Works Council once again. The Works Council issued recommendations and granted their formal approval to a number of developments within Ordina, particularly in the areas of employment conditions and organisational structure. In some cases this was done after extensive talks. The Works Council once again proved its worth as a good and critical sounding board for the Management Board in 2007.
At Ordina, we pursue a strategic course geared towards creating sustainable value that is robust and stable amidst cyclical fluctuations. We have translated this ambition into the following targets.
We continually aim to expand our market share by growing our revenue faster that our competitors in our specialist areas. More specifically, we seek to improve the quality and stability of our revenue performance by increasing the share of revenue generated by multi-year contracts. The share of revenue generated by multi-year contracts should grow towards 30% to 35% of the total revenue over the next few years.
We want to bring about continuous improvements in our relative profitability throughout the economic cycle. A few years ago, we set ourselves the goal of achieving an EBITA margin of at least 10% and net earnings per share of at least EUR 1.00 before amortisation of intangible assets due to acquisitions in 2007, provided that market conditions continued to improve.
It is our aim to utilise our financial strength cautiously and prudently. We want to cap the net debt position at no more than twice EBITDA and maintain an equity level that ensures the company’s continuity as a going concern.
To ensure continuity, we advocate stringent working capital management, aiming for a structural DSO (days sales outstanding) level of less than 65.
Revenue for 2007 was EUR 665.4 million, which was in line with our expectations. This represents an increase of 27% on our core portfolio on 2006. We achieved more than our target to win market share in 2007, given the average market growth of approximately 7%, as discussed on page 28 of this report.
Revenue growth was largely achieved organically. Accordingly, we are also overtaking the market in terms of organic growth. In 2007, acquisitions accounted for EUR 66.4 million of revenue growth. Organic revenue growth in 2007 was 14%, mainly driven by several newly signed, large, multi-year contracts for Application Outsourcing (Rabobank contract) and BPO services (Robeco Direct, BNG and Reaal Verzekeringen contracts). These contracts also contribute to our strategic target of increasing the share of revenue generated by multi-year contracts. For further details, please consult page 29 onwards of this report.
In addition to the impact of these prestigious contracts, key drivers for our organic revenue growth were fee increases and a higher average number of professional staff. A slight improvement in productivity also contributed to the growth.

| 2007 organic | 2006 | % growth organic | 2007 acquisitive | % growth acquisitive | total 2007 |
% growth total | |
| Revenue development (in euro millions)* | |||||||
| Consulting | 133.9 | 112.0 | 20% | 27.1 | 24% | 161.0 | 44% |
| IT | 349.2 | 335.4 | 4% | 39.3 | 12% | 388.5 | 16% |
| Application Outsourcing | 79.1 | 57.5 | 38% | - | - | 79.1 | 38% |
| BPO | 36.8 | 20.1 | 83% | - | - | 36.8 | 83% |
| Total | 599.0 | 525.0 | 14% | 66.4 | 13% | 665.4 | 27% |
| *Revenue for 2006 excludes EUR 5,4 million revenue generated by Infrastructure Management services (2007: nil). | |||||||
Of the total revenue, EUR 53.1 million was achieved in Belgium, our second home market. Our Belgian operations also showed robust revenue growth, up 14% on 2006 (EUR 46.7 million). Of this increase, 7% was achieved organically, so we also won market share in Belgium on an organic basis.
We signed a seven-year contract with Rabobank in 2007, taking the first concrete step towards using offshore development capacity. We deliver these offshore services in close cooperation with Cognizant, our offshore partner. In 2007, EUR 7 million worth of revenue was earned offshore, whereas revenue from offshore outsourcing was practically nil in 2006.

Ordina’s Consulting, IT and Application Outsourcing services are largely intertwined. We frequently provide these services as an integrated package to clients, incorporating them into our product offerings. The EBITA margin on these services rose to 10.6% in 2007, in line with our previously announced objective to generate a minimum margin of 10% on these activities. A key driver of the increase in EBITA margin was our ability to raise our fees over and above average salary increases. In addition, Ordina’s continued growth and the integration of acquisitions provided opportunities to benefit from economies of scale and cost efficiencies. Finally, our acquisitions in 2007, more specifically YoungWood IT Group in the Netherlands (consolidation from April 2007) and ITG Consulting Group in Belgium (consolidation from September 2007), helped us to achieve our double-digit target margin. From January to December 2007 YoungWood IT Group realised a turnover of EUR 20 million and an EBITA of EUR 4 million, while ITG Consulting generated a turnover of EUR 8.9 million and an EBITA of EUR 1.3 million in 2007.
