At an awards ceremony in Seattle this week, The Cobalt Group, a provider of e-business products and services to the automotive industry, was named one of Washington state's Best Companies To Work For by Washington CEO magazine.

"We are very honored to receive public recognition for the corporate culture and values we have built at Cobalt over the last six years," said John Holt, president and CEO of The Cobalt Group. "This prestigious award acknowledges the hard work of the more than 600 men and women at all levels of Cobalt who are committed to creating a company that is built to last by delivering superior value to our automotive customers."

Since its founding in 1995, Cobalt has grown to be a major force in e-business technology and services for the automotive industry. Nearly half of the nation's auto dealers use Cobalt's wide range of services, including Web services, e-commerce applications, customer relationship management applications, data management, and best practices training and consulting. With headquarters in Seattle, Cobalt employs more than 600 people, including a field-based sales force located in more than 30 states throughout the United States.

Washington CEO's Best Companies to Work For list recognizes 10 large companies (with 1,000 or more employees), 15 medium-sized companies (with 100 or more employees), 20 small companies (with under 100 employees), and five not-for-profit companies. Cobalt ranked fifth in the highly competitive category for medium-sized companies. To determine the winners, Washington CEO's independent five-member panel reviewed extensive surveys of management and employees of more than one hundred companies in Washington state. Watson Wyatt Worldwide, a global human resources and benefits consulting firm, designed and administered this year's Best Companies to Work For in Washington survey.

"The companies named to Washington CEO's Best Companies to Work For in Washington list understand the importance of effectively motivating and communicating with their employees," said Scott Fivash, publisher of Washington CEO magazine. "Their position as Best Companies demonstrates that they've put their understanding into practice."

About The Cobalt Group

The Cobalt Group™, headquartered in Seattle, is a provider of e-business products and services designed to help automotive dealers and manufacturers manage their businesses online.

Cobalt's suite of e-business solutions includes Web services, Web site hosting, e-commerce applications, Internet-based customer relationship management applications, data management, and best practices training and consulting.

Nearly half of the nation's auto dealers use Cobalt's technology, including 8,950 Web services clients, and approximately 9,000 PartsVoice® (www.partsvoice.com) clients. Cobalt's e-business products and services are endorsed by 14 automotive manufacturers and more than 50 of the 100 largest dealer groups in the United States. Cobalt is the only e-business provider endorsed by the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA).

Cobalt operates MotorPlace.com™ (www.MotorPlace.com), an online business management and industry information resource for auto dealers. At MotorPlace.com, dealers utilize Cobalt tools to manage their Web sites, buy wholesale used vehicles through MotorPlace Auto Exchange, locate and market OEM parts through PartsVoice, purchase leads through Pick-or-Pass, and access industry information, news, events, and stock quotes.

Cobalt also operates DealerNet® (www.dealernet.com), one of the most widely visited consumer automotive information portals on the Web.

IntegraLink Corporation, a Cobalt company, is a provider of automotive data collection and reporting services.

For more information, visit www.cobaltgroup.com or call (800) 909-8244.