Sybase Achieves ISO 9001/TickIT Certification for SQL Server Engineering
Group

ISO 9000 TREND GROWS AMONG SOFTWARE VENDORS AND CUSTOMERS

EMERYVILLE, CA, April 17, 1995 -- Sybase, Inc., The Enterprise
Client/Server Company, today announced that its SQL Server engineering
group has been awarded ISO 9001/TickIT certification. The award represents
a major step in Sybase's campaign to become fully ISO 9000-certified by
the end of 1995, and to continuously improve the quality of its products
and services in the process. With this announcement, Sybase becomes the
first major software-only company to achieve ISO 9000 certification in its
core operations, including engineering.

ISO 9000 is an internationally recognized standard that measures the degree
to which an organization has instituted consistent, repeatable quality
processes. As a leader in ISO 9000 certification among software vendors,
Sybase's goal is to use the ISO process to improve the quality of its
products and services, and ultimately to improve the satisfaction of its
customers.

In addition to Sybase, other independent software vendors (ISVs) and large
customers are fueling the ISO 9000 trend among software vendors.
PeopleSoft, Inc. and Ross Systems, Inc., both of whom are Sybase Open
Solutions partners, have announced their intention to become ISO
9000-compliant and to use the international quality standard as a key
management tool. And large end-users such as Bell Atlantic are asking for
ISO 9000 certification from software vendors who are bidding for their
business.

"It's heartening to see other ISVs and end-users looking to ISO 9000 as a
way to measure and continuously improve software quality ," said Mark
Hoffman, president and CEO of Sybase. "As the client/server software
market matures, quality of software is going to be a critical issue."

CERTIFICATION FOR SQL SERVER GROUP

In the latest news, Sybase's SQL Server engineering group, responsible for
developing and maintaining the company's flagship SQL Server 10 software,
achieved ISO 9001/TickIT-certification in March. The certification award
was made by the London-based Bureau Veritas Quality International (BVQI)
registrar. With this certification, the majority of Sybase's worldwide
engineering operations -- including SQL Server, Navigation Server,
Replication Server, and connectivity products -- are ISO 9001/TickIT
certified. Sybase remains the first major software-only vendor to earn ISO
9001/TickIT certification in the United States. In addition, Sybase has
already gained ISO certification for its European operations as well as
its manufacturing and its customer service and support operations.

"In May 1993 I made a corporate commitment to quality to our user group,
vowing that Sybase would become fully ISO-compliant," Hoffman said. "We've
invested more than one million dollars in ISO 9000 certification to date
and we aren't going to stop here. Sybase is fully committed to continuous
quality improvement."

The company plans to obtain certification for its New Media business unit
in the next few months and for its systems management engineering, product
localization, and professional services groups by the end of 1995.
Sybase's MDI subsidiary is also scheduled to be certified by the end of
1995 and plans for Powersoft certification are being developed.

"ISO 9001/TickIT is an important stake in the ground for Sybase regarding
quality," said Mike Macfarlane, vice president of quality at Sybase, "We
encourage other vendors to pursue certification as their first major
quality goal."

ROSS SYSTEMS

Besides Sybase, several other independent software vendors are committing
to ISO 9000. Ross Systems, Inc. is a Redwood City-based provider of
financial, manufacturing, distribution, maintenance, and human resource
application software with revenues in excess of $85 million per year that
has been growing at an annual rate of about 39 percent. Ross first
achieved ISO 9000 certification of its British consulting services
organization earlier this year. Ross executives were so impressed with the
thoroughness of the process that they decided that it was a valuable tool
for continuous improvement and innovation throughout the company.

"While many software companies see an ISO 9000 certificate as a token
effort to please some customers, we believe that it can be a valuable
management tool that benefits all of our customers worldwide," said Myra
Sulit, director of Quality Assurance at Ross. "We are seeing an increasing
number of customers who are requesting evidence of a quality commitment
such as ISO certification."

In the past several months, Ross has established a formalized quality
function and is looking to gain ISO certification for all of its relevant
operations -- especially engineering -- within the next 18 months.

"One immediate goal is a streamlining of our release process for
multi-platform deployment of our products," said Sulit. "We want to
improve the quality of our software which we know will translate into
increased productivity for our customers around the world."

PEOPLESOFT

PeopleSoft, Inc. of Walnut Creek, CA, is dedicated to enhancing and
maintaining quality and productivity while dealing with tremendous growth.
The company, a leading provider of client/server business application
software for financials, distribution, and human resources, has seen
revenues skyrocket from less than $200,000 in 1988 to $112 million in
1994. PeopleSoft has also approximately doubled its headcount in each of
the last five years.

"Amid all this growth, we need a way to measure productivity and product
quality," said Peggy Taylor, PeopleSoft's senior vice president of
application development and customer services. "We also want a way to
ensure that all employees are fully productive and well-coordinated with
their R&D efforts. ISO 9000 provides a methodology to help us develop and
document repeatable quality processes, as well as measure the
effectiveness of those processes."

PeopleSoft plans to begin certification efforts in its shipping operations
for ISO 9002 certification. Efforts then will be directed at ISO
9001/TickIT certification for its engineering groups.

CUSTOMER VIEW

On the other side of the buying equation, some customers are expecting ISO
9000 certification from software vendors who are bidding for their
business. Bell Atlantic uses ISO 9000 as a key yardstick of software
vendors' commitment to quality. Specifically, Bell Atlantic measures its
vendors against the ISO 9001 and 9002 standards, then adds its own
requirements.

"A software vendor who is ISO 9000-certified goes a long way toward proving
its quality commitment," said D. Galen Aycock Manager, Quality Technology
at Bell Atlantic "Using this internationally recognized standard, we see
exactly what steps the vendor is taking to create repeatable quality
processes. ISVs who don't pay attention to the ISO standard will not be
viewed favorably by global competitors like Bell Atlantic. We see quality
as a critical, bottomline issue and expect our vendors to do the same."

ISO 9000

The international ISO 9000 standard has been adopted by more than 40,000
companies in 90 countries. The ISO 9000 series consists of three standards
-- ISO 9001, 9002, and 9003. The only difference between the three is
scope of processes reviewed. ISO 9001 is the most comprehensive, covering
the entire range of activity within an enterprise. ISO 9002 is similar to
9001 except that software design and development are omitted. ISO 9003
focuses only on final inspection and test.

SYBASE, INC.

Sybase, Inc., is a worldwide leader in client/server computing. Sybase is
focused in the four major client/server categories: databases, tools,
database systems management, and interoperability, providing desktop to
enterprise scalability. The company's mission is to provide its customers
with an open, adaptable information systems architecture that enables
rapid business change. Headquartered in Emeryville, CA, Sybase is the
seventh largest independent software company in the world.

Sybase Inc
6475 Christie Ave
Emeryville, CA 04608
510-596-3500;  Fax: 510-658-9441

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