| EBITA 2007 | EBITA- margin 2007 | EBITA 2006 | EBITA- margin 2006 | |
| Developments in EBITA and EBITA margin* | ||||
| Consulting, IT and Application Outsourcing | 66.7 | 10.6% | 47.5 | 9.3% |
| BPO | -4.6 | -12.4% | -4.3 | -21.3% |
| Total | 62.1 | 9.3% | 43.2 | 8.1% |
| * EBITA for 2006 is presented net of the non-recurring income item as a result of the harmonisation of pension plans. | ||||
Personnel expenses are by far the largest cost item in a service organisation. This also poses one of the greater risks we face, given Ordina’s vulnerability to cyclical movements. That is why, several years ago, we opted to increase the performance-related remuneration component for both our professionals and our managers. This enables us to offer a highly competitive remuneration package when the economy turns up, and absorb an economic downturn through a well-structured cost base. In 2007, the total variable wage bill, as a percentage of the total personnel cost, rose to 7.0% (2006: 6.3%). In absolute terms, performance-related remuneration amounted to EUR 30 million (2006: EUR 22 million) in 2007.
Revenue from our BPO services, which we launched in 2004, increased by 83% in 2007. As expected early in 2007, revenue growth still went hand in hand with an EBITA loss. This EBITA-loss constituted EUR 4.6 million, slightly more than the published expectation. BPO’s EBITA loss was partly caused by the costs involved in starting up the three major contracts with Robeco Direct, BNG and Reaal Verzekeringen. Furthermore a great deal of effort was put into building a standardised BPO services platform for payments, savings, loans and securities handling (basic banking) in 2007. We expect that it will take longer to implement than anticipated initially, as mentioned on page 30. As a result of the expected delay, a provision of over EUR 1 million was made at the end of 2007 for the additional costs incurred regarding obligations to clients.
Once we have implemented this generic basic banking platform and transferred existing clients to the platform will we be able to achieve synergy benefits and cost-savings within our BPO services. The year 2008 will be dominated by the transition of our client base to the standardised platforms.
Curbing the use of motor vehicles is one of the most important ways for Ordina to help reduce CO2 emissions. We launched an awareness campaign in 2007 that is eligible for a financial grant from SenterNovem, a Dutch government agency for the promotion of sustainable development and innovation. The project focuses on three elements: encouraging staff members entitled to company cars to use public transport, driving fuel-efficiently, and using cars that are fuel-efficient. In addition, newly leased cars will be fitted with particle filters and have their tyre pressure checked regularly. To qualify for the financial grant, Ordina will have to realise a 75-ton reduction in CO2 emissions on its fleet of vehicles. We are confident that, through the implementation of these three measures, we will exceed this requirement by far.
| 2007 | 2006* | % change | |
| Summarised income statement of Ordina N.V. | |||
| Revenue | 665.4 | 530.4 | 25% |
| Operating expenses | -603.3 | -482.7 | 25% |
| EBITA | 62.1 | 47.7 | 30% |
| Amortisation of intangible assets due to acquisitions | -16.4 | -10.1 | 62% |
| EBIT | 45.7 | 37.6 | 22% |
| Interest paid | -4.6 | -2.3 | 200% |
| Profit from participations | 0.1 | - | - |
| EBT | 41.2 | 35.3 | 17% |
| Income tax expense | -10.8 | -9.5 | 14% |
| Profit for the year | 30.4 | 25.8 | 18% |
| (in euro millions) * Revenue for 2006 includes EUR 5,4 million revenue generated by Infrastructure Management services (2007: nil) | |||
The impact of amortisation of intangible assets due to acquisitions, undertaken in the past few years has increased under IFRS. Over the next few years, intangible assets due to acquisitions, based on all acquisitions undertaken by Ordina up to and including 2007, will be amortised as follows:
| 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | |
| Amortisation of intangible assets due to acquisitions | 16.6 | 14.8 | 13.5 | 8.9 | 3.9 | 3.0 | 1.0 |
| (in euro millions) | |||||||
Goodwill, stated at EUR 186.6 million, was subject to an annual impairment test in 2007. The test showed that there were no indications for goodwill impairment. For further details, please consult pages 91 and 92 of the Financial Statements.
