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Forensic Science Workshop on Saturday Nov 6th from 10 am - 2 pm at Southern Polytechnic State University. In this "Crime Scene Mystery" classroom, the

Agreement provides for an exclusive option for St. Jude Medical to acquire CardioMEMS in the future and creates opportunity for the Minnesota-based medical device company to expand and accelerate its efforts in heart failure monitoring

ST. PAUL, Minn. and ATLANTA, Ga. - Sept. 7, 2010 – St. Jude Medical, Inc. (NYSE: STJ), a global medical device company, and privately-held CardioMEMS today announced that they have reached an agreement under which St. Jude Medical will make a $60 million equity investment in CardioMEMS, a medical device company that has developed a wireless sensing and communication technology to assess cardiac performance. The agreement provides St. Jude Medical an immediate 19 percent ownership in CardioMEMS and the exclusive option to acquire the company for an additional payment of $375 million during the period that extends through the completion of certain commercialization milestones.

CardioMEMS’ wireless monitoring technology can be placed directly in the pulmonary artery to assess cardiac performance via measurement of pulmonary artery pressure (PAP). The implant procedure is fast, simple and can be performed by any physician who does right-heart catheterizations. The sensor transmits real-time hemodynamic data via an external monitor to the patient’s clinic for review. PAP is a commonly used measurement to assess heart failure (HF) patients in hospitals. With CardioMEMS’ technology, doctors can obtain this critical information without the need for a cardiac catheterization. Patients can transmit these readings from their homes, and with this vital information, physicians can more effectively direct treatments to keep patients out of the hospital.

The CardioMEMS monitoring system is supported by strong clinical evidence, including the CHAMPION (“CardioMEMS Heart Sensor Allows Monitoring of Pressure to Improve Outcomes in NYHA Class III Patients”) trial, the results of which were presented in May 2010 at the European Society of Cardiology Heart Failure Congress in Berlin. The randomized, controlled CHAMPION trial studied the effectiveness of this device in New York Heart Association (NYHA) Class III HF patients, regardless of their ejection fraction, who had been hospitalized for HF in the previous 12 months. It found a statistically significant 30 percent reduction in the rate of HF related hospitalization at six months and 38 percent per year reduction in HF related hospitalizations during an average follow-up duration of 15 months.

Jay S. Yadav, M.D., Founder, Chief Executive Officer and Director of CardioMEMS said, “The CHAMPION trial provides great promise for patients suffering from chronic symptomatic heart failure. The results demonstrated the potential for hemodynamic monitoring to reduce the need for costly hospitalizations while improving quality of life. As we work toward the commercialization of this promising technology, we are excited to have the support of a company like St. Jude Medical, with its significant expertise and focus in the areas of cardiac rhythm management, heart failure disease management and other cardiac technologies."

“Technologies that help improve the management of heart failure can not only provide meaningful benefits for patients, but can also do so in a cost effective manner that is particularly important given recent health care reform in the U.S. and the attention to health care costs worldwide,” said Eric S. Fain, M.D., president of the St. Jude Medical Cardiac Rhythm Management Division. “Investing in CardioMEMS reaffirms our commitment to technology platforms that improve heart failure management and the potential benefits of hemodynamic monitoring for both patients and the health care economic system.”

This agreement does not change St. Jude Medical’s outlook for 2010 consolidated earnings per share. In connection with the agreement, BofA Merrill Lynch is acting as financial advisor and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP as legal counsel to St. Jude Medical. J.P. Morgan Securities LLC acted as financial advisor and Cooley LLP served as legal counsel to CardioMEMS.

About Heart Failure

Over five million Americans have HF with 670,000 new cases diagnosed each year. NYHA Class III represents roughly 1.4 million of the HF patients in the U.S., and historically accounts for nearly half of all heart failure hospitalizations. Heart failure occurs when the heart is unable to pump enough blood to meet the body’s demands, unless it elevates pressures within the heart. Significant HF progression over a period of days is known as acute decompensation, which forces excess fluid into the lungs causing congestive symptoms, most commonly breathlessness. Approximately 90% of patients admitted to a hospital for HF have pulmonary congestion. Episodes of pulmonary congestion have a high associated mortality and result in a downward spiral of progressive cardiac deterioration. The estimated direct and indirect cost of HF in the United States for 2009 was $37.2 billion.

About CardioMEMS, Inc.

