ISG Software Research Analyst Perspectives

Total Compensation Management Value Index Classifies and Rates Vendors

Posted by ISG Research on 31 March 2023

We are happy to share insights gleaned from our latest Value Index research, an assessment of how well vendors’ offerings meet buyers’ requirements. The Ventana Research Value Index: Total Compensation Management 2023 is the distillation of a year of market and product research by Ventana Research. Drawing on our Benchmark Research, we apply a structured methodology built on evaluation categories... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, Total Compensation Management

Market Observations from the Total Compensation Management Value Index

Posted by ISG Research on 30 March 2023

Having just completed the 2023 Ventana Research Value Index for Total Compensation Management, We want to share some of my observations about how the market has advanced since our assessment three years ago. For more than two decades, Ventana Research has conducted market research in a spectrum of related areas including Total Compensation Management (TCM) as well as broader HCM areas ranging... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, Total Compensation Management

Now with the Miracle Ingredient AI!

Posted by Robert Kugel on 30 March 2023

Early last December, just before ChatGPT became the new, bright, shiny object, The Economist magazine ran a story proclaiming that we had finally arrived at the age of boring artificial intelligence (AI). From my perspective, it’s unfortunate that didn’t last and that AI has been relegated back to the buzzword league. AI will be an increasingly important feature of business software through the... Read More

Topics: Office of Finance, Business Intelligence, Business Planning, Enterprise Resource Planning, ERP and Continuous Accounting, natural language processing, continuous supply chain, AI and Machine Learning

Why Intelligent Self-Service Is the Tip of the Spear for CX

Posted by Keith Dawson on 29 March 2023

Organizations looking to improve the customer experience and contact center operations should closely examine the processes at work in the front-end self-service environment. Technology advancements are converging at this gateway, including artificial intelligence, chatbots and knowledge management. The front end of the customer interaction offers a greater opportunity for customer engagement... Read More

Topics: Customer Experience, Self-service, Contact Center, Knowledge Management, Chatbots, agent management

Alation’s Data Governance Accelerates Data Intelligence

Posted by Matt Aslett on 29 March 2023

As data continues to grow and evolve, organizations seek better tools and technologies to employ data faster and more efficiently. Finding and managing data remains a perennial challenge for most organizations, and is exacerbated by increasing volumes of data and an expanding array of data formats. At the same time, organizations must comply with a growing list of national and regional rules and... Read More

Topics: Data Governance, Data Management, Data, data operations

Close Automation is Essential for Digital Finance Transformation

Posted by Robert Kugel on 28 March 2023

As a rule, I dislike terms like “digital finance transformation” because there’s a wave-the -magic-wand quality to it that obscures the not-so-simple people and process elements necessary for true transformation. Six of the most common – and expensive – words used in an accounting department are “we’ve always done it this way.” Persuading staff to change can be a struggle, even if change makes... Read More

Topics: Office of Finance

Qualtrics XM Platform Zeros in on Customer Experiences

Posted by Keith Dawson on 27 March 2023

Modern business relies on having a clear, continuous understanding of customer perceptions and intentions. That insight is increasingly used to deliver them experiences that they would consider excellent, in turn leading to higher satisfaction and more profitable relationships. Qualtrics, a provider of Experience Management (XM) software, focuses on creating applications that analyze customer... Read More

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

8x8 Pivots to Emphasize Contact Center Technology for CX

Posted by Keith Dawson on 23 March 2023

At its March 2023 analyst conference, 8x8 described a significant pivot in its focus. Going forward the company will be emphasizing the Contact Center (CCaaS) side of its portfolio, which to this point has represented a small portion of its overall sales. It made several product announcements to bolster the argument that it can effectively meet the needs of complex contact center operations while... Read More

Topics: Customer Experience, Contact Center

Tellius Enables Decision Intelligence

Posted by David Menninger on 23 March 2023

Organizations are continuously searching for new business opportunities hidden in their data. They are using various technologies including artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML) to uncover granular insights that can support decision-making. Existing tools and dashboards are effective for observing standard metrics; however, they do not address follow-up questions, such as why... Read More

Topics: Analytics, Business Intelligence, natural language processing, AI and Machine Learning

Streaming Databases Enable Continuous Analysis and Data Persistence

Posted by Matt Aslett on 23 March 2023

Success with streaming data and events requires a more holistic approach to managing and governing data in motion and data at rest. The use of streaming data and event processing has been part of the data landscape for many decades. For much of that time, data streaming was a niche activity, however, with standalone data streaming and event-processing projects run in parallel with existing... Read More

Topics: Analytics, Data, Digital Technology, Streaming Analytics, Streaming Data Events, analytic data platforms, Analytics and Data

