ISG Software Research Analyst Perspectives

Value Index for Revenue Performance Management Rates Vendors

Posted by Stephen Hurrell on 31 March 2022

Ventana Research is happy to share insights gleaned from the latest Value Index research, an assessment of how well vendors’ offerings meet buyers’ requirements. The 2022 Revenue Performance Management (RPM) Value Index is the distillation of a year of market and product research. Drawing on our Benchmark Research, we apply a structured methodology built on evaluation categories that reflect the... Read More

Topics: Sales, Sales Performance Management (SPM), Price and Revenue Management, sales enablement, Revenue Performance Management

Don’t Rely on Dashboards for Real-Time Analytics

Posted by David Menninger on 31 March 2022

I have written previously that the world of data and analytics will become more and more centered around real-time, streaming data. Data is created constantly and increasingly is being collected simultaneously. Technology advances now enable organizations to process and analyze information as it is being collected to respond in real time to opportunities and threats. Not all use cases require... Read More

Topics: business intelligence, Analytics, Internet of Things, Data, Digital Technology, Streaming Analytics, Streaming Data Events, Analytics and Data, AI and Machine Learning

Maximize Alignment through Revenue Performance

Posted by Stephen Hurrell on 30 March 2022

As organizations shift focus to a broader definition of sales that includes all sources of revenue, vendors are also pivoting to include “revenue” as part of promotional messaging. But it’s my view that just changing your message or description does not necessarily deliver the capabilities and product experiences customers need to successfully plan, execute and achieve revenue targets and... Read More

Topics: Revenue Performance Management

Spend Management is More Effective with Software and Cards

Posted by Robert Kugel on 30 March 2022

The term "corporate spend" usually refers to the incidental but still significant outlays organizations make to support operations. Especially in nonmanufacturing industries, purchases of indirect goods and business services – such as computers, office supplies, furniture and services – as well as travel and entertainment can represent a significant percentage of total costs. Technology has... Read More

Topics: ERP, Financial Performance Management (FPM)

The Benefits of Data Mesh Extend to Organizational and Cultural Change

Posted by Matt Aslett on 29 March 2022

Data mesh is the latest trend to grip the data and analytics sector. The term has been rapidly adopted by numerous vendors — as well as a growing number of organizations —as a means of embracing distributed data processing. Understanding and adopting data mesh remains a challenge, however. Data mesh is not a product that can be acquired, or even a technical architecture that can be built. It is... Read More

Topics: Analytics, Business Intelligence, Data Governance, Data Integration, Data, Digital Technology, Digital transformation, data lakes, data operations, Streaming Data Events, Analytics and Data

Subscription Management Elevates Experience Through Automation

Posted by Stephen Hurrell on 29 March 2022

Ventana Research defines subscription management as the processes and technology needed to manage the subscriber experience from the first digital touch to the continuous modifications of orders for services and billing. Effective subscription management requires a new generation of applications designed to manage the life cycle of subscriptions and provide subscribers with the experiences they... Read More

Topics: Subscription Management

OnviSource Brings Intelligence to Contact Center Automation

Posted by Keith Dawson on 24 March 2022

Today’s contact center agents find themselves handling increasingly more complex interactions due to changes in consumer demand, advances in self-service and the proliferation of digital contact channels. This added complexity requires continuous agent support for successful customer experience outcomes. Intelligent software can reduce agent workload and improve customer interactions by picking... Read More

Topics: Customer Experience, Contact Center, AI

Working Across the Aisle in Analytics: Involving IT and LOB

Posted by David Menninger on 23 March 2022

For years, maybe decades, we have heard about the struggles between IT and line-of-business functions. In this perspective, we will look at some of the data from our Analytics and Data Benchmark Research about the roles of IT and line-of-business teams in analytics and data processes. We will also look at some of the disconnects between these two groups. And, by looking at how organizations are... Read More

Topics: Analytics, Business Intelligence, Data, Digital Technology, Analytics and Data, AI and Machine Learning

Simplifying Budgeting and Planning is FP&A’s Mission

Posted by Robert Kugel on 22 March 2022

Ventana Research recently published the results of our Business Planning Value Index Research and I commented on its connection to our emphasis on using software to unify planning processes across an enterprise to improve performance. Since 2007, we have advocated what we call Integrated Business Planning (IBP): a high-participation, collaborative, action-oriented approach to planning and... Read More

Topics: Business Planning, Finance Performance Management

Yellowbrick Paves the Way to Distributed Cloud

Posted by Matt Aslett on 22 March 2022

Despite widespread and increasing use of the cloud for data and analytics workloads, it has become clear in recent years that, for most organizations, a proportion of data-processing workloads will remain on-premises in centralized data centers or distributed-edge processing infrastructure. As we recently noted, as compute and storage are distributed across a hybrid and multi-cloud architecture,... Read More

Topics: Analytics, Business Intelligence, Data Governance, Data, data operations, AI and Machine Learning

Why Your ERP and CRM Won’t Transform Your Business

Posted by Stephen Hurrell on 18 March 2022

Digital Transformation. The Subscription Economy. Omni-Channel Selling. Customer Centric. These are all terms used to label trends and events that are changing the way business is being conducted, a change that has accelerated due to recent events. Regardless of the terminology, there is no doubt that the way vendors and buyers are interacting, whether B2C or B2B, is different today for many... Read More

