BMW FINANCIAL SERVICES RANKED SEVENTH AMONG 'BEST MEDIUM COMPANIES TO WORK FOR IN AMERICA'

Prestigious Award Confirms Company Reputation as an Exceptional Employer
Dublin, OH - June 29, 2004... BMW Financial Services has been named one
of the "Best Small and Medium Companies to Work for in
America" by the Great Places to Work Institute (GPTWI) and the
Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). The newly-established
award is the third honor received by the company in the past year
commending its workplace initiatives. BMW Financial Services was
ranked seventh among the 25 companies selected in the medium business
(251 - 1,000 employees) category. More than 400 companies in the small
and medium categories were evaluated for this honor. "It's
gratifying to see our commitment to create a positive company culture
being recognized by those who know best - unconditional experts in the
field of human resource management," noted John Christman, Chief
Executive Officer of BMW Financial Services, Americas Region. "We
proudly accept this latest accolade and tribute to our mission to
become THE best company to work for in America," said Christman
upon presentation of the award at the SHRM Annual Conference &
Exposition in New Orleans yesterday. The businesses on the "Best
Companies" list were acknowledged as having used smart people
management strategies to develop a strong trust between employees and
management. The selections were based on the results of a
randomly-distributed employee opinion survey about the organizations'
workplace cultures. Areas examined included: methods of communication
between senior management and employees, opportunities for personal and
professional growth, vehicles for employee recognition and
appreciation, company benefits and bonus programs and special events
and ways of having fun. Attracting and retaining talented employees
have been crucial factors behind BMW Financial Services' long-term
growth and success, noted Christman. "Without the valuable
contributions of our associates, we would not have enjoyed ten
consecutive years of expansion in sales and managed assets today
totaling more than $15 billion. Only by maintaining a positive working
environment can we sustain our high service-delivery standards."
GPTWI cofounder Robert Levering said, "The companies on this list
set the standards for all workplaces. They show that companies can
become successful by creating an environment where employees trust
their management, have pride in their work and have positive
relationships with their coworkers." The Great Place to Work
Institute, Inc. is a research and management consultancy with offices
in 25 countries throughout the world. The organization produces
similar "Best Companies to Work for" lists, including
Fortune's "100 Best Companies to Work For." SHRM is the
world's largest association devoted to human resource management.
Representing more than 185,000 individual members, its mission is to
both serve human resource management professionals and to advance the
profession. Founded in 1948, SHRM currently has more than 500
affiliated chapters and members in more than 100 countries. BMW
Financial Services also recently received two top honors for its
strategic performance and employee training programs: the 2003
Balanced Scorecard Hall of Fame award, given out by the Balanced
Scorecard Collaborative, Inc., and the number 45 ranking in Training
Magazine's 2003 Top 100 List. BMW Financial Services BMW Financial
Services NA, LLC was established in 1992 as a captive finance company
to support the sales and marketing efforts of the BMW Group in North
and Latin America. With more than $15 billion in managed assets and
nearly 500,000 customers, BMW FS leases or finances more than half of
the new BMW vehicles sold in the U.S. BMW FS employs more than 700
people, most of whom are located in the Dublin, Ohio Customer Service
Center. BMW Financial Services provides a wide range of leasing,
retail, commercial, banking and insurance products tailored to meet the
needs of BMW customers and dealers in the United States, Canada,
Mexico, Argentina and Brazil. All lease servicing, including credit
underwriting, funding, customer service, title administration,
lease-end and collections are handled at the Dublin customer service
center. A growing portfolio of banking, credit card and insurance
offerings is also available through the BMW Bank of North America,
basedin Salt Lake City. ###