BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - April 8, 2009) - In the newly released report, "
Measuring the ROI of ERP in SMB: Keeping Projects
Alive Just When You Need Them the Most," Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks
Company (
NYSE:
HHS), found that 74% of top performing SMBs (companies with
annual revenues of $250 million or less) have 33% more aggressive plans for
achieving the return on their investment in ERP. Yet as SMBs brace
themselves in this down economy, ERP projects run the risk of being delayed
just when they are needed the most. Please visit this site to obtain a
complimentary copy of the
report:
http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?cid=5793.
ERP is more than a necessary infrastructure that forms the transactional
system of record upon which a business is based; it is the potential source
of cost savings and operational improvements. It is also a serious
undertaking. By using ROI estimates to cost justify projects and rigorously
measuring the results, leading companies produce twice the reduction in
inventory levels as industry average and 10 times that of Laggards. With
average inventory reductions of 20%, operating and administrative cost
savings of 19% and 22%, the majority of leading companies expect ERP to pay
for itself within 2 years.
"A well-managed ERP implementation can be a continuing source of cost
savings and operational improvements which help companies survive and
thrive in these troubled economic times," said Cindy Jutras, Vice President
and Research Fellow, Aberdeen. "The goals of standardizing and accelerating
business processes and providing improved visibility are essential to
improving business execution, which in turn supports organizational goals
of revenue and profit growth. While the total cost of ERP ownership is
important to monitor, focusing on TCO is no longer sufficient. Focus must
now expand to include the return on investment of ERP projects in order to
justify continued investment and maximum benefits. With the downturn in the
economy, a knee jerk reaction may be to stop any discretionary spending on
ERP projects just when their cost-saving, operation improving potential is
needed the most. Given the current economic uncertainty, it is now more
critical than ever to keep these ERP projects alive."
A complimentary copy of this report is made available due in part by the
following underwriters: Plex Online and SAP
For additional access to complimentary
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:
Cindy Jutras
Aberdeen Harte-Hanks
(617) 854-5247
Cindy.jutras@aberdeen.com