Topics: Sales, Digital Commerce, Subscription Management, partner management

Why We Need a New Definition for CX Software Platforms

Posted by Keith Dawson on 18 March 2022

The technology underpinning customer experience (CX) is a hodgepodge of tools that have been developed for niche use cases and then expanded to fill broader roles. Examples include the old (CRM, help desk software and speech analytics) and the new (customer data platforms and conversational AI). This is because CX is a set of very specialized processes that happen in different parts of the... Read More

Topics: Customer Experience, Marketing, Marketing Performance Management, Voice of the Customer, Contact Center, Product Information Management, Digital Marketing, agent management, intelligent marketing, Digital Experience Platform

Looker Simplifies Business Intelligence in the Cloud

Posted by David Menninger on 17 March 2022

Organizations face various challenges with analytics and business intelligence processes, including data curation and modeling across disparate sources and data warehouses, maintaining data quality and ensuring security and governance. Traditional processes are slow when transforming large and diverse datasets into something which is easily consumable in BI. And, it can take days or weeks to... Read More

Topics: Big Data, Analytics, Business Intelligence

Value-Added Tax Transformation Streamlines Compliance

Posted by Robert Kugel on 17 March 2022

Value-added tax is a type of levy that is applied at each step of a transaction chain, from basic inputs to the final good or service. The amount assessed is based on the value added by an organization (hence the name) when a transaction occurs. VAT is used throughout the world because, historically, it has been harder to evade compared to income taxes. VAT is a common method of national... Read More

Topics: Office of Finance, Tax, VAT

Expanded NoSQL Use Cases Deserve a Second Look

Posted by Matt Aslett on 15 March 2022

I recently examined how evolving functionality had fueled the adoption of NoSQL databases, recommending that organizations evaluate NoSQL databases when assessing options for data transformation and modernization efforts. This recommendation was based on the breadth and depth of functionality offered by NoSQL database providers today, which has expanded the range of use cases for which NoSQL... Read More

Topics: NoSQL, Data

Explorium Improves Machine Learning Models With External Data

Posted by David Menninger on 09 March 2022

Today, organizations understand the importance of good external data that can be integrated with internal data to train machine learning models. Our Machine Learning Dynamic Insights research showed that external data adds a significant value in gaining competitive advantage, improving customer experience and increasing sales. But getting the right external data for a particular requirement is... Read More

Unit4 Expansion Targets Enhancements for People-Centric Organization

Posted by Robert Kugel on 09 March 2022

I recently attended an analyst conference held by Unit4, an enterprise resource planning vendor focused on midsize organizations in people-centric industries. The conference was intended to communicate the company’s strategy, product updates and roadmap. The meeting took place shortly after announcement of the availability of Unit4 Industry Mesh and the acquisition of Compright, which does... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, Office of Finance, Business Planning, Talent Management, Financial Performance Management, ERP and Continuous Accounting, Total Compensation Management

Evolving NoSQL Database Functionality Fuels Adoption

Posted by Matt Aslett on 08 March 2022

The various NoSQL databases have become a staple of the data platforms landscape since the term entered the IT industry lexicon in 2009 to describe a new generation of non-relational databases. While NoSQL began as a ragtag collection of loosely affiliated, open-source database projects, several commercial NoSQL database providers are now established as credible alternatives to the various... Read More

Topics: Analytics, Data, AI and Machine Learning

Automate the Close Cycle for Consistently Better Performance

Posted by Robert Kugel on 03 March 2022

Software that automates the full scope of the accounting close, including reconciliations, consolidation and reporting, has grown more capable and affordable over the past five years. By enabling consistent process management that captures best practices, and by automating rote, repetitive activities to boost staff productivity, these applications enable organizations to shorten the close, make... Read More

Topics: Office of Finance, Financial Performance Management (FPM), ERP and Continuous Accounting

Natural Language Processing Enables Self-service Analytics & BI

Posted by David Menninger on 02 March 2022

Natural language processing (NLP) is a field that combines artificial intelligence (AI), data science and linguistics that enables computers to understand, interpret and manipulate text or spoken words. NLP includes generating narratives based on a set of data values, using text or speech as inputs to access information, and analysing text or speech, for instance, to determine its sentiment.... Read More

Topics: Big Data, Analytics, natural language processing, NLP

Bigeye Provides Visibility into Data Reliability

Posted by Matt Aslett on 01 March 2022

As businesses become more data-driven, they are increasingly dependent on the quality of their data and the reliability of their data pipelines. Making decisions based on data does not guarantee success, especially if the business cannot ensure that the data is accurate and trustworthy. While there is potential value in capturing all data — good or bad — making decisions based on low-quality data... Read More

Topics: Data Governance, Data Integration, Data, Digital Technology, data lakes, data operations, Analytics and Data

Contact Center Cost Control, Part 2: Getting Granular

Posted by Keith Dawson on 01 March 2022

In a previous Analyst Perspective, we discussed some of the big-picture trends that are bringing cost control back as a core driver of contact center operations. In this report we will tackle some of the practical ramifications: how those trends affect decision-making and operations. The pandemic opened the door to a much broader consideration of how organizations engage with employees,... Read More

Topics: Customer Experience, Voice of the Customer, Contact Center, agent management