CardioMEMS is a medical device company that has developed and is commercializing proprietary wireless sensing and communication technology for the human body. Its technology platform is designed to improve the management of severe chronic cardiovascular diseases such as aneurysms, heart failure and hypertension. CardioMEMS miniature wireless sensors can be implanted using minimally-invasive techniques and transmit cardiac output, blood pressure and heart rate data which are critical to the management of patients. The sensors can be permanently implanted into the heart and blood vessels due to their small size, durability and lack of wires and batteries. Using radiofrequency (RF) energy, the sensors transmit real-time data to external electronic readers, which then communicate this information to the patient’s physician. Previous lead investors in CardioMEMS include Arcapita Ventures, Boston Millennia Partners and Foundation Medical Partners. More information about CardioMEMS is located at www.cardiomems.com.

About St. Jude Medical

St. Jude Medical develops medical technology and services that focus on putting more control into the hands of those who treat cardiac, neurological and chronic pain patients worldwide. The company is dedicated to advancing the practice of medicine by reducing risk wherever possible and contributing to successful outcomes for every patient. St. Jude Medical is headquartered in St. Paul, Minn. and has four major focus areas that include: cardiac rhythm management, atrial fibrillation, cardiovascular and neuromodulation. For more information, please visit sjm.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that involve risks and uncertainties. Such forward-looking statements include the expectations, plans and prospects for the Companies, including potential clinical successes, anticipated regulatory approvals and future product launches, and projected revenues, margins, earnings and market shares. The statements made by the Companies are based upon management’s current expectations and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include market conditions and other factors beyond the Companies’ control and the risk factors and, for St. Jude Medical, other cautionary statements described in its filings with the SEC, including those described in the Risk Factors and Cautionary Statements sections of St. Jude Medical’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended April 3, 2010. The Companies do not intend to update these statements and undertake no duty to any person to provide any such update under any circumstance.

Contact: Daniel H. Bauer, CFO, 678-651-2376


CardioMEMS and the CardioMEMS Logo are registered trademarks of CardioMEMS, Inc.

BtoB Tech PR and Marketing Firm Arketi Group Named to Inc. 5000 List of Fastest Growing Private Companies for Third Straight Year

ATLANTA, Sept. 09, 2010 – Arketi Group (www.arketi.com), a high-tech business-to-business (BtoB) public relations and digital marketing firm, announced today its inclusion in the prestigious Inc. 5,000, Inc. magazine’s ranking of the nation's fastest-growing private companies. Marking its third consecutive year on the list, Arketi was ranked No. 4,273 nationally and No. 366 in the Advertising and Marketing Industry.

Arketi was recognized for its aggressive growth as a provider of high-tech BtoB PR and digital marketing expertise. Arketi’s work has been honored with more than 60 awards since its founding including earning coveted spots on “BtoB's Top Agencies” list for the past three years.

Over the past year, Arketi has strengthened its lead nurturing and marketing automation practice by adding five clients. In addition, the firm has seen significant growth in its award-winning social media practice, with BtoB clients turning to Arketi for help jump-starting or formalizing their online video presence.

"Savvy trend spotters and those who invest in private companies know that the Inc. 5000 is the best place to find out about young companies that are achieving success through a wide variety of unprecedented business models, as well as older private companies that are still expanding at an impressive rate," said Inc. 5000 Project Manager Jim Melloan. "That's why our list is so eagerly anticipated every year."

With 178 Atlanta companies on the 2010 Inc. 5000, Atlanta is the fifth top producing metropolitan area for fast-growing companies.

“Our inclusion in the Inc. 5000 was made possible by the efforts of our hard working employees and by the trust of our clients,” said Sami Jajeh, principal of Arketi Group. “Our clients turn to us for expert council backed up by execution that delivers bottom line results. This formula is what has permitted us to grow in an economic environment where many have struggled.”

About Inc. Magazine
Founded in 1979 and acquired in 2005 by Mansueto Ventures LLC, Inc. (www.inc.com) is the only major business magazine dedicated exclusively to owners and managers of growing private companies that delivers real solutions for today's innovative company builders. With a total paid circulation of 712,961, Inc. provides hands-on tools and market-tested strategies for managing people, finances, sales, marketing, and technology.

About Arketi Group
Arketi Group is a public relations (PR) and digital marketing firm that helps business-to-business (B2B) technology organizations accelerate growth through intelligent strategy, public relations, messaging, branding and demand generation. Consistently recognized by BtoB Magazine as one of the nation's "Top BtoB Agencies," Arketi’s core belief is that marketing generates revenue. Clients benefiting from this approach to B2B marketing include Cbeyond, GMT Corporation, Numerex, Stonesoft, Sage and Xerox Litigation Services. For more information, call 404-929-0091 ext. 202 or visit www.arketi.com.

