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| In This Issue: Introducing an Expanded A Recap of the Gartner AR Forums—Las Vegas and Barcelona Gartner Introduces Critical Capabilities Methodology: An Interview With Research VP Stacey Hawkins
Thursday, June 19 Gartner Analyst Relations Quarterly Call 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. EDT Visit the Vendor Relations page on gartner.com for the agenda and dial-in details. |
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Introducing an Expanded AR-focused Team Aaron Yaverski, who led the Gartner Analyst Relations (AR) program for seven years, has accepted another position outside the company. We wish him continued success in his career. I have assumed Aaron’s role, joined by Andy Rosenblatt, VP Product Management, who manages the Gartner AR product offerings. We look forward to enhancing our relationship with all of you as we continue to introduce new products for analyst relations professionals. We’ve included a snapshot of the AR forums that took place at our Spring Symposiums in North America and Europe. Hear the types of questions AR leaders posed, how the Gartner research methodology is evolving and how business and technical buyers in end-user organizations support their large technology purchases. As AR leaders, we know you want to keep current with how Gartner equips your customers with quality decision support tools. Hence, we’ve included a review of a new Gartner tool called Critical Capabilities Analysis (CCA):
Read more about CCA, how its capabilities are determined and how it addresses additional product capabilities provided by your strategic partners. Have you added new AR or marketing people to your organization who might need background in how Gartner arrives at its insight, observations and advice? Do you, as an AR professional, need a refresher on how the Gartner methodologies work? See our update to Inside Gartner Research for a comprehensive look at our research process and methodologies. New analysts have joined our team since our last issue. Check out their bios and learn how these new team members can help you get more value from Gartner. As always, we aim to keep you, as an AR leader, well equipped with the information you need to derive the greatest value possible from your Gartner relationship. Keep your feedback coming as to how we can best achieve this.
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A Recap of the Gartner AR Forums — Las Vegas and Barcelona
Gartner holds its twice-yearly North American and European AR forums at Gartner Symposium/ITxpo, offering AR professionals an update and feedback channel to Gartner executives and analysts. The AR forum also supports our commitment to providing transparency into how Gartner research processes, tools and techniques are used to evaluate markets, understand user buying trends and offer an independent and objective view of the IT industry. Based upon 2007 attendee feedback, the Spring 2008 forums were structured to accommodate ample time for Q&A sessions with presenters from both Gartner and guest speaker Joshua Reynolds, senior vice president at Hill & Knowlton. Current state of Gartner research methodology Gartner Research SVP Peter Sondergaard provided a review and update of the various processes, tools and techniques Gartner uses to conduct both market- and user focused research. Peter referenced Inside Gartner Research, a reference guide that provides an in-depth tutorial of how Gartner processes and methodologies are designed to convert complex information into actionable advice. See page 6 for a full overview and how to order a copy. Peter also previewed a new methodology known as Gartner Critical Capabilities Analysis (CCA), an analytical tool that scores competing products against a set of critical market differentiators identified by Gartner. Peter provided an overview of the tool and its approach, providing insight into:
For a more complete description, please read Gartner Introduces Critical Capabilities Methodology: An Interview With Research VP Stacey Hawkins. AR Q&A session Peter conducted a lively Q&A session after his presentations. Here are some examples of the many questions AR leaders asked: Q: Does Gartner have end-user-focused analysts in India? A: In total, we have 17 analysts in India of which three are currently end-user-focused. We are looking at scaling the number of end-user-focused analysts based on client demand and business growth for the future. Q: How does Gartner decide when to collapse/retire Magic Quadrants? A: The decision is based on reader interest in both the Magic Quadrant and the market it represents. When a market reaches maturity and the number of providers declines, we may migrate coverage of the market from a Magic Quadrant to a MarketScope. Q: When will Gartner begin publishing research agendas? A: Gartner is actively working on publishing research agendas. You should start to see the results of this effort in the next six months. The goal is to provide visibility into the agendas of specific document types (i.e., Magic Quadrants, Hype Cycles and Key Issues), as well as agendas around hot topics. How industry analysts impact IT purchase decisions How much impact do industry analysts have on the decision-making processes of end users, particularly in their major technology purchase decisions? Hill & Knowlton SVP Joshua Reynolds presented the key findings of his organization’s annual Tech Decision Makers study that recently surveyed 420 decision makers in the U.S., U.K., Canada and China. Some key findings:
Josh also led panel discussions in Las Vegas and Barcelona with several people from the AR community (North America: Microsoft, Sapient, Bell Canada and Tata Consultancy Services; Europe: Lawson, Sun Microsystems, Oracle and Symantec) about how they see the AR profession changing. Give us your feedback The feedback we received during and after the meetings shows that the format and content of the AR forums are delivering value to attendees. We’d like to continue improving the forum through your involvement and ideas. What would you like us to discuss at the upcoming events in Orlando and Cannes? Send us your ideas and comments.
