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PLEASANTON, Calif.- June 05, 2009 - Ventana Research today introduces its Indexes, a new category of research that will help business and IT organizations cope with the challenge of evaluating vendors and their products along with assessing the maturity of an individual organization to the Indexes. The Ventana Research Indexes, impartial guides based on in-depth research, will make it easier for companies to improve both their efficiency and their effectiveness, understand what can be done to maximize the value of technology investments and to determine the level of competency and maturity in the use of critical business technology.

Ventana research today introduces:

• The Value Index, which evaluates aspects of the utility of business applications, tools and systems and the supportiveness of their vendors.

• The Benchmark Index family, which uses research baselines to measure and index the competency and maturity levels of organizations.

These new Ventana Research Indexes provide research-based metrics that will enable organizations to assess the value of existing and future technologies, systems and tools for business and IT in a simple and easy-to-use manner. The Indexes now make it possible to begin to benchmark how well a company is meeting its specific people, process, information and technology requirements and to easily develop the appropriate evaluation list. The Indexes are based on research across all vertical industries and size of organizations and provide metrics relevant to all companies.

The Value Index is the result of more than a decade of analysis of technology suppliers' products and how well they satisfy specific business and IT needs. The methodology used to produce the Value Index evaluates in detail aspects of product functionality and suitability-to-task as well as the effectiveness of vendor support for the buying process and customer assurance. The Index represents the value a vendor's offers and relevant aspects of its products and services, using both a clear and accessible graphic representation in thermometer form and a precise numerical index. Those earning the highest Hot Vendor classification are those that Ventana Research certifies best represent buyer value based on a thorough evaluation and audit of vendor and products - that is, based on research and verifiable facts. The Value Index is not just a selection of "cool" products, and rather than merely representing a vendor on a four-quadrant chart, the Index provides a specific thermometer reading with a series of component metrics for a technology buyer to consider. The first Value Index, to be released shortly, evaluates technology that can be used by business and IT for Performance Management.

The Benchmark Index family is the product of more than eight years of methodology development. It is based on the extensive work Ventana Research has done benchmarking thousands of organizations on key business and IT topics to establish baselines for organization success and failure. The Benchmark Index relies on a rigorous methodology to evaluate people, process, information and technology practices in a specific business technology area. Complementing the Benchmark Index, the Maturity Index uses the baselines established by research to measure the competence of organizations across the people, process, information and technology dimensions by industry and size. By applying the Maturity Index, an organization can rapidly determine how to maximize its performance, enhancing not just its efficiency but its effectiveness achieving its business objectives. And for organizations that want to measure their competency compared to their industry peers, Ventana Research introduces the Vertical Industry Indexes for more than two dozen categories. Research has already been completed on the first Benchmark Index, on Integrated Business Planning.

"Ironically, the technology analyst industry is stuck in the past, all too often relying on opinions built from minimal points of validation and a serious lack of facts," said Mark Smith, CEO and executive vice president of Ventana Research. "As a result, in too many instances the analysts cannot give useful guidance to business and IT organizations or to technology suppliers. In our view, the analyst industry has become stove-piped and misguided - focusing exclusively on IT organizations and narrowly defined technology categories. Its fails to do any direct research on how business uses technology and consequently has diminished its credibility. As well, industry analyst firms have built walls around their research and information to prevent a thorough discussion on the relevance of their efforts - efforts that today represent only a small fraction of the buyers and influencers of technology. These new Ventana Research Indexes will transform the industry, establishing a new level of value in the use of research for business and IT."

To learn more about the Value Index, please visit http://www.ventanaresearch.com/valueindex and to learn more about Benchmark Index, please visit http://www.ventanaresearch.com/benchmarkindex. These new research-based undertakings are not sponsored or influenced by technology vendors and is conducted to provide value to business and IT through benchmark assessment, workshops and advisory services. Ventana Research's goal is to guide organizations to be efficient in their use of technology investments for business and IT.

About Ventana Research

Ventana Research is the leading benchmark research and advisory services firm. We provide expert guidance to help organizations manage and optimize performance - to become not only more efficient but more effective. Our unparalleled insights and best practices guidance are based on our rigorous research-based benchmarking indexes of people, processes, information and technology across business and IT functions worldwide. The combination we offer of benchmark research, rigorous market coverage and in-depth knowledge of hundreds of technology providers means we can deliver business and technology education and expertise to our clients where and when needed. The Ventana Research Indexes - the Value Index and the Benchmark Index family -have redefined the research industry by providing accessible, easy-to-use research-based business and technology guidance to businesses. Ventana Research provides the most comprehensive analyst coverage in the industry; more than 2.5 million business and IT professionals through our community of 85,000 professionals and network of media and association partners around the world benefit from Ventana Research's insights. Ventana Research focuses on business and technology trends and best practices that maximize organizations' potential to perform while reducing the time, cost and risk and still achieve optimal outcomes. To learn how Ventana Research advances the maturity of organizations use of information and technology through benchmark research, market indexes, education and advisory services, and also where to find us on Facebook or LinkedIn or how to follow us on Twitter or BusinessWeek's BusinessExchange, visit www.ventanaresearch.com.

Media: Copies of benchmark research report and interviews are available upon request.

Media Contact: Marisela Reynoso  

(925) 242-2579 marketing@ventanaresearch.com