Employee Performance Management Takes Center Stage!

BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - June 3, 2008) - In the new benchmark report, "Managing Employee Performance," Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company (NYSE: HHS), found that while 78% of all organizations have a formal process in place to manage employee performance, Best-in-Class organizations are utilizing employee performance management (EPM) to achieve dramatic performance gains (including an average 24.5% improvement in the percentage of goals attained) that are otherwise unattainable by all other organizations. This benchmark report is a compilation of surveys and interviews from over 900 organizations globally and highlights how Best-in-Class performers are implementing EPM programs to align employee goals and development activities to business priorities, and achieve demonstrable business improvement.

"The pressures driving organizations to pursue employee performance management in 2008 have shifted and reflect the stifling realities associated with the global shortage of workforce talent," said Kevin Martin, Research Director, Human Capital Management at Aberdeen. "The scarcity of skilled labor is posing a challenge to sustain a sufficient talent pipeline, and thus it is creating a more competitive environment that further compounds the difficulty to retain top talent. Consequently, Best-in-Class organizations are seeking ways to accommodate the array of career and development demands and expectations of a diverse workforce, provide clarity and consistency between the employees' job-related priorities and the business' objectives, and establish mutual sense of ownership and accountability in this process between the employee and his/her supervisor."

For organizations that achieved Aberdeen's Best-in-Class status (the top 20% of aggregate performance scorers) in managing employee performance, the study shows that it starts with a focus on creating internal processes and organizational capabilities, including:

--  A process that holds managers accountable for employees' performance
    management
--  A process  that ensures employees understand how their performance
    affects organizational goals
--  Standardized performance ratings across the organization for
    consistency in reviews
--  Informal meetings with managers and employees to define goals
    

Moreover, while the research reveals that less than one-half of Best-in-Class organizations have automated employee performance management (EPM), it also shows that organizations with an automated EPM solution have achieved greater average performance gains across all key performance indicators that end-user organizations assigned to EPM. This includes more than 600% greater improvement in employee time-to-productivity and more than 700% greater increase in employee retention.

A complimentary copy of this report is made available due in part by the following underwriters: Beeline, Cezanne Software, Infor, SilkRoad Technology, Cytiva/SonicPerform, and Vurv Technology. To obtain a complimentary copy of the report, visit: http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?cid=4907.

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 02110-3112
Telephone: (617) 723-7890
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www.aberdeen.com

Contact Information: Media Contact: Kevin Martin Aberdeen Harte-Hanks (617) 854-5314 Kevin.martin@aberdeen.com