SAN JOSE, Calif., June 10, 2003 - Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) today announced the start of the Cisco Growing with Technology Awards 2003 contest. The competition recognizes creative ways in which small and medium-sized organizations use networking technology and the Internet to promote products and services, deliver more value to customers, improve internal business operations, conduct online transactions and provide a broader geographical reach of services.

The contest is open to companies and nonprofit organizations within the U.S., the District of Columbia and Canada. To be eligible to win, these organizations must employ no more than 999 employees.

"The Cisco Growing with Technology Awards program has been instrumental in driving our business success," said Larry Dague, Owner, ScubaToys.com, Cisco Growing with Technology Award 2002 Grand Prize Winner, Sales and Marketing. "Not only has the Cisco infrastructure increased our online and overall sales by one hundred percent, but the national coverage in the Cisco advertising campaign was exposure I could never imagine."

Award Categories and Prizes

Contestants compete for prizes in the following five categories: Sales and Marketing, Customer Relationship, Operational Excellence, E-Commerce and Nonprofit/Public Sector. Judges will select one grand-prize winner and two runners-up in each category.

Grand-prize winners receive $25,000 worth of Cisco networking equipment, and one complimentary Cisco networking assessment and consultation valued at $3,000. The first runners-up receive $15,000 worth of Cisco networking equipment, and the second runners-up receive $10,000 worth of Cisco networking equipment. In addition, winners will receive recognition through post-awards marketing outreach efforts. The grand-prize winners and runners-up will be announced and honored at a special ceremony in October in San Francisco.

Cisco selected its panel of judges from a vast cross-section of industry leaders to review contest applications and then select the winners. They will be looking for organizations that have demonstrated how networking technology solutions and the Internet have effectively addressed business challenges, expanded services and driven growth and profitability.

"Last year, we received more than 300 entries from companies demonstrating technical innovation and entrepreneurship. As a result, we saw that there was a correlation between a company's investment in networking technology and success," said Peter Alexander, Vice President of Commercial Market Segment, Cisco Systems. "These awards have special meaning at Cisco, since we are committed to helping small and medium-sized businesses succeed. Winners of this year's contest will serve as trailblazers for other organizations looking to expand their business to include use of networking technology and the Internet."

Criteria for Selection of Award Finalists

Judges will evaluate organizations that have significantly improved their businesses using networking technology-based solutions. Criteria for selection in the Sales and Marketing, Customer Relationship, Operational Excellence and E-Commerce categories will be based upon companies that have used networking technology to:

• Increase sales and revenue by entering new markets, introduce new products and services; reach new prospects; promote their organizations through advertising, public relations, and marketing and sales efforts
• Give new meaning to the terms "customer support," "customer feedback," "supplier relations," or "strategic partnership"
• Adopt a new business model or reengineer their operations to improve internal operations, resulting in increased efficiency and productivity and reduced costs
• Overcome boundaries of size, time, and space by adopting a network-based or e-commerce model ensuring a greater competitive advantage

Criteria for selection in the Nonprofit/Public Sector category will be based upon organizations that used networking technology to:

• Maintain or provide expanded services
• Provide a broader geographical reach of services
• Better serve the public or the organization's donors or clients

Cisco Growing with Technology Awards 2003 Panel of Judges

Members of this year's panel of 10 judges include: Josh Hyatt, Executive Editor, FSB: Fortune Small Business Magazine; Mika Krammer, Research Vice President, Gartner Group; Ray Boggs, Vice President of Small/Medium Business Research, IDC; Sean Burke, Director of Network Operations, inChord Communications; Dan Levin, Vice President and General Manager, Intuit; Elspeth Jane Murray, Assistant Professor, Queen's University (Canada); Sam Steinhardt, Executive Director of Center for Innovations in Learning at Stanford University; Mark Quinn, District Director, U.S. Small Business Administration; Rich Riley, Vice President and General Manager, Yahoo! Small Business; and Joe Diodati, Senior Director of Commercial Marketing, Cisco Systems.

"Even in economically challenging times, smaller companies continue to show remarkable optimism and willingness to invest in technology," said Raymond Boggs, Vice President, Small/Medium Business Research, IDC. "While overall technology spending declined by 5.9 percent last year, spending by smaller companies grew by 2.4 percent. By shining a spotlight on innovative small and medium-sized businesses, Cisco is rewarding them for their success, but also encouraging creativity and hard work."

Entries for the Cisco Growing with Technology Awards 2003 program are now being accepted online, at the Cisco.com Website. The deadline to submit online applications will be July 31. For more information on the awards, directions on how to apply, and to view the complete contest rules, visit http://www.cisco.com/go/technology_awards/.