Equifax 2007 Annual Report Download - page 5

EQUIFAX | 2007 ANNUAL REPORT 3
For new products, we have developed a finely tuned
decisioning mechanism that ensures investment is directed
toward projects meeting market needs and yielding the
highest returns. This process has been responsible for
broadening our mortgage business from a single product
into a comprehensive solution suite. Equifax Settlement
Services provides customers with a faster, more efficient
product solution for the mortgage closing process.
The innovation process begins with a clear
understanding of our customer needs. “Voice-of-the-
customer” insights are regularly fed to our Growth
Council, a team of innovative thinkers from across the
Company who ideate solutions around customer needs.
Our new collaborative intranet portal, Idea Marketplace,
enables employees around the world to also offer ideas for
new products and solutions that better serve customers.
A high-performance culture demands excellence.
Global Centers of Excellence are proving critical to our
strategic transformation. Organizing around specialized
disciplines and expertise at the enterprise level, our busi-
nesses receive higher-level support, so they can focus
more intently on their customers’ needs. For instance,
Global Operations is implementing LEAN initiatives and
processes – reducing service level costs so that greater
resources can be directed toward growth and innovation.
Innovation and a commitment to excellence are
transforming Equifax into an increasingly customer-centric
company. An organization that is creating leading-edge
solutions which empower our business customers to
compete more efficiently and effectively – and con-
sumers to take a more active role in managing their
credit. This transformation was recognized when Equifax
was named as one of FORTUNE magazine’s 2007 most
admired companies – a well-deserved honor for the 7,000
Equifax employees world-wide.
POISED FOR GROWTH
The past two years have been a period of tremendous
progress at Equifax. Our business model was tested by
the severe economic climate in the U.S. housing and credit
markets. Despite pressure on our largest business unit,
Equifax delivered a strong performance. Carefully
listening to our clients; providing insights to help them
understand market trends; and creating solutions that work
in all economic environments will contribute to the
continued success of Equifax. The economic challenges
remain as I prepare this letter, further reinforcing the
importance and the need for our insights and solutions.
As we enter 2008, Equifax is in an unprecedented
position to inform, enrich and empower our customers.
This position offers great potential for growth, which we
are turning into performance and value for our shareholders.
We have a resilient and diverse business model. We have
a clearly defined growth strategy driven by a strong
management team. We have a culture of highly motivated
employees to execute this strategy. And we have a con-
sistent record of meeting our shareholders’ expectations.
While much has been accomplished in our 109-year
history, we have even more to achieve. As a nimble,
innovative and customer-centric organization, our team
has what it takes to continue winning in the marketplace
for our customers, our shareholders and our employees.
Sincerely,
Richard F. Smith
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
REVENUE BY INDUSTRY
Financial 32%
Mortgage 12%
Consumer 10%
Commercial 8%
Retail 7%
Automotive 7%
Human Resources 5%
Telecommunications 5%
Other(1) 14%
(1) Other includes revenues from government,
marketing services, insurance and healthcare
end-users.
Traditional financial institutions comprise less than one-third
of consolidated revenue today.