Phoenix, AZ – Institute of Supply Management (ISM) Services Group Conference --  December 1, 2005 — Elance, Inc. (www.elance.com), the leading provider of e-commerce solutions for services, today announced the results of a benchmark survey of Services & Contractor Management trends across Fortune 1000 firms.  The Elance services and contractor management solution is used by over 200,000 employees and 2,600 service providers to automate, streamline and control billions of dollars of purchases annually.  The survey's key findings are that managing contingent labor and services spending is viewed as “critical” to Fortune 1000 firms, that IT consulting is the major category of external expenditure today, and that management consulting is viewed as the top priority for optimization in 2006.  Additionally, the survey cites compliance with rules and regulations, including Sarbanes-Oxley and labor statutes, and significant cost savings as the main benefits of services purchasing automation.

Highlights of Elance Services & Contractor Management Benchmark Survey include:

Managing Services like Contingent Labor, Consulting, Offshore Development and Print is a Key Priority for 2006:

• Services = 80% larger than Indirect Goods in purchasing budget
• 100% say Services Procurement & Management is ‘Critical' or ‘Important' Initiative for 2006
• 
  The Key Benefits to Managing Services Spend are Cost-Savings, Compliance and Visibility
  
• Cost Savings through compliance with contracted rates and terms: 
• Visibility into services spending
• Cost Savings through maverick spend reduction
• Compliance to Sarbanes-Oxley regulations
• 
  
  The Top Services Spend Areas By Volume are Consulting and Contingent Labor
  1. IT Consulting
  2. Contingent Labor
  3. Management Consulting
  4. Offshore Development
  5. Third Party Services/BPO
  6. Print
  
  

  The Top Priority for 2006 is Management Consulting
  1. Management Consulting
  2. IT Consulting
  3. Market Research

"Consulting services including IT, operations and management consulting are a large and growing spend area and this survey demonstrates that companies increasingly rely on these types of services and also see an immense opportunity to deliver compliance, cost-optimization and performance measurement to consulting agreements" said Fabio Rosati, president and CEO of Elance, Inc. "Elance, and Elance's partners, improve the way consultants and contractors are engaged and managed by deploying state-of-the-art vendor-neutral technology and processes."

Methodology
The Elance Services & Contractor Management Benchmark Survey, conducted in October 2005, represents companies with over $600 Billion in annual revenues and over $40 Billion in services spending across multiple industries including financial services, data services, energy, pharmaceuticals, telecommunications, food & consumer services and conglomerates. Respondents included vice presidents or directors of procurement, C-level executives or vice presidents of business lines or functions including human resources and information technology.

Survey Availability
For complete results of Services & Contractor Management Benchmark Survey, visit: http://enterprise.elance.com/resourcecenter/index.html

About Elance, Inc.
Elance® is the leading provider of e-commerce solutions for services.  Elance provides a simple, convenient and automated way to find, evaluate, purchase, manage and pay for third party services and contractors, resulting in tremendous cost savings and increased compliance for buyers and increased customer and market reach for suppliers.  Elance brands include:

• Elance 5, an enterprise service, used by Global 2000 companies to manage their network of service suppliers and contractors for over 50 service categories including contingent staffing, IT outsourcing, and consulting services
• Elance Marketplace, the world's leading web-based project marketplace, used by mid-sized and small businesses and services providers to connect and transact projects online
• Elance Agency, a specialized service, used by mid-sized and small businesses to access handcrafted project packages for the most popular services categories.

Headquartered in Mountain View, Calif., Elance serves customers and suppliers the world over.  For more information on Elance, please visit www.elance.com.

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Elance and the Elance logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Elance, Inc. in the United States and other countries.

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