In November 2006, we renewed our financing facilities as we began to make more structural use of our funding capacity. As a result, interest paid increased to EUR 4.7 million in 2007 (2006: EUR 2.3 million).
The effective tax rate was 26.2% in 2007. This is slightly higher than the nominal rate prevailing in the Netherlands. In the second half of 2007, we concluded a ruling with the Dutch Revenue Services (Belastingdienst) allowing us to utilise a number of unrecognised prior-year tax losses to the sum of EUR 2,6 million. A number of corrections on preceding years had also been incorporated and there is an effect from the higher effective tax rate in Belgium. Where 2008 and subsequent years are concerned, we expect to incur a tax liability at a rate that is in line with the prevailing nominal tax rate.
As a result of the developments discussed in this section, profit for 2007 increased by 18% to EUR 30.4 million. Net earnings per share improved by 25% to EUR 0.75 in 2007 (2006: EUR 0.60). Net earnings per share before amortisation of intangible assets due to acquisitions rose by 34% to EUR 1.15 in 2007 (2006: EUR 0.86), meaning that we delivered on the target set late in 2004 to achieve at least EUR 1.00 in net earnings per share before amortisation of intangible assets due to acquisitions in 2007.
As a direct result of our continued focus on working capital management, we successfully kept DSO below 65 for the second year running in 2007. The DSO stood at 61 at the end of 2007. Stringent management of working capital by managers and administrative departments contributed greatly to a handsome level of net cash from operating activities of EUR 74.6 million in 2007 (2006: EUR 34.1 million).
The year 2007 was marked by targeted investments in our business operations. More specifically, as announced early in 2007, we invested heavily in putting in place standardised solutions for our BPO services. The total capital expenditure involved was EUR 28 million in 2007, of which EUR 20 million went towards the basic banking platform. We also invested in support systems for our standard operations at our central office location in Nieuwegein. As the main location for virtually all of our divisions, the office has been designed and furnished with a view to facilitating and encouraging cooperation within Ordina.
Looking ahead, we expect lower expenditure levels in 2008 than in 2007. The investment in finalising the transformation to the basic banking platform is expected to be EUR 11 million in 2008. An additional EUR 10 million will be invested in standardisation and scalability of our investment and mortgage solutions as well as transferring clients to these platforms.
In addition to investing in business operations, we undertook several acquisitions in 2007, although investments were at a substantially lower level than in 2006. We purchased all of the shares in YoungWood IT Group in the first half of 2007, and acquired all of the shares in Belgian-based ITG Consulting Group in the third quarter. In the first quarter of 2007, we paid an additional EUR 32.4 million for acquisitions undertaken in previous years. These additional payments were based on earn-out agreements. In the first quarter of 2008, we expect to pay a total of EUR 8.0 million to satisfy earn-out commitments.
In view of Ordina’s business model and susceptibility to cyclical movements, we have opted to pursue a relatively conservative financing policy. Our guiding principle is for our net debt not to exceed twice the EBITDA figure. At the end of 2007, net debt was 61.4 million, this is 0.8 times the EBITDA, remaining well within our policy target. We would note, however, that Ordina’s cash flows traditionally follow a strong seasonal pattern. The first six months tend to see relatively large cash outflows due to the payment of bonuses, earn-out commitments, holiday allowances and dividends. The second half of the year is traditionally characterised by large cash inflows. This pattern is expected to continue in 2008, despite the possibility of having holiday allowances paid out in monthly instalments through our new Benefit Shop.
In light of Ordina’s ability to generate strong cash flows from operating activities and the financing facilities extended to us (EUR 120 million committed facilities and EUR 60 million uncommitted overdraft facilities), we have sufficient scope to fund further growth.
At year-end 2007, Ordina’s equity was EUR 254.6 million, i.e. 48% of total assets. We seek to maintain an equity level that optimally ensures the continuity of our business. In tandem with our policy on the use of loan capital, this objective also implies that we will continue to finance future acquisitions partly by issuing Ordina N.V. shares.

| 2007 | 2006 | |
| Summarised cash flow statement | ||
| Net cash from operating activitities | 74.6 | 34.1 |
| Net cash used in investing activities | -76.5 | -97.1 |
| Net cash used in financing activities | -4.6 | 40.4 |
| Net decrease in cash and cash equivalants | -6.5 | -22.6 |
| (in euro millions) | ||