Cash is King! CFOs Leverage Accounts Payable to Improve Cash Positions and Contain Costs

BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - March 10, 2009) - CFOs are most concerned about managing their cash flow and cutting costs to ensure liquidity and mitigate the inherent risks of operating during this period of pervasive uncertainty and limited credit availability, reports "The CFO's View of Accounts Payable: Cash is King," a new study by Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company (NYSE: HHS). To obtain a complimentary copy of the report, visit: http://www.aberdeen.com/summary/report/benchmark/5808-RA-accounts-payable-procurement.asp.

"With bedrock institutions and entire industries now poised on the brink of collapse and the likelihood of a quick rebound fading fast, profitability now stands as a secondary concern to basic survival for many CFOs. In this context, it is incumbent upon CFOs to pull any and all business levers that can drive productivity and savings," states Andrew Bartolini, Vice President of Global Supply Management research, Aberdeen Group. "Aberdeen research continues to show the compelling benefits that a focus on and investment in Accounts Payable (A/P) can yield. A/P initiatives that can yield a positive return in year one should be advanced immediately."

Aberdeen's latest e-payables-focused report examined the top priorities, business pressures, and intentions of more than 160 senior finance executives seeking to drive performance in 2009. The report also details the business impact that leading accounts payable departments have on their enterprise and highlights the key strategies employed by Best-in-Class enterprises to drive the following performance levels:

    
--  Invoice-processing costs that are, on average, 84% below their peers
--  Invoice-processing cycle times that are, on average, 59% faster than
    their peers
    

A complimentary copy of "The CFO's View of Accounts Payable: Cash is King" report is available due to the underwriting support of DO2 Technologies, Inc., Metafile, Inc., and U.S. Bank PowerTrack. To obtain a complimentary copy of the report, visit: http://www.aberdeen.com/summary/report/benchmark/5808-RA-accounts-payable-procurement.asp.

For additional access to complimentary Global Supply Management Research, please visit http://research.aberdeen.com/index.php/-global-supply-management.

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.

© 2009 Aberdeen Group, Inc., a Harte-Hanks Company
451 D Street, Suite 710
Boston, Massachusetts 02210-1928
Telephone: (617) 854-5200
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www.aberdeen.com

Contact Information: Media Contact: Andrew Bartolini Aberdeen Harte-Hanks (617) 854-5310 andrew.bartolini@aberdeen.com