The Continuous Audit Improves Quality and Efficiency

Posted by Robert Kugel on 22 March 2023

An external audit examines an organization’s performance of accounting tasks. It validates the soundness of accounting systems and policies and compliance with generally accepted accounting principles in preparing financial statements – chiefly the income statement, balance sheet and statements of cash flow and equity. The auditor certifies that there are no material errors or omissions, and that... Read More

Topics: Office of Finance

AWS Enables Data Democratization with Amazon DataZone

Posted by Matt Aslett on 21 March 2023

I have previously written about the importance of data democratization as a key element of a data-driven agenda. Removing barriers that prevent or delay users from gaining access to data enables it to be treated as a product that is generated and consumed, either internally by employees or externally by partners and customers. This is particularly important for organizations adopting the data... Read More

Topics: Cloud Computing, Data Governance, Data Management, Data, Digital Technology, data operations, Analytics and Data

Hitachi Vantara DataOps Improves Analytics and Decision-Making

Posted by David Menninger on 21 March 2023

Now more than ever, effective data management is crucial to enable decision-makers to better assess information and take calculated actions. It is also important to keep up with the latest trends and technologies to derive higher value from data and analytics and maintain a competitive edge in the market. However, every organization faces challenges with data management and analytics. And as... Read More

Topics: Analytics, Data Governance, Data Management, Data, data operations, analytic data platforms

Learning Management Systems Value Index Classifies and Rates Vendors

Posted by ISG Research on 20 March 2023

I am happy to share insights gleaned from our latest Value Index research, an assessment of how well vendors’ offerings meet buyers’ requirements. The Learning Management Value Index 2023 is the distillation of a year of market and product research by Ventana Research. Drawing on our Benchmark Research, we apply a structured methodology built on evaluation categories that reflect the real-world... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, Learning Management

Learning Management Systems: An Integral Resource for Any Organization

Posted by ISG Research on 17 March 2023

Having recently completed the 2023 Ventana Research Value Index for Learning Management Systems (LMS), I’d like to share some of my observations about how the market has advanced since our assessment three years ago. The evolution of the LMS technology market has accelerated exponentially as a result of shifts in employer and worker expectations that occurred during the pandemic and continue... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, Learning Management

Power the Talent Journey with Integrated Systems

Posted by ISG Research on 16 March 2023

A decade ago, organizations were sold on best-of-breed technology stacks. In the world of human capital management, that meant a separate system for each of the myriad processes that make up a worker's life span with a company. The approach seemed to make sense because a single system cannot be the best at everything, can it? Is it realistic for a single provider to create the most advanced... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, Talent Management, employee experience

Wiiisdom Automates Analytics Operations for Trusted Analyses

Posted by David Menninger on 15 March 2023

Data analytics provide valuable insights and enable organizations to make better decisions, improve performance and gain a competitive advantage in the marketplace. Analytics can change frequently depending on the data being analyzed and the methods used to gather and process it. Factors such as new data, changes in the underlying systems or updates to algorithms can all contribute to differences... Read More

Topics: embedded analytics, Analytics, Business Intelligence

Cockroach Labs Promotes Developer Efficiency for Distributed Databases

Posted by Matt Aslett on 15 March 2023

I recently wrote about the potential use cases for distributed SQL databases as well as techniques being employed by vendors to accelerate adoption. Distributed SQL is a term that is used by several vendors to describe operational data platform products that combine the benefits of the relational database model and native support for distributed cloud architecture, including resilience that spans... Read More

Topics: Cloud Computing, Data, Digital Technology, Analytics and Data

Product Experience Management Value Index Classifies and Rates Vendors

Posted by Mark Smith on 14 March 2023

I am happy to share insights gleaned from our latest Value Index research, an assessment of how well vendors’ offerings meet buyers’ requirements. The Ventana Research Value Index: Product Experience Management 2023 is the distillation of a year of market and product research by Ventana Research. Drawing on our Benchmark Research, we apply a structured methodology built on evaluation categories... Read More

Topics: Marketing, Product Information Management, Operations & Supply Chain

Our Focus on Close, Consolidate and Report in Finance

Posted by Robert Kugel on 14 March 2023

For 2023, the Office of Finance practice of Ventana Research introduced Close, Consolidate and Report as one of its six focus areas. The change reflects the recent evolution of technology that supports this part of the finance department calendar. Ventana Research expects that the increasing investment in software to streamline these processes will, by 2026, result in two-thirds of finance and... Read More

