WATERTOWN, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 19, 2000--Bright Horizons Family Solutions (NASDAQ: BFAM), the world's leading provider of employer-sponsored child care, early education and work/life solutions, has been named one of Fortune magazine's "100 Best Companies to Work For in America." With more than 12,000 employees across the U.S. and in Europe, Bright Horizons earned a spot at #47 on the magazine's prestigious list with its commitment to flexible work arrangements, innovative work/life supports, training and development at all levels, and competitive compensation and benefits packages.

"I want to congratulate the teachers and other employees of Bright Horizons for working so hard to create an environment in which children receive the finest early education. We are deeply gratified by this recognition as a great place to work, and we are inspired to keep improving so that teaching young children is recognized as the most important work one can do," said Bright Horizons Chief Executive Officer Roger Brown.

Fortune magazine annually recognizes the nation's 100 best companies to work for, based on a variety of criteria, including pay and benefits, opportunity for growth, and employee satisfaction. The magazine's ranking system is unique because it depends upon a detailed survey of a random sample of employees. To be selected a company not only must do the right things as an employer, but the efforts must be reflected in employee satisfaction. Bright Horizons' high employee satisfaction rating has also led to a 98.1 percent customer satisfaction rating among parents using the company's child care centers.

More than half of Bright Horizons employees participate in some form of flexible work arrangement. In addition, the workforce, which is 97 percent female with a majority of childbearing age, enjoys generous child care benefits. Bright Horizons paid $2.1 million in child care subsidies for its employees last year and also offers back-up child care, and an extra $25/day child care stipend for those employees whose jobs require significant travel.

Bright Horizons offers its employees a compensation and benefits package that is 30 percent higher than the industry average. That package includes health insurance, long-term disability insurance, stock options, gain sharing, a 401K retirement plan with company match, adoption assistance and tuition reimbursement, all in a field where more than half of all employers do not even offer basic health benefits.

In other efforts to professionalize the early education field, Bright Horizons offers tuition reimbursement for employees. Bright Horizons has also set up a professional development fund that is supported with the proceeds from the company's e-commerce site (www.shopbrighthorizons.com). Money from the fund supports teacher attendance at seminars and workshops to enhance their professional qualifications.

The recognition of Bright Horizons as one of America's best companies to work for comes as the company conducts a self-study of its work/life policies using the services of Bright Horizons' own consulting practice, which provides clients with analyses and recommendations of how to make their companies great places to work.

"While we are very excited about this recognition, as early educators we know we must always continue to work hard to improve the compensation of teachers and their professional development both within Bright Horizons and in our entire field. The future of our children depends upon it," said Bright Horizons President and Chief Operating Officer Mary Ann Tocio.

Bright Horizons Family Solutions

Bright Horizons Family Solutions (www.brighthorizons.com) is the world's leading provider of employer-sponsored child care, back-up care, early education and work/life solutions. The company operates more than 330 Family Centers across the U.S., in Europe and the Pacific Rim. Bright Horizons has been recognized for its commitment to quality by the Child Care Action Campaign and for its contributions to the community as the recipient of the Ron Brown Award for Corporate Citizenship. Bright Horizons serves more than 250 clients worldwide, including 77 of the Fortune 500. Bright Horizons clients include Motorola, Cisco Systems, Chase Manhattan Bank, Pfizer, the PGA Tour, Sun Microsystems, Citigroup, Boeing, Johnson & Johnson, and Universal Studios.

This press release contains forward-looking statements, which involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Bright Horizons Family Solutions' actual results may vary significantly from the results anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors, including the ability of the Company to execute contracts relating to new commitments and to expand and operate effectively and profitably in the international market, as well as other factors that are discussed in detail in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the "Risk Factors" section in the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ending September 30, 2000 and Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 1999.

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