100% of Top Performers Deliver Business Intelligence Capabilities Directly to ERP End-Users

Decision-Makers Can Respond Immediately From Call to Action


BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - August 6, 2009) - The value of ERP has traditionally been tied to the standardization of business processes and centralization of information across many areas of the business. Increasingly, ERP customers have come to realize that value can be increased dramatically through analysis of the consolidated data captured within ERP. The latest research report, "The ERP/BI Connection: Adding Value from Actionable Intelligence," by Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company (NYSE: HHS), found that the top pressure impacting ERP initiatives is the need to reduce business costs. The ability to identify and analyze costs is a core capability of Business Intelligence (BI) software tools, and is driving investment in BI as a way of extending and deriving more value from data captured within ERP systems.

This research, based on responses from 990 enterprises, investigates the steps top performing companies are taking to derive more value from ERP investment through the use of BI. The report reveals what leading companies have been able to achieve through their ERP/BI initiatives, such as:

--  A 17% reduction in operating costs and 18% reduction in administrative
    costs
--  Elimination or redeployment of 12 full-time employee (FTE) positions
--  Ability to close a month in less than 4 days
--  Achieve 100% (or greater) ROI on BI deployments within the first six
    months
    

"Companies today sit on mountains of data both in ERP and surrounding enterprise applications. While the economy has forced everyone to attempt to 'do more with less,' by leaving this data largely untapped, companies instead run the risk of 'more is less,'" says Cindy Jutras, VP and research fellow, Aberdeen. "Massive amounts of data can be overwhelming, particularly when the relationships between data elements become more complex. The good news is that BI tools have reached a level of maturity which can elevate executives from the depth of the details, bringing them to a higher operating level where they can add strategic value to the organization."

A complimentary copy of this report is made available due in part to the following underwriters: Infor, EiS Technologies, and Dimensional Insight. To obtain a copy, visit: http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?cid=6082.

For complimentary access to Information Technology Research, including Business Intelligence, please visit http://research.aberdeen.com/index.php/-information-technology.

For additional access to ERP and Finance Research, please visit http://research.aberdeen.com/index.php/-erp-and-finance.

About Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company

Aberdeen provides fact-based research and market intelligence that delivers demonstrable results. Having queried more than 30,000 companies in the past two years, Aberdeen is positioned to educate users to action: driving market awareness, creating demand, enabling sales, and delivering meaningful return-on-investment analysis. As the trusted advisor to the global technology markets, corporations turn to Aberdeen™ for insights that drive decisions.

As a Harte-Hanks Company, Aberdeen plays a key role of putting content in context for the global direct and targeted marketing company. Aberdeen's analytical and independent view of the "customer optimization" process of Harte-Hanks (Information - Opportunity - Insight - Engagement - Interaction) extends the client value and accentuates the strategic role Harte-Hanks brings to the market. For additional information, visit Aberdeen or call (617) 723-7890, or to learn more about Harte-Hanks, call (800) 456-9748.

© 2009 Aberdeen Group, Inc., a Harte-Hanks Company
451 D Street, Suite 710
Boston, Massachusetts 02210-1928
Telephone: (617) 854-5200
Fax: (617) 723-7897
www.aberdeen.com

Contact Information: Media Contact: David Hatch Aberdeen Harte-Hanks (617) 854-5329 david.hatch@aberdeen.com