DaimlerChrysler's Sue Unger Receives 'CIO of the Year' Award

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. and STUTTGART, Germany, May 23 Sue Unger, DaimlerChrysler AG's Chief Information Officer and Senior Vice President, was honored Wednesday night, May 22, by Salomon Smith Barney, a member of Citigroup, for outstanding innovation and achievements in information technology (IT). Unger received the annual "CIO of the Year" award at the Russian Tea Room in New York City, at Salomon Smith Barney's CIO of the Year Award Dinner, in conjunction with its annual Technology Group Software Conference.

"We're pleased to recognize Sue for her contribution to the field of information technology," said Heather Bellini, senior analyst at Salomon Smith Barney. "She clearly demonstrates a forward-thinking approach to the integration of IT into DaimlerChrysler's business processes and to the importance of IT in the company's future successes."

"I'm honored to accept this award on behalf of the hundreds of people who work with me to keep DaimlerChrysler on the leading edge of information technology," said Unger in accepting the award. "The talent and hard work of our global IT team, combined with the outstanding support of senior management, have enabled DaimlerChrysler to maximize the business opportunities that are being realized through the use of technology."

Salomon Smith Barney began the "CIO of the Year" award two years ago to highlight selected members of the CIO community, leading-edge IT initiatives across all industries in the United States, and the ability to implement those initiatives. The panel of judges that consider the award nominees consists of representatives from top consulting firms, Salomon Smith Barney research analysts and Salomon Smith Barney clients.

This year's CIOs represented a wide array of industries, including automotive, transportation, healthcare, technology and the federal government. A total of fifteen nominees were considered for the award. Sue Unger was nominated as the representative for the automotive industry. Last year, two CIOs shared the honor -- Rob Carter of FedEx Corporation and Dave Kepler of Dow Chemical Company.

Unger was named Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer for DaimlerChrysler AG in November 1998. She is responsible for directing systems and computer hardware strategy and planning, systems applications development, data center operations and telecommunications network operations for DaimlerChrysler worldwide.

Unger joined Chrysler in September 1972 as a finance analyst in Sales and Marketing and has held various positions in Finance and Product Development before moving to the Information Services Group in 1993.

Unger is a member of the Research Board and a board member for the Eli Broad Board in the College of Business at Michigan State University, University of Michigan College of Engineering National Advisory Committee, the Oakland University (Mich.) Advisory Technology Board, Automotive Women's Alliance and Cyber-State.org. She was recently named "2002 Distinguished Alumnus of the Year" by Wayne State University School of Business Administration in Detroit, Mich. and to the Crain's Detroit Business list of Detroit's Most Influential Women in 2002.

Salomon Smith Barney, a member of Citigroup, is a global, full-service financial firm that provides brokerage, investment banking and asset management services to corporations, governments and individuals around the world. It is the second largest retail brokerage firm in the United States.