Topics: Office of Finance

Accounts Payable Automation is More Valuable Than You Think

Posted by Robert Kugel on 10 March 2023

We added purchasing, sourcing and payments to our core Office of Finance focus areas this year to reflect new and important opportunities to use technology to gain effectiveness through greater efficiency. Doing a better job of record-keeping and organizing paperwork – especially in a minutiae-laden process like source-to-pay – may seem trivial. Yet digitally transforming core business processes... Read More

Topics: Office of Finance, ERP and Continuous Accounting

Product Experience Management Requires Next-Gen Digital Technology

Posted by Mark Smith on 10 March 2023

Having just completed the 2023 Ventana Research Value Index for Product Experience Management, I want to share some of my observations about how the market has advanced over the last two years. The product information management software market is quite mature and products from any of the vendors we assess could be used to effectively deliver information to help your organization improve its... Read More

Topics: Marketing, Product Information Management, Operations & Supply Chain

Product Experience Management Market Requires Digital and Processes Excellence

Posted by Mark Smith on 09 March 2023

Having just completed the 2023 Ventana Research Value Index for Product Experience Management, I want to share some of my observations about how the market has advanced over the last two years. The product information management software (PIM) market is quite mature and products from any of the vendors we assessed can be used to effectively deliver information to help your organization improve... Read More

Topics: Marketing, Product Information Management, Operations & Supply Chain

Use Observability for Better Digital Processes

Posted by David Menninger on 09 March 2023

For years various types of systems have produced log files to help with monitoring, debugging and performance management. Often, this information was used in forensic analyses of why interruptions in service or other problems occurred. In many cases, log files are still used this way. But systems have grown more complicated, and many more devices are instrumented. Systems have been decomposed... Read More

Topics: Business Continuity, Digital Technology

Our Focus on Purchasing, Sourcing and Payments in 2023

Posted by Robert Kugel on 08 March 2023

Digitally transforming core business processes became essential as organizations locked down in early 2020 because of the pandemic and the need to operate remotely presented a set of new challenges that were best addressed by software. Especially in the areas of sourcing, purchasing and payments, software has the ability to streamline processes, shorten process cycles, reduce unnecessary costs,... Read More

Topics: ERP, Office of Finance, continuous supply chain

Exasol Accelerates Analytics With an In-Memory Database

Posted by Matt Aslett on 07 March 2023

Organizations require faster analytics to continuously improve business operations and stay competitive in today’s market. However, many struggle with slow analytics due to a variety of factors such as slow databases, insufficient data storage capacity, poor data quality, lack of proper data cleansing and inadequate IT infrastructure. Challenges such as data silos can also decrease operational... Read More

Topics: Data Management, Data, analytic data platforms

Making Automation Easier for Contact Centers

Posted by Keith Dawson on 02 March 2023

Contact centers are very often keen on optimizing their costs through automation. Technology vendors supplying this market have recognized this need, and in the past few years, they have been putting workflow and automation tools front and center in their offerings. This has raised some questions among practitioners about the most effective strategies for implementing automated processes. Based... Read More

Topics: Customer Experience, Contact Center, agent management

Reclaim the Value in Your CRM System

Posted by Stephen Hurrell on 02 March 2023

I have been involved with customer relationship management for over 15 years, and although that is not as long as the category has been around, it does coincide with an era where companies and commentators are calling into question the application’s effectiveness. To counter this perception, both CRM vendors and complementary third-party “add-ons” have developed new functionality that aims to... Read More

Topics: Office of Revenue

Foundational Blockchain Founders as TradeLens Shuts Down

Posted by Robert Kugel on 02 March 2023

Maersk is closing its TradeLens joint venture with IBM that began in 2018. It was intended to enable port operators, customs authorities, freight forwarders and importers to track containers and their contents. The system was designed to substantially reduce the inefficiencies and delays created by paper-based systems used for customs, trade finance, tariffs and taxes as well as supply chain and... Read More

Topics: Operations & Supply Chain, blockchain, continuous supply chain

5 Strategies to Improve Candidate Experience and Conversion Rates

Posted by ISG Research on 01 March 2023

Recruiting is hard. The best candidate often isn’t even actively looking for a new role, and yet recruiters are expected to find the perfect match of skills, experience and fit at exactly the right time and somehow convince that individual to leave a familiar role and work community to join a new organization. Those who are already in the market have gone to considerable lengths to ensure their... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, Talent Management

Explore Graph Databases for Better Relationships

Posted by Matt Aslett on 01 March 2023

I have previously written about the functional evolution and emerging use cases for NoSQL databases, a category of non-relational databases that first emerged 15 or so years ago and are now well established as potential alternatives to relational databases. NoSQL is a term that is used to describe a variety of databases that fall into four primary functional categories: key-value stores, wide... Read More

Topics: Data

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