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Gartner Introduces Critical Capabilities Methodology: An Interview With Gartner Research VP Stacey Hawkins Gartner is known for its assessment of markets and companies via its proprietary Magic Quadrants, MarketScopes and Vendor Ratings methodologies. Now a new methodology known as Gartner Critical Capabilities Analysis (CCA) drills down to the product level. How the new methodology works “This new methodology,” explains Stacey Hawkins, VP Research Methodology, “scores competing hardware or software products against a small number of critical differentiators identified by Gartner.
How CCA helps clients compare competitive offerings New research from Gartner, for example, helps managers implementing IT governance, risk and compliance management solutions evaluate products from eight vendors including Agriliance, Information Governance and Symantec.
Capabilities from partners are also considered A product’s critical capability doesn’t always have to be native to the solution’s originator. Stacey explains: “If an element of critical functionality is provided by a partner (as in a software ecosystem) and the product is typically evaluated by and sold to users as a whole against alternatives, the functionality provided by a partner may be considered.” Product viability is a key part of the analysis Gartner CCA also assesses the vendor’s ability to enhance and support a specific product over its expected life cycle. Stacey explains: “In this tool, viability is not an evaluation of the vendor as a whole, as with our other methodologies. Rather, it hones in on a specific product offering. A product might score well in critical capabilities, yet be considered low priority for continued investment if the vendor has decided to take a different direction. That’s important information our user clients should know when acquiring products.” AR managers can help their peers in product management and marketing understand the new methodology. Stacey says, “User clients have requested this type of drill-down analysis at the product level, and we’re looking forward to putting it to work. It’s a new methodology clients can expect to see more of in published reports.” Stacey concludes: “We may consider applying this methodology to the IT services sector sometime in the future, but for now, its focus will be on hardware and software.” How are critical capabilities determined? Each analyst develops inclusion criteria that will determine which products are included in a critical capabilities analysis. If a product meets those criteria, a company will be featured. As AR professionals, start building awareness With this methodology, we will be providing users another important level of comparative analysis to guide their acquisitions. As AR professionals, you can take the lead in making sure your leaders in product development and marketing are aware that Gartner has a new methodology for evaluating the small, yet critical capabilities that distinguish competing solutions. As always, vendors should be prepared during a Gartner briefing to hone in on those areas that set them apart. As AR professionals, make sure you participate in this type of preparation. For more information, contact stacey.hawkins@gartner.com.
