99% of Companies Have Suffered Supply Chain Disruptions Over the Past Year; Multiple Supply Chain Risk Management Gaps Revealed in a New Study

BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - August 14, 2008) - A new research study released by Aberdeen, a Harte-Hanks Company (NYSE: HHS), reveals that there are still a lot of gaps in the supply chain risk management practices and strategies adopted by study participants for their global operations.

"Growing global operations are forcing companies to more pro-actively evaluate and address their supply chain risks. Companies are sourcing from and selling to more new regions, often adding new carriers, forwarders, logistics, and distribution partners to their network. At the same time, customers are continuously demanding improved service levels," said Viktoriya Sadlovska, research analyst, Aberdeen. "These trends, coupled with increased security concerns that have imposed a new level of regulation on global shippers, are driving firms to increase their focus on supply chain risk management and adopt new processes and technologies to make their supply chains more risk-resilient."

The top reported supply chain disruptions over the past 12 months were:

--  Supplier capacity did not meet our demand -- 56%
--  Raw materials price increase/ shortage -- 49%
--  Unexpected changes in customer demand -- 45%
--  Shipment delayed / damaged / mis-directed -- 39%
    

Compared to Industry Average and Laggard companies, Best-in-Class companies are more likely to manage or at least assess the following risks:

--  Logistics congestion and capacity
--  Risk profile of suppliers
--  Fuel price risk
--  Risk profile of a country
--  Non-environmental catastrophic events
    

Companies plan to improve supply chain risk management by implementing a data-driven, collaborative approach. Study participants are planning to take the following actions in the next 12 months in order to adopt a more pro-active supply chain risk management approach:

--  Collaborate more effectively with supply chain partners to jointly
    manage supply chain risks -- 59%
--  Improve supply chain data quality used for decision making -- 54%
--  Re-design the supply chain -- 34%
--  Implement new software solutions -- 27%
    

Read our full report to learn more about the Best-in-Class differentiators in strategy and information technology used, and recommendations for improvement.

A complimentary copy of this report is made available due in part to the following underwriters: Acsis, ClearTrack, e2open, and SAP. To obtain a complimentary copy of the report, visit: http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?cid=4185

To access all of Aberdeen's complimentary research please visit http://research.aberdeen.com.

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 AberdeenGroup, Inc., a Harte-Hanks Company
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Boston, Massachusetts  02210-1928
Telephone: (617)854-5200
Fax: (617) 723-7897
www.aberdeen.com

Contact Information: Media Contact: Viktoriya Sadlovska Aberdeen Harte-Hanks (617) 854-5239 viktoriya.sadlovska@aberdeen.com