Which analysts are most influential
Most vendors think that analyst influence is highly concentrated. Our annual surveys of vendor executives typically suggest that they feel that just two analyst firms (Gartner and Forrester) hold around 60% of all analyst influence on buyers worldwide: the number rises to over 90% when we add in AMR Research, Burton Group, Current Analysis, IDC,…
[Update: Some people found this article misleading. Two new posts now clarify the value of free research and the sources of analyst influence. Web traffic contributes to the influence of analyst firms, but that measurement by itself is a weak predictor of the comparative influence of analyst firms. Since web traffic data are easily available,…
My colleague John Moroney, formerly Associate Director at Gartner [pictured right], and Duncan Chapple are reviewing Gartner’s evolution in a conference call. Gartner has always been one of the most reliable sources of IT research news. Over the years, it has built a solid reputation for itself. With its double digit growth in consulting business…
The observations of an English friend in Texas seem to counter some of the observations in our annual survey of CIOs. Our research found that the reach of industry analysts extends deep down into the mid-market. Around two-thirds of companies with over 1,000 employees have CIOs using analyst research. Our correspondent repeats many of the…
Gartner is asking vendors for feedback on its plan that standard vendor briefings become 30 minutes long from the end of this month. We will leave it to other to speculate on the firm’s conversations with its analysts on this topic. One reason given for the curtailment is that briefings take a long time to…
Ancient kings pointlessly punished their alchemists when they failed to create gold, rather than question their own avarice. Frequent criticism of industry analysts’ inaccurate forecasts is similarly wasted. Humanity’s systematic bias toward overestimating the pace of change is amplified by the deep challenges in forecasting discontinuous, high-growth, markets. Forecasts will not get much better very…
A key part of Lighthouse’s approach to AR measurement is that it not only help prove that it’s adding value, but also helps businesses control their risk of being outflanked by competitors. The flip side is also true: AR teams that are only measuring their own activity, or outputs that might not reflect real business…
Earlier this week Ovum’s shareholders (of whom I probably have the smallest holding) voted to move ahead with the plans to IPO. It’s been interesting to hear opinions, both from those who are informed and from those who are guessing. Some things are clear: Ovum is growing at 25% and is increasingly profitable. The rumours…