Sykes Enterprises, Incorporated Announces Business Expansion in Charlotte, NC

TAMPA, October 15, 1998 – Sykes Enterprises, Incorporated (“Sykes”) (Nasdaq:SYKE), a world leader in providing integrated business services to the information technology industry, today announced that it will expand its existing business presence in Charlotte, NC and offer high-end technical support services to an unnamed client. The Company has entered into a lease agreement in the University Research Park (URP) area and expects to expand employment levels up to an additional 500 people. Sykes currently employs 100 in Charlotte.

John H. Sykes, President and Chief Executive Officer of Sykes, stated, “Our Company has always had a deep commitment to Charlotte and the Carolinas, having conducted business there since our founding in my home town in 1977. This is a natural outgrowth of our business expansion, allowing us to further concentrate personnel in the Queen City in support of our worldwide client base. Critical to our placement decision for this specialized technical support work was the fact that one of our clients required that we locate support capabilities in closer proximity to one of their operations. Due to the high-end nature of the work we will be performing – more complex than what we typically handle in one of our standard support centers currently – we are calling upon our long-term experience with Charlotte, to establish our first high tech center to meet client’s more complex and sophisticated network requirements. The business environment is extremely conducive to us in terms of attracting and retaining the high level type of technician that this particular program requires.”

Sykes added, “Parks Helms, Mecklenburg County Commissioner and member of our Company’s Board of Directors, encouraged us to place our premiere high tech support center in Charlotte to further solidify our commitment to the City and the region. We are grateful for his service and for all the assistance we received from community officials.”

Sykes is an information technology company that provides a full complement of outsourcing services to companies worldwide. With more than 7,400 employees, Sykes provides information support services at all stages in the life cycle of its clients’ products and services – from initial development to documentation and localization to customer product services and end-user support. Sykes, based in Tampa, currently operates 12 domestic technical call centers, with 2 domestic centers currently under construction, 11 international centers and 20 offices throughout the U.S., Europe, Africa and The Philippines. SHPS, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary based in Louisville, KY, provides on-line clinical managed care services, medical protocol products and employee benefit administration and support services.

The statements contained in this press release that are not purely historical, including statements regarding Sykes’ objectives, expectations, hopes, intentions, beliefs or strategies regarding the future, are “forward-looking” statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Act of 1934. It is important to note that Sykes’ actual results could differ materially from those in such forward-looking statements, and undue reliance should not be placed on such statements. Among the important factors that could cause such actual results to differ materially are: construction delays; failure to successfully implement acquisition strategy; difficulties in managing growth; rapid technological change; loss of a significant customer; risks inherent in conducting business abroad; changes in legislation; fluctuations in business conditions and the economy; Sykes’ ability to attract and retain key management personnel; and the risk factors listed from time to time in Sykes’ registration statements and reports as filed with the Securities and Exchange commission. All forward-looking statements included in this press release are made as of the date hereof, and Sykes undertakes no obligation to update any such forward-looking statements.