Please direct your media and public relations inquiries to: mediarelations@cdw.com 800-800-4CDW CDW Earns Information Week 500 Ranking Based on Customer-Focused IT Strategy VERNON HILLS, Ill. September 13, 2000 - CDW Computer Centers, Inc. (Nasdaq: CDWC), the country's direct solutions provider of brand name computing technology, climbed 32 positions to No. 23 on this year's InformationWeek 500. In the September 11 issue, InformationWeek magazine analyzes and ranks the 500 most innovative corporate users of information technology. "It's our belief that we can enhance service and the customer experience by using technology," said Jim Shanks, chief information officer of CDW. "We drive our innovations by listening to customers and designing systems internally to be responsive to the changing needs of small- to medium-sized businesses. This award recognizes that we are on the right path." InformationWeek also interviewed 11 of the top 500 CIOs, including Shanks, in side bar articles accompanying the ranking. Shanks addressed the top business and technology objectives CDW faces, including the development of systems to better know and serve customers and implementing E-business initiatives. The company separated itself as an innovator when it launched its Web site, www.cdw.com in 1995, implemented online ordering in 1996 and launched a more sophisticated business interface, CDW@work, in 1999. CDW@work extranets are end-to-end online systems that facilitate purchasing and provide information resources for businesses. Examples of CDW@work's enhanced feature offerings include the customer's purchase history for the previous three years, levels of purchase authorization for different people within an organization and priority returns authorization. There are currently more than 55,000 organizations reaping the benefits of the CDW@work program. In addition to e-commerce support, CDW's IT staff has developed proprietary systems to support internal departments in their customer service initiatives. One of the most recent developments includes a program designed to provide in-house technical support staff with diverse customer data to expedite the discovery and resolution of customer inquiries. Innovations such as these have helped CDW become a leader in IT implementation and strategy. Among its recent industry recognition, CDW was ranked No. 19 in Computerworld's "Best Places to Work in IT" and No. 6 in Business Week's InfoTech 100. About CDW CDW® (Nasdaq: CDWC - news), ranked No. 435 on the FORTUNE 500, offers complete, customized technology solutions for businesses, government agencies and educational institutions nationwide. CDW is a leading source of technology products and services from companies such as Cisco, Compaq, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Intel, Microsoft, Sony, Toshiba and other top name brands. CDW was founded in 1984 as a home-based business and today employs more than 2,700 coworkers whose efforts generated net sales of $3.8 billion in 2000. CDW's direct model offers one-on-one relationships with highly trained account managers; purchasing via telephone, the award-winning www.cdw.com Web site, and customized CDW@work(TM) extranets; custom configured solutions and same day shipping; flexible financing solutions; and, telephone and online technical support with its factory-trained and A+ certified technicians. Additional information can be found by visiting http://www.cdw.com.