Adecco Secures Top Spot Among Staffing Companies In InformationWeek 500 Annual Technology Survey; Effective Use of Technology Differentiates Adecco From the Competition.

Business Editors

MELVILLE, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 14, 2002

Adecco (NYSE:ADO), the world's largest staffing services company, today announced that it has been cited as the top staffing organization in the InformationWeek 500.

Adecco's spot at #54 in the survey is recognition that the company, with 1,500 points of service across the nation, employs innovative, new technologies to introduce pioneering e-business, recruiting and staff management initiatives for Adecco, its clients and the staffing industry. The award also recognizes Adecco for leveraging its technology infrastructure to strengthen the foundation beneath its core business. By creating, enhancing and upgrading a system to support its staffing business, Adecco provided employment for more than 600,000 people in the United States in 2001 alone.

The InformationWeek 500, now in its 14th year, ranks billion-dollar size organizations on the basis of their innovative use of information technology. This year's participants, as in previous years, completed a comprehensive qualifying questionnaire that examined core areas of operations, including technology deployment, IT budget, technology strategies, e-business and customer-knowledge initiatives and staff management.

"We are very happy to have been ranked #54 in InformationWeek's annual survey," said Arnie Rind, Adecco USA CIO. "This award provides us with a great sense of satisfaction, as we have worked hard to create a strong, cost-effective technology infrastructure to support all facets of our business while serving the needs of our clients, temporary employees and candidates for full-time positions. Recognition of our continued efforts to strengthen our systems just confirms that we are making the right technology decisions."

About Adecco

Adecco SA is a Forbes International 500 company and the global leader in HR Solutions. The Adecco network connects up to 700,000 associates with business clients each day through its network of over 30,000 employees and over 6,000 offices in 60 countries. Registered in Switzerland, and managed by a multinational team with expertise in markets spanning the globe, Adecco delivers an unparalleled range of flexible staffing and career resources to corporate clients and qualified associates.

Adecco SA comprises four divisions: Adecco Staffing, Ajilon Professional, Career Services, and e-HR Services. In Adecco Staffing, the Adecco staffing network focuses on flexible staffing solutions for global industries in transition, including automotive, banking, electronics, logistics and telecommunications; Ajilon Professional offers an unrivalled range of specialized branded businesses; Career Services encompasses our portfolio of outplacement and coaching; e-HR Services focuses on online recruiting activities for the Group.

Adecco USA serves more than 70,000 clients a year in every state through 1,500 points of sales and service nationwide. With headquarters in Melville, NY, Adecco USA employs about 3,300 full-time employees and places more than 160,000 temporary associates each week.

Adecco SA is listed on the Swiss Exchange (ADEN / trading on Virt-x: 1213860), NYSE (ADO), Euronext Premier Marche (12819). Further information can be found at www.adecco.com.