The criteria established by the Standards Board will ensure that all infrastructure and quality-assurance processes meet the highest industry standards and should, over time, yield consistently high-quality service and support.

Through the certification program, consumers and enterprise customers will be able to determine, with confidence, that a technology company offers excellent customer service before they make their product purchasing decisions. Top technology companies, including Advent, will create best practices criteria for the certification program.

"We're thrilled to have a seat at this prestigious table and share our insights on best practices in the area of technology services and support," said Keller. "With Advent's 22 years in the industry providing world class investment management technology, services and support, we look forward to sharing our existing knowledge and learning further from our peers in the industry."

"This certification program is a first of its kind in our industry, and we're extremely gratified to have the participation of Advent Software and more than 50 leading technology companies to help us set these important customer standards," said Bill Rose, SSPA founder and executive director.

The Standards Board will include a cross-section of technology companies and executives from ADP, Advent, ATG, BEA Systems, Sage, Blackbaud, Business Objects, Catalyst International, Cognos, Convergys, Danka Office Imaging, DoubleClick, e4e, EMC, Hewlett Packard, Hitachi Data Systems, Internet Security Systems, KPIT Cummins Infosystems, Kronos, McAfee, McKesson, Mercury, MicroStrategy, Network Appliance, Novell, Oracle, Peregrine, Primavera, S1, SENTO, Siemens Medical Solutions, SITEL, Sonic Roxio, Sterling Commerce, Sutherland Global Services, Tektronix, Trend Micro, Tumbleweed Communications, VeriSign, VERITAS, Xerox and Zebra Technologies.