Outsourcing Technology Infrastructure Pays Off in Higher Productivity

While many companies may be outsourcing parts of their information technology infrastructures to save money, leading organizations are setting themselves apart by making substantial gains in worker productivity and end-user satisfaction, according to the results of a new survey by Aberdeen, a Harte-Hanks Company (NYSE: HHS). The results of the survey form the basis of a new benchmark report, Outsourcing IT Infrastructure: The Productivity Payoff.

"The survey results tells us clearly that outsourcing IT infrastructure is paying off big time in internal IT service delivery," said Rick Saia, research analyst for IT services at Aberdeen. "That's very important today as companies compete for customers and rely on technology to help end users be more productive, which can lead to lower costs, higher revenues, and more profit."

The survey also found that twice as many leading, or Best in Class, organizations, cite asset reduction as a driver of their infrastructure outsourcing strategies. This, and other data from the survey, point to the emergence of asset management as a component of IT outsourcing strategies.

In addition, Best in Class companies cite the service-level agreement (SLA) as an important tool in managing an infrastructure outsourcing relationship. Nearly half -- 44% -- of the Best in Class believe a provider's inability to meet an SLA's provision makes it difficult to outsource a function. Only 25% of all other companies represented in the survey made the same assertion.

The market for IT infrastructure services is expected to grow this year and in 2008. Fifty-percent of respondents say their organizations will buy more services through the end of next year while another 32% have yet to decide what their plans are.

Outsourcing IT Infrastructure: The Productivity Payoff, is made available at no charge due in part to the following sponsors: Getronics and Xceedium, Inc. To download a complimentary copy of this report, please visit: http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?cid=3939

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 .

Media Contact: Rick Saia Aberdeen Harte-Hanks (617) 854-5272 Rick.Saia@aberdeen.com