MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. -- SGI's commitment to equal opportunity and the advancement of women in the workplace has been recognized by two prestigious organizations. The Professional BusinessWomen of California (PBWC) has selected SGI to receive the first annual PBWC Pacesetter Award, which honors the top 25 San Francisco Bay Area companies that embody the mission of PBWC and that work to advance women on an ongoing basis. SGI is also pleased to announce that the YWCA of Santa Clara Valley, which will honor 50 outstanding executive women from Silicon Valley at its 19th annual Tribute to Women and Industry (TWIN) Awards, has selected three SGI executives as recipients. The TWIN award winners are Anneke Dempsey, director of global alliances; Kathy Lanterman, vice president, corporate controller; and Marty Coleman, director, public relations and analyst relations. "SGI is honored to be named as one of the top 25 companies for women in the Bay Area by the Professional BusinessWomen of California. We are also very pleased to offer congratulations to the three professionals receiving TWIN awards from the YWCA of Santa Clara Valley," said Bob Bishop, chairman and CEO, SGI. "These awards demonstrate SGI's well-known reputation as a company committed to ensuring the rights and dignity of everyone. SGI believes in attracting the best of the best, to achieve its technical and creative mission." Today at the San Jose Convention Center, State Senator Jackie Speier will present the PBWC Pacesetter Award awards to Bay Area companies in nine counties that exemplify the PBWC mission. The 25 top-ranking companies will be honored during a keynote luncheon session featuring Karen Elliott House, senior vice president of Dow Jones & Company and publisher of the Wall Street Journal. SGI Vice President of Change Management Christie Hardwick Vianson (a former YWCA TWIN honoree-see below) will accept the PBWC Pacesetter award on SGI's behalf. The criteria used in determining this year's Pacesetter Award winners are: percentage of women executives defined as vice president or equivalent and above; percentage of women corporate officers; percentage of women directors on the board; percentage of women employees; and development and continuing support of programs that benefit women in the workplace. "We congratulate SGI as one of the top 25 companies that embody the guiding principle of the Professional BusinessWomen of California: to advance women into the highest ranks of every organization and to support women in leadership roles at all levels," said Jackie McNab, 2003 PBWC board president. TWIN Award The YWCA in Santa Clara Valley's TWIN Awards Program, held April 30 at the Fairmont Hotel in downtown San Jose, honored not only women who demonstrate excellence in executive-level positions, but also the companies that employ these women. The 2003 TWIN honorees reflect top leadership in their companies. "This has been a phenomenal year for TWIN. We received a record number of nominations from top-level companies. I hold these women in high regard. They truly are the best of the best," said Keri Procunier McLain, chief executive officer of the YWCA in Santa Clara Valley. The three SGI women executives chosen for this year's TWIN awards are consistent achievers and leaders who exemplify SGI's workforce diversity. Dempsey celebrates her 15th anniversary with SGI tomorrow. She holds a B.S.B.A., summa cum laude, from Clark University, Worcester, Mass., and an MBA, magna cum laude, from Babson College, Wellesley, Mass. Lanterman has been with SGI for more than six years in a variety of capacities and has held her present position for over a year. She earned her undergraduate degree from Stanford University and her MBA from Santa Clara University and is a member of the Stanford Alumni Association and Beta Gamma Sigma. Coleman joined SGI in December 2001. A 20-year public relations and marketing veteran in the technology industry, Coleman possesses a B.A. in psycholinguistics from the University of California Santa Cruz and an M.A. in marketing communications from San Francisco State University. SGI women executives have now won TWIN Awards three years in a row. Last year, TWIN awards were given to two SGI executives. Larissa DeCarlo, director, investor relations, holds a B.A., English, from University of California, Los Angeles, and has been with SGI for almost seven years. Janet Matsuda, senior director of marketing for North America, has been with SGI for almost 12 years; she has a B.S. in computer science from the University of Iowa and an MBA from Harvard Business School. The previous year, TWIN Awards were also given to two SGI executives. Sandra M. Escher, senior vice president and general counsel, joined SGI in 1993. She earned a B.A. in government and economics from Smith College in Northampton, Mass., and a J.D. degree from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law. Vianson, the other winner and an eight-year SGI executive, has a B.A. in humanities from Santa Clara University and an M.A. in human resources/organizational development from the University of San Francisco. Nineteen years ago, the TWIN Awards program was established in Santa Clara Valley to pay tribute to women in industry. The participants represent a cross-section of companies in the Valley including technology, defense, communications, publishing, construction and health care, among others. Funds generated through the TWIN Annual Awards Dinner support the programs and services of the YWCA in Santa Clara Valley. Serving over 32,000 Santa Clara County residents, the YWCA provides programs in the areas of sexual assault intervention and prevention, counseling services, child care, youth programs, parent education and employment development.