BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - October 3, 2007) - In the new benchmark report, "Learning and
Development: Aligning Workforce with Business Objectives," Aberdeen Group,
a Harte-Hanks company (
NYSE:
HHS), found that 77% of Best-in-Class
organizations leveraged organizational learning and development to improve
employee performance, whereas 41% of Industry Average and only 28% of
Laggards were able to do the same. This benchmark report is a compilation
of surveys and interviews from 687 organizations globally and highlights
how Best-in-Class performers are using a combination of strategies,
processes and technology solutions to align the workforce with business
objectives and achieve measurable business improvement.
"The urgency for organizations to align their workforces with business
objectives continues to grow and shows no signs of weakening," said Kevin
Martin, Research Director, Human Capital Management at Aberdeen.
"Organizational learning and development has long been second-guessed
because the executives that set strategy and hold budget have not been
convinced of its business impact. For Aberdeen's Best-in-Class, the
improvement in key organizational metrics speaks volumes and the guesswork
is a thing of the past."
To achieve Best-in-Class status in learning and development, organizations
during the previous 12 months were required to have improved employee
performance, customer satisfaction and workforce turnover; the three
metrics most widely assigned to workforce learning and development.
However, Best-in-Class companies were also found to improve other
operational metrics such as compliance rates, time to productivity, and
revenue per employee. The report found that a key differentiator between
Best-in-Class, Industry Average and Laggard organizations was whether the
organization's learning and development strategy was integrated with the
organization's overall strategy (as was the case for 66% of Best-in-Class
versus 37% of Industry Average and 31% of Laggards).
This report examines how global enterprises are utilizing learning and
development strategies, processes, and solutions to improve workforce
retention and productivity, and help organizations adapt to business
change. In addition to providing insight into what Best-in-Class companies
are doing, this report also offers recommended actions that all companies
can take to implement and improve learning and development efforts and
achieve competitive advantage.
A complimentary copy of this report is made available due in part by the
following underwriters: Skillsoft and SAP. To obtain a complimentary copy
of the report, visit:
http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?cid=4120
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.
© 2007 Aberdeen Group, Inc., a Harte-Hanks Company
260 Franklin Street
Boston, Massachusetts 02110-3112
Telephone: (617) 723-7890
Fax: (617) 723-7897
www.aberdeen.com
Contact Information: Media Contact:
Kevin Martin
Aberdeen Harte-Hanks
(617) 854-5314
kevin.martin@aberdeen.com