JACKSON, TN--(Marketwire - October 22, 2009) - Sage North America today announced the winner and runners-up in its $20,000 MyBizCounts.com Start-Up Cash Contest, aimed at helping entrepreneurs turn their business dreams into reality. Jackson-based WebIRB was named a runner-up in this nationwide contest spotlighting the entrepreneurial spirit.

"As a new business, it is a tremendous honor for us to be recognized in the company of our peers, and we really appreciate the exposure afforded to us in the contest process," said Cheryl Scoledge, founder, WebIRB. "We are very excited for our future and appreciate the support from Sage!"

Contest participants were tasked with creating a brief video commercial for their business idea or new business (less than two years old), along with their business plan and a brief essay. Based on online votes, the 20 most popular videos advanced to the final judging round. Videos, business plans and essays were then evaluated by a team of small business experts, including Wayne Rivers, co-founder and president, Family Business Institute, and Bob Shephard, Director External Affairs - Florida, SCORE.

"Small businesses are the main engine driving the economy, and while the past year has been difficult from an economic perspective, the passion and creativity that drive small business owners to success is as strong as ever," said Doug Meyer, Chief Customer Officer, Sage North America. "The gifted entrepreneurs who participated in our startup cash contest -- and millions of others like them across North America -- are the reason that Sage employees come to work each day, supporting small businesses' dreams, vision, and goals."

WebIRB is a unique new microbusiness providing a customized, Web-based software system to the niche market of Institutional Review Boards (IRBs). An institutional review board, also known in other parts of the world as an independent ethics committee (IEC) or ethical review board (ERB), is a committee that has been formally designated to approve, monitor, and review biomedical and behavioral research involving humans to ensure that they are scientific, ethical, and regulatory. Because it can be run from a local computer or from a server on the Internet, WebIRB is available worldwide, even for third-world countries.

WebIRB ensures that boards comply with mandated government regulations, while eliminating the need to print monthly paper packets typically distributed to board members for review, averaging 1,000 double-sided pages, or nearly 25,000 per IRB monthly. By moving this function to the web and eliminating the need for copies, collation, binding, filing cabinets and storage space saves institutions money and contributes to Green Initiatives.

As a runner-up in the MyBizCounts.com contest, WebIRB receives software and services with a retail value of nearly $4,000 to assist them in managing their businesses: Peachtree by Sage Premium Accounting 2010 Multi-user Version with one year of Peachtree Freedom Support; ACT! by Sage 2010 with 5 user licenses; Timeslips by Sage 2010 5-user version; Palo Alto Software's Business Plan Pro Standard Edition Version 11; and Palo Alto Software's Marketing Plan Pro.

About Sage North America

Sage North America is part of The Sage Group plc, a leading global supplier of business management software and services. Sage North America employs more than 4,100 people and supports nearly 2.9 million small and medium-size business customers. The Sage Group plc, formed in 1981, was floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1989 and now employs 14,500 people and supports 5.8 million customers worldwide. For more information, please visit the Web site at www.sagenorthamerica.com.

©2009 Sage Software, Inc. All rights reserved. Sage, the Sage logos, Peachtree, Timeslips, ACT!, and the Sage product and service names mentioned herein are registered trademarks or trademarks of Sage Software, Inc. or its affiliated entities. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Contact Information: Contacts: Aimee Ertley 770-724-4556 Aimee.ertley@sage.com Kara McClain 404-995-4531 Kara.mcclain@porternovelli.com