BOSTON, MA--(MARKET WIRE)--Nov 13, 2008 -- The "Shifting Sands of Globalization Strategies: Building a Firm Foundation with Enterprise Applications," a benchmark report by Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company (NYSE:HHS - News), found that rising labor and energy costs are eroding the cost savings anticipated from emerging markets. The landscape of globalization is constantly shifting, making it difficult to predict the most profitable strategies. To obtain a complimentary copy of the report, visit: http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?cid=5364

"There are two predominant approaches to globalization that seem contradictory on the surface, but are actually not mutually exclusive," says Cindy Jutras, VP and Group Director, Aberdeen. "One approach in response to increased complexity of the supply chain, coupled with rising transportation costs, is to regionalize. The other approach is to centrally manage in order to reduce costs and to be more flexible and responsive. The ultimate in agility combines both approaches, and results in the ability to make anything, anywhere, while still sharing selected services and costs. Less than 5% of all survey respondents selected both of these options as their top two strategic actions, however, both are among the top three strategic actions of the Best-in-Class."

The report makes specific recommendations to improve performance, including the following:

 
--  Evaluate trade-offs between centrally managed and regional operations,
    considering replacing off-shore resources with near-shore
--  Standardize implementation of enterprise applications
--  Centralize selected functions using shared services
--  Align ERP strategy with your globalization strategy
--  Automate workflows between operating locations and with suppliers and
    partners

A complimentary copy of this report is made available due in part by the following underwriters: Hitachi Consulting and Plexus Systems. To obtain a complimentary copy of the report, visit: http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?cid=5364

For additional access to complimentary Manufacturing Research, please visit http://research.aberdeen.com/index.php/Manufacturing/

About Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company

Aberdeen is a leading provider of fact-based research and market intelligence that delivers demonstrable results. Having benchmarked more than 30,000 companies in the past two years, Aberdeen is uniquely 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 http://www.aberdeen.com or call (617) 723-7890, or to learn more about Harte-Hanks, call (800) 456-9748 or go to http://www.harte-hanks.com.

 
© 2008 Aberdeen Group, Inc., a Harte-Hanks Company
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Boston, Massachusetts 02210-1928
Telephone: (617) 854-5200
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     Media Contact:
     Cindy Jutras
     Aberdeen Harte-Hanks
     (617) 854-5247
     cindy.jutras@aberdeen.com