ATLANTA, GA, January 27, 2005 - The Hackett Group, a business advisory firm and an Answerthink company (Nasdaq: ANSR), today announced a new advisory program to help software companies and other solutions providers incorporate Hackett's world-renowned data and best practices research into their products, services, and associated sales and marketing efforts.

The program offers companies exclusive access to Hackett's world-class performance metrics, empirically based research and Business Advisors, enabling them to better target their multiple buyers, refine their product messaging, and quantify the benefits of solving specific business problems. The program also helps sales and marketing teams more effectively communicate issues critical to C-level executives through the use of Hackett research data and details of Hackett-Certified Practices that leading companies use to achieve world-class performance in finance, IT, HR, procurement, supply chain and other areas.

Six companies have signed on as charter members in the Hackett Advisory Program: spend management solutions provider Ariba (NASDAQ: ARBA); 170 Systems, a provider of financial business process management software and services; workforce management software vendor CyberShift; enterprise contract management solutions provider I-many (NASDAQ: IMNY); catalog content and supplier enablement services provider SAQQARA Systems; and on-demand order to pay automation company Xign.

The Hackett Group is a world leader in best practices research and process benchmarking, helping executives achieve significant and sustainable progress towards world-class performance through empirically based analysis and advisory services. Hackett offers analysis backed by research at more than 2,400 client organizations, including 93 percent of the Dow Jones Industrials.

"This program is designed to help vendors of software and services demonstrate how their offerings support Hackett-Certified Practices -- best practices backed by Hackett's empirical data -- that will enable real performance gains. We'll work with our program members to find the right elements of our comprehensive world-class performance research to use as a framework to significantly strengthen their product targeting, messaging, and sales execution efforts," said Hebert.

Program Offers Access to Hackett Research, Marketing Support

A key element of the program is an individual one-on-one Solutions Exchange Forum, an in-depth presentation by Hackett Business Advisors of the most compelling world-class performance metrics, and emerging and proven best practices in process areas relevant to the software vendor or solutions provider. Hackett Business Advisors consult with members to determine how to integrate relevant Hackett market insights and findings into their marketing messages and capabilities presentations.

Program members also receive exclusive access to Hackett's original research, including excerpts from Hackett's Book of Numbers© Research Series and other proprietary research. The Book of Numbers Series provides performance metrics and analyses contrasting world-class and typical organizations across a comprehensive array of efficiency and effectiveness metrics that include costs, staffing, cycle time, and error rates. Each volume is devoted to a particular corporate function, the practices adopted by world-class performers, and the operational improvements these practices yield.

Program members have exclusive access to Hackett Business Advisors for specific inquiries to gain a deeper understanding of Hackett-Certified Practices or functional performance metrics, or to obtain Hackett's input in the development of specific marketing initiatives.

Program members are also offered an exclusive range of marketing support options. Hackett Business Advisors are available as speakers for internal or external events, including conferences and Webcasts. Members can receive reduced rates on sponsorship for Hackett conferences, and have permission to use a Hackett VIP logo on their marketing materials and Web sites.

Current Members Quantify Opportunity, Benefits

According to 170 Systems Vice President of Marketing Allen Carney, "170 Systems strives to be the leader in financial business process automation for the world's largest companies. We have teamed with Hackett to learn from their work with the leaders of thousands of client organizations, which gives them real insight into what's important to C-level executives. 170 Systems will utilize their detailed information on how the world's best companies operate to validate the value of our products and services to our prospects."

"We have a great deal of respect for Hackett because of their ability to capture, analyze and relate detailed information about how the world's best companies operate," said Michael Schmitt, senior vice president and chief marketing officer, Ariba. "This gives us valuable insight into the strategic spend management issues facing CFOs and CPOs."

"CyberShift offers highly adaptive workforce management solutions to enable companies to effectively and efficiently manage the deployment of their people," said Robert E. Farina, CEO, CyberShift, Inc. "Through our association with Hackett, we hope to be able to assist our clients with planning for best practices and measuring the value received from a segment of our offerings."

"Hackett's comprehensive research into world-class performance spans a number of SG&A functions that align with I-many's areas of focus including sell-side and buy-side contract management. That makes it a very valuable resource that simply isn't available elsewhere," said I-many Director of Solutions Marketing Doug Bell. "We expect it will significantly improve the effectiveness of our marketing and sales efforts across a broad range of industry segments, particularly in the areas of contract compliance and the reduction of corporate risk."

"Hackett's real-world research helps companies understand what makes best-in-class companies the best and, importantly, the value of being best," said SAQQARA CEO Keith Scott. "By leveraging their research we will be able to help our prospects and customers understand that the potential savings to be gained by increasing the effectiveness of their eProcurement initiatives with our services are real."

"Xign and The Hackett Group recognize the value of benchmarking in documenting the return on investment from automating procure to pay processes," said George Fan, Xign Vice President of Marketing. "Making a strong business case is a critical part of the sales process for us, and we believe that the research data and executive insight Hackett can offer will help us prove the value of our offering to clients."

More information on The Hackett Group's Advisory Program and other offerings is available by contacting David Hebert at (404) 682-2188 or dhebert@thehackettgroup.com. More information on The Hackett Group is available: by phone at (404) 682-2500; by e-mail at info@thehackettgroup.com; or on the Web at www.thehackettgroup.com.

About The Hackett Group
The Hackett Group (www.thehackettgroup.com), an Answerthink company, is a business advisory firm providing empirically based advice and best-practices research to executives seeking to drive world-class performance in areas such as finance, IT, human resources, and procurement. Hackett's functional and process-specific benchmarks and its confidential, on-demand, membership-based advisory services are backed by an ongoing database of best practices in processes, technology, and organization in use at more than 2,400 clients around the globe. This unparalleled information repository allows Hackett business advisors to provide data, advice, and strategic insight with a level of integrity and authority available nowhere else. As of this writing, Hackett clients comprise 93 percent of the Dow Jones Industrials, 80 percent of the Fortune 100 and 90 percent of the Dow Jones Global Titans Index.

About Answerthink
Answerthink, Inc. (www.answerthink.com) is a strategic business and technology consulting firm that enables companies to achieve world-class business performance. By leveraging the comprehensive database of The Hackett Group, the world's leading repository of enterprise best practice metrics and business process knowledge, Answerthink's business and technology solutions help clients significantly improve performance and maximize returns on technology investments. Answerthink's capabilities include benchmarking, business transformation, business applications, business intelligence, and offshore application development and support. Founded in 1997, Answerthink has offices throughout the United States and in Europe and India.

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