Gartner and Forrester head 2016 Global Analyst Firm Awards

The 2018 Global Analyst Firm Awards have superseded the post below, which relates to the 2016 awards. 

The new year always brings changes. Here at Kea, where we are welcoming several new colleagues and our annual Analyst Firm Awards. Because the 2015 awards are based on the massive participation in the 2015 Analyst Value Survey, there’s little change in the top firms from last year. However we have a new entrant into the top five, and another in the second half of the top ten.

1. Gartner continues to head up the top ten and, indeed, the top four in this year’s top ten are the same as last year. Globally its events business continues to be its most valuable service, slightly ahead of its other great strength: its value for purchasing recommendations.
2. Forrester Research‘s flagship remains its peer communities, but it also performs well for inquiry calls and reprint rights.
3. HfS Research is normally highly valued for peer networking, and its events and research also valued highly.
4. IDC analysts will be happy that its most valued service is its research and data, and their reprint rights are also highly valued.
5. NelsonHall has climbed into the top five this year on the basis of strong research and data, and strong inquiry calls.
6. Everest Group is highly valued for its ability to deliver business leads, and a strong hint about how that happens comes from its even higher rating for reprint rights.
7. Pierre Audoin Consultants has pushed up into the top ten on the back of notable strengths across four areas: inquiry calls, advisory services, peer networking and strongest of all purchasing recommendations. It is held back by a lack of valuable events. It’s also worth noting that, this year, the AVS tracked PAC separately from its sisters in the CXP Group: BARC and Le CXP. Adding these three together, the CXP Group firms collectively would stand in sixth place.  
8. ISG‘s outstanding strengths are its ability to deliver business leads and advisory days. Its weaknesses are low-value research and reprints.
9. Digital Clarity Group has held on to its place in the top ten, impressively for a firm its size. Advisory days remain a strong point, as are delivering business leads and purchasing recommendations. However, research, events and inquiry calls are still too weak.
10. Ovum pipped CEB/Tower Group for tenth place with impressively valuable purchasing recommendations and good inquiry calls. Weak events and peer networking are the services to develop.

To see the data on which the awards are based, check out the Analyst Value Survey.