• Dell named as one of the 100 Best for the third consecutive year
  • Dell work-life survey shows flexible work solutions as a key retention factor.

New York and Round Rock, Texas, Sept. 29, 2010-Celebrating its silver anniversary this year, the Working Mother 100 Best Companies initiative has selected Dell as one of the nation's top companies for family-friendly benefits. With 70 percent of mothers working-and women outnumbering men in the workplace for the first time in U.S. history-companies like Dell have been instrumental in supporting their advancement.

According to a recent Dell work-life survey administered in 2009, 80 percent of the respondents had taken advantage of informal flexible work arrangements at Dell. Furthermore, 88 percent of respondents indicated Dell's support of flexible work solutions was a key retention factor for them.

Each year, the 100 Best continue to raise the bar for family friendly programs. These programs adeptly help all team members in all areas of their lives. As an example, of some of the benefits Dell provides, but are not limited to: an onsite health clinic at corporate headquarters that has provided services to more than 2,600 team members in just one year of operation; prenatal wellness and onsite lactation rooms for pregnant and new mothers; resource referral and back up care for children and the elderly; and preventative wellness programs, which include on-site annual health screenings.

While the Working Mother 100 Best Companies continue expanding their benefits, those at companies nationwide1 lag. Just 44 percent of American companies offer telecommuting (vs. 100 percent of the 100 Best), 17 percent offer formal mentoring (vs. 95 percent), and 37 percent offer health insurance for part-timers (vs. 100 percent).In contrast, all of the 100 Best Companies offer paid maternity leave, lactation rooms, flextime, mental health consultations and elder-care resources; and 98 percent offer health screening and wellness programs-particularly significant in a stress-inducing, poor economy.

Quotes:

Carol Evans, President, Working Mother Media

"Twenty-five years ago, we made a bold decision to launch our Best Companies initiative and challenge businesses to address the unique needs of working mothers. The immense influx of women into the workforce demanded changes in workplace culture as companies strove to keep working moms' talent and loyalty. Today, we celebrate our winners' untiring commitment to their employees through an impressive array of programs."

Lisa Mink, Director of Global Diversity and Inclusion, Dell

" We understand that offering family-friendly programs is a key factor in the lives of each of our team members. Through programs like our flexible work solutions, prenatal wellness programs and child care assistance, we are helping our working moms and dads remain engaged and committed, which is critically important for us to fulfill our mission of helping our customers reach their full potential."

Methodology:

Companies were selected for the 2010 Working Mother 100 Best Companies based on an extensive application with more than 600 questions on workforce, compensation, child care, flexibility programs, leave policies and more. It also surveys the usage, availability and tracking of programs, as well as the accountability of managers who oversee them. Seven areas were measured and scored: workforce profile, benefits, women's issues and advancement, child care, flexible work, parental leave and company culture. For this year's 100 Best, particular weight was given to benefits, flexibility and parental leave.

About Dell

Dell (NASDAQ: DELL) listens to its customers and uses that insight to make technology simpler and create innovative solutions that deliver reliable, long-term value. Learn more at www.dell.com.

About Working Mother Media

Working Mother magazine reaches 2 million readers and is the only national magazine for career-committed mothers; WorkingMother.com brings to the Web home and career information, advice and a broad range of solutions daily. This year marks the 25th anniversary of Working Mother's signature research initiative, Working Mother 100 Best Companies, the most important benchmark for work-life practices in corporate America. Working Mother Media, a division of Bonnier Corp. (www.bonnier.com), includes the National Association for Female Executives (NAFE, www.nafe.com), Diversity Best Practices (www.diversitybestpractices.com), the WorkLife Congress and the Multicultural Women's Conference and Leadership Summits. Working Mother Media's mission is to serve as a champion of culture change.

1National statistics are taken from a recent study by the Society for Human Resource Management.

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