InformationWeek

Company: National Semiconductor

Industry: Electronics

Highest Ranking IT Executive: Ulrich Seif, Senior VP of Supply Chain Services & CIO

Key IT Initiatives This Year: Virtual inventory implemented with a major key distributor, Arrow Electronics; employee Collaborative Toolbox, a user-friendly set of tools easily activated by employees for videoconferencing, document sharing, searching, and VoIP.

Key Past Successes: Outsourced distribution to UPS facility in Singapore in 2000; custom-built Factory Starts dispatch system, converting customer orders to factory production and triggering frequent manufacturing cycles based on demand.

In Their Own Words: Says Seif, "We run information services like it was its own business. You only get the freedom to do that if the guys running the business believe you will do the right job for them. We have to re-earn it every year."