U.S. Food and Drug Administration Relies on Business Objects to Maintain Top-Notch Workforce

Business Objects Helps FDA Track, Analyze and Securely Share Information Across Federal Agencies

SAN JOSE, Calif. and PARIS - May 23, 2006 - Business Objects (Nasdaq: BOBJ; Euronext Paris ISIN code: FR0004026250 - BOB), the world's leading provider of business intelligence (BI) solutions, today announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has standardized on Business Objects. The FDA uses Business Objects to track critical information about the agency's 9,000 employees, and to access general human resource statistics, identify personnel trends, and predict potential workforce challenges. This helps the FDA maintain a world-class workforce, one of the agency's top priorities. The FDA is in the process of migrating to BusinessObjects™ XI Release 2, which will offer the agency increased simplicity and enable them to extend the value of BI further across the organization.

"All modern organizations live and die by their ability to capture and disseminate information accurately and rapidly," said Ray Russo, Director of Business Enterprise Solutions, Office of the Chief Information Officer, at the FDA. "Business Objects allows the FDA to do this easily and strategically. Business Objects is the premier ad hoc reporting solution for non-technical people to create and share reports. We're excited about the new simplicity and security capabilities we'll have access to when we migrate to BusinessObjects XI Release 2."

The FDA employs a range of civilian and governmental staff that includes contractors, temporary and part-time employees. In order to get the full picture of its personnel data, the FDA brought together information from both internal and external databases into EASE, its authoritative human resources database. The FDA relies on Business Objects to run reports and analyze the data within EASE.

Within an agency as large as the FDA, an overwhelming number of customized reports need to be generated and distributed to meet the needs of individuals and departments. The flexibility of Business Objects solutions provide authorized users a way to generate customized reports on an ad hoc basis. In addition, Business Objects solutions are designed to make BI easier for non-technical users. The user-friendly interface in Business Objects reporting solutions empower everyday users to generate reports individually, rather than depending on IT staff to provide needed information.

Prior to working with Business Objects, it was difficult for the FDA to access data, distribute it across the organization, and pinpoint personnel trends. Now Business Objects allows the FDA to better understand its personnel data and more easily project future employee challenges including retirement, retention, and recruitment. For example, Business Objects enables the FDA to run reports indicating the number of scientists eligible for retirement over the next several years. The FDA uses these reports to project the number of scientists the agency might lose and plan additional recruiting campaigns to off-set personnel changes. Since many government employees are about to retire, Business Objects reports help ensure that the FDA is adequately staffed with top talent.

"Increasingly, federal agencies are turning to Business Objects to provide better insight into their organization and help them improve performance," said Jay Johnson, vice president of government at Business Objects. "Agencies such as the FDA recognize that successful BI deployment depends on solutions that provide simplicity and security for end users. BusinessObjects XI Release 2 delivers just that and helps federal agencies deliver BI to employees throughout their organizations."

About FDA
The FDA is responsible for protecting the public health by assuring the safety, efficacy, and security of human and veterinary drugs, biological products, medical devices, our nation's food supply, cosmetics, and products that emit radiation. The FDA is also responsible for advancing the public health by helping to speed innovations that make medicines and foods more effective, safer, and more affordable; and helping the public get the accurate, science-based information they need to use medicines and foods to improve their health.

Business Objects: Improving Performance in the Federal Government
Business Objects is a leading provider of business intelligence software to the U.S. federal government. The Department of Defense and every U.S. federal cabinet department use our software to help improve performance. Business Objects delivers solutions that help government organizations to more efficiently deliver services to their citizens and demonstrate results. For more information about Business Objects BI solutions for government, please visit: http://www.businessobjects.com/government.

About Business Objects, an SAP company

Business Objects has been a pioneer in business intelligence (BI) since the dawn of the category. Today, as the world's leading BI software company, Business Objects transforms the way the world works through intelligent information. The company helps illuminate understanding and decision-making at more than 46,000 organizations around the globe. Through a combination of innovative technology, global consulting and education services, and the industry's strongest and most diverse partner network, Business Objects enables companies of all sizes to make transformative business decisions based on intelligent, accurate, and timely information.

Business Objects has dual headquarters in San Jose, Calif., and Paris, France. The company's stock is traded on both the Nasdaq (BOBJ) and Euronext Paris (ISIN: FR0004026250 - BOB) stock exchanges. More information about Business Objects can be found at www.businessobjects.com.

Business Objects and the Business Objects logo, BusinessObjects and Crystal Reports are trademarks or registered trademarks of Business Objects in the United States and/or other countries. All other names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.

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The Business Objects logo, BusinessObjects, Crystal Reports, Intelligent Question, and Xcelsius are trademarks or registered trademarks of Business Objects in the United States and/or other countries. All other names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.

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