TALENThire Announces Funding and Launches Contract Labor Marketplace Solution in Atlanta and Southeast Markets

Solution Empowers Companies to Quickly Source Contractors and Temporary Labor and Manage the Associated Process and Compliance Activities

ATLANTA, September 9, 2010 -- TALENThire, an Atlanta-based company that provides an on-demand platform for sourcing contractors and temporary labor while managing process and compliance risks, recently announced it raised additional funding from Atlanta-based investment group Value Plus Ventures.

Atlanta organizations are reporting a growing shift in their hiring practices. They have been moving towards a flexible workforce and the use of contractors and temp-to-hire labor to help meet increasing workloads and projects and to avoid hiring full time employees. The rise of Independent Contractors also brings compliance risks that are becoming more complex as government regulations increase. Adhering to the Fair Labor Standards Act and state and federal government scrutiny can be a full time job in itself. "Atlanta companies are becoming aware of the unique power of and embracing our Contract Labor Vendor Management Solution", said Kyle Antcliff Chief Operating Officer TALENThire. "There are multiple benefits to utilizing contractors, however, these benefits also bring operational challenges such as contractor sourcing, tax and payroll compliance, time and expense tracking, payrolling, invoicing and payment and end-to-end process management", added Antcliff.

While the Company's core vendor management solution helps companies who already have significant contractor spend and established staffing firm relationships in place, TALENThire recently launched a contract and temporary labor marketplace solution in Atlanta and the broader southeast. The marketplace allows companies the ability to utilize TALENThire's strong local staffing firm network to quickly and easily source and manage contractors or temporary labor for projects or workforce augmentation. The new solution manages all of the tasks associated with contract labor, including online time and expense capture, consolidated invoicing, staffing firm payment, and tax and payroll compliance.

"As a growing company we utilize contractors as a key part of our talent acquisition and resourcing strategies", said Dale McConnell Chief Information Offer for BrandsMart. "TALENThire's solution is very intuitive and provides us quick access to qualified staffing firms for sourcing talent and then manages all of the related tasks, including on-boarding, time and expense tracking, invoicing and staffing firm payment. Before TALENThire we would contact several staffing firms, negotiate terms, hope they produced quality candidates and then struggled with things like time tracking and payment. TALENThire's solution solves all of these headaches", McConnell added.

Fueling TALENThire's growth and increased product expansion is the additional funding it received. "We like TALENThire because it addresses the need for cost containment and process management solutions in companies of all sizes. It uniquely focuses on managing contract labor and services spend for its clients, which puts it high on the radar of senior executives. This coupled with the fact that the market for contract and temporary labor is large, growing and difficult to manage for companies provides it a unique market opportunity for growth", said Lee Provow of Value Plus Ventures.

About TALENThire

TALENThire's on-demand workforce solution enables companies to acquire talent and gain control and visibility over spending on contingent labor, direct hires and outside services. The solution uniquely empowers companies to effectively source and manage Contract Labor and comply with federal and state labor laws associated with the usage of contractors. TALENThire's customer partners include AOL, Cbeyond and BrandsMart and its staffing firm network is over 500 strong.

Forensic Science Workshop on Saturday Nov 6th from 10 am - 2 pm at Southern Polytechnic State University. In this "Crime Scene Mystery" classroom, the girls will be learning forensic science techniques and examining evidence as they try to solve the crime.

For more information or to voluteer, please contact me.

At our TAG CRM meeting today Sept 9 (thanks everyone for your attendance) we asked for recommendations for meeting topics for next year Our kickoff fo

As we contemplated getting TAG-FinTech off the ground, we looked at the incredible list of FinTech companies in Georgia.  From the largest to the incubating, we have it all here.

Having it all could have been viewed as a challenge:  incubating companies vying for funding, early stage companies establishing their beachhead in a full field, big companies competing with everyone.  How do we find a common ground on which to build TAG-FinTech?

The best way to get anything done is to put a bunch of smart people in a room, give them some guidelines and some boundaries, and step out of the way.  Beginning with an organizational meeting in October, we held a first steering-committee meeting in December which led to monthly meetings.  From those meetings, we are developing a framework which allows competitors to cooperate, odd-fellows to collaborate, each to learn from each other, and all to band together for the collective whole.

An amazing spectacle.

Dave Chambless is Chair, TAG-FinTech and President, Abraxas Business Services.  Dave can be reached at dchambless@abraxas.biz