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An update to Inside Gartner Research In support of our initiative to increase transparency into how we do what we do, we recently released an update to our reference guide, Inside Gartner Research. As an AR professional, you can use this guide to refresh your memory about how Gartner methodologies have been designed to produce actionable insight about the IT industry. You can also use it as a primer for any new people in your organization that need to further understand how the Gartner research process works. In this new release, you get a better-organized guide, complete with a table of contents and updated descriptions of the Gartner research process and its underlying methodologies and tools, as well as the people behind the scenes who make it all work. For example, you get insight into the role of the Gartner ombudsman and how our escalation process is designed to tackle the rare instance when you have an issue with something we’ve published. You learn more about the role of the Gartner Fellows program. And you see real-world examples of how clients put Gartner research to work every day to make more informed decisions—and how input from clients and other sources helps us set our research agendas. Our research touches on hundreds more IT applications today than it did even five years ago—yet tools like Gartner Hype Cycles, Gartner Magic Quadrants, Gartner Market Forecasts and Gartner Vendor Ratings retain the greatest ease of use in the industry. A wealth of information is condensed into a 27-page booklet that you can read from cover to cover or use as a quick reference guide to find what you need, when you need it. There are many ways to inform your decision making. One way is with research. Request your update to Inside Gartner Research from your account executive or e-mail kimberly.purcell@gartner.com.
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Nine new analysts have joined Gartner since March of this year. As an AR professional, we know you want to stay current with the analysts who cover your markets. For a complete list of analysts, click here. Perry Carpenter Perry analyzes applications in identity and access management (IAM), data privacy and information security. He began his career as a programmer, later moving into IAM, marketing analytics and security management. He has implemented enterprise wide security initiatives for Wal-Mart and Alltel Communications in identity management, mobile data protection, security knowledge and process management, and security awareness program development. Amrita Choudhury Amrita covers the printer, copier and multifunction product markets for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, using her quantitative and qualitative analytical skills to contribute to quarterly statistics, market trends, market sizing and forecasts. She also advises clients on best practices in green IT for managing printer and multifunction product fleets. Keith Harrison Keith analyzes applications in the energy and utilities industry, including trading, risk management, compliance and reporting. Prior to working at Gartner, he was a business analyst for PacifiCorp and an IT program director for Scottish Power. Keith’s experience includes the establishment of outbound, dialer-based telesales and online self-service channels for the retail business, and the deployment of GIS and asset management solutions for the power distribution business. Mick MacComascaigh Mick follows the business intelligence and information management markets. Before joining Gartner, he managed business development and strategic consulting for ECM Consulting and was a principal architect at Vignette. Mick helps IT leaders make informed, quality decisions around vision and strategy for business intelligence and information management initiatives. He is particularly skilled at the development and execution of business intelligence and information management strategy. Yurika Nagashima Yurika analyzes the IT infrastructure and operations environments of end users across multiple industry sectors. Prior to Gartner, she supported consulting opportunities in business planning, solution development, service-oriented architecture (SOA), J2EE application development and application server deployment for HP. Thomas Otter Thomas analyzes human capital management (HCM) trends and technologies, including core HR, payroll, talent management and workforce analytics. Prior to joining Gartner, he worked at SAP in a variety of roles, including business development, sales and key account strategy. Most recently, he was chief business solution architect for SAP’s HCM business in EMEA. Thomas has extensive experience in global HR technology deployments. Sergio Santos Sergio analyzes the printing and imaging markets, covering vendors in North America and Latin America. Prior to joining Gartner, Sergio studied the evolution of IT with particular focus on opportunities for enhancing user performance. His focus on the dynamic and always-changing competitive environment helps clients reduce risk and make more informed decisions about key acquisitions and vendor management strategies. Juergen Weiss Juergen analyzes the insurance sector for Gartner Industry Advisory Services. In his 13 years of experience, he has worked in strategy, development, integration, package selection and the management of international teams. Juergen advises insurance organizations on how to adapt and extend their existing system landscapes into 21st-century environments, helping clients understand the interactions between technology and business, and predicting patterns and future trends. Timothy Zimmerman Tim analyzes networking and network management, wireless LAN technologies, security, and mobile devices. His 20 years of experience include technical, marketing and management roles with Intermec, SyVox, Hand Held Products, Meru Networks and Norand. Tim advises clients with complex wired and wireless networking implementations. He also analyzes emerging technologies, introducing new ideas to clients that will create innovation and positive impacts on the business. |
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