ISG Software Research Analyst Perspectives (31)

The Vendor Assessment Guide for Data Platforms: Ranked and Rated

Posted by Matt Aslett on 12 January 2023

I am happy to share insights from our latest Ventana Research Value Index, which assesses how well vendors’ offerings meet buyers’ requirements. The 2023 Data Platforms Value Index 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 real-world criteria... Read More

Topics: Cloud Computing, Data, Digital Technology, analytic data platforms, Analytics and Data

Verint Bets Big on Engagement Automation and Intelligence

Posted by Keith Dawson on 11 January 2023

Since 2021, Verint’s message to the customer experience community has focused on the “engagement capacity gap,” a way of describing how the available resources for CX clash with the high level of customer expectations. The argument is that efforts to close that gap require a rethink of how contact centers (and their parent organizations) operate and plan. At Verint’s December analyst conference,... Read More

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

2023 Digital Technology Market Agenda: Innovation for Digital Agility

Posted by David Menninger on 11 January 2023

I’m proud to share Ventana Research’s 2023 Market Agenda for Digital Technology. Our focus in this agenda is to deliver expertise to help organizations prioritize technology investments that improve customer, partner and workforce experiences while also increasing organizational effectiveness and agility. Digital technology is a business necessity, as demonstrated throughout the pandemic. It... Read More

Topics: Analytics, Cloud Computing, Internet of Things, Data, Digital Technology, blockchain, mobile computing, extended reality, robotic automation, Collaborative & Conversational Computing, AI and Machine Learning

Epicor Enriches Vertical-Plus Approach for Growth

Posted by Robert Kugel on 10 January 2023

Vertical strategies for enterprise resource planning systems are not new. They emerged more than two decades ago as vendors looked for ways to reduce costs and shorten time-to-value in a software category that was notorious for high costs and extended timelines. A vertical-plus strategy – the plus means it’s a platform, not just an application – takes advantage of recently available technology to... Read More

Topics: Office of Finance, Cloud Computing, ERP and Continuous Accounting, AI and Machine Learning

Acceldata Enables Data Observability

Posted by Matt Aslett on 10 January 2023

Data observability is a hot topic and trend. I have written about the importance of data observability for ensuring healthy data pipelines, and have covered multiple vendors with data observability capabilities, offered both as standalone and part of a larger data engineering system. Data observability software provides an environment that takes advantage of machine learning and DataOps to... Read More

Topics: Cloud Computing, Data Management, Data, Digital Technology, data operations

2023 Data Platforms Value Index: Market Observations and Insights

Posted by Matt Aslett on 09 January 2023

Having recently completed the 2023 Data Platforms Value Index, I want to share some of my observations about how the market is evolving. Although this is our inaugural assessment of the market for data platforms, the sector is mature and products from many of the vendors we assess can be used to effectively support operational and analytic use cases. Our Value Index for Data Platforms represents... Read More

Topics: Cloud Computing, Data, Digital Technology, analytic data platforms, Analytics and Data

2023 Market Agenda: Digitalization Evolves for Business Revitalization

Posted by Mark Smith on 06 January 2023

Ventana Research has announced its market agenda for 2023, continuing a 20-year tradition of credibility and trust in our objective efforts to educate and guide the technology market. Our research and insights are backed by our expertise and independence, as we do not share our Market Agenda or our market research – including analyst and market perspectives – with any external party before it is... Read More

Topics: Customer Experience, Human Capital Management, Marketing, Office of Finance, Analytics, Data, Digital Technology, Operations & Supply Chain, Office of Revenue

Skills-First Hiring is the Future of Talent Acquisition

Posted by ISG Research on 05 January 2023

As the world of work continues to evolve, so too must the way organizations evaluate talent. Traditional evaluation criteria like education and prior job titles still have a place in hiring, promotion and succession-planning processes. However, organizations that consider transferrable skills first have the opportunity to screen in talent that they may not have otherwise considered, creating a... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, Talent Management

Personalize Experiences to Improve Engagement and Outcomes

Posted by David Menninger on 04 January 2023

Consumer and mobile applications have influenced our expectations. Nearly all of us carry a smartphone, and we interact with a variety of applications on our devices. Those applications have forever influenced what we expect from computing systems. When I search the web for a gas station, I’m not searching for all gas stations. I’m searching for those stations that are near me. Not just near my... Read More

Topics: Digital Technology

Enable Sales to Engage and Sell with Technology

Posted by Stephen Hurrell on 03 January 2023

Those of us who have worked in or alongside sales teams have observed that many sales fundamentals have changed over the years. Yet, in many ways, they have not. One essential that has not changed is sales enablement. How do you onboard salespeople and quickly bring them up to speed? Or, how do you introduce new products and services so the sales team is conversant and knowledgeable about them?... Read More

Topics: Office of Revenue

Pyramid Analytics Expands Decision Intelligence Across the Organization

Posted by Mark Smith on 30 December 2022

In today’s organization, the myriad of analytics and permutations of dashboards challenge workers’ ability to take contextual actions efficiently. Unfortunately, conventional wisdom for investing in analytics does not recognize the benefits of empowering the workforce to understand the situation, examine options and work together to make the best possible decision. The market has evolved to focus... Read More

Topics: business intelligence, Analytics, Data, Digital Technology, analytic data platforms, Analytics and Data, AI and Machine Learning

UKG Excels in User Experience

Posted by ISG Research on 29 December 2022

Since its inception, HCM software has upended how people interact with their workplace. Paper resumes have given way to online applications. Physical time clocks have largely disappeared in favor of apps or clocks housed within a point-of-sale system. Even benefits enrollment has entered the digital age, adding tools like decision-support modeling to help enrollees determine which of the myriad... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, employee experience

Moovila Manages Work for Digital Business

Posted by Mark Smith on 29 December 2022

The management of work is a focal point for every organization that has people and resources directed to accomplish the smallest to largest of tasks. But many organizations are not easily able to manage complex activities because the details of how people are assigned and complete work are not as simple as they should be. Traditional project management methods and technologies have failed to work... Read More

Oracle Links Analytics and Business Intelligence in the Cloud

Posted by David Menninger on 29 December 2022

Organizations conduct data analysis in many ways. The process can include multiple spreadsheets, applications, desktop tools, disparate data systems, data warehouses and analytics solutions. This creates difficulties for management to provide and maintain updated information across multiple departments. Our Analytics and Data Benchmark Research shows that organizations face a variety of... Read More

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

Workiva Simplifies ESG Reporting

Posted by Robert Kugel on 28 December 2022

Workiva offers an environmental, social and governance application that enables organizations to manage the highly distributed tasks necessary for reporting to regulators and stakeholders on ESG matters. ESG issues have grown increasingly pressing over the past few years as investors and government entities urge organizations to measure and disclose relevant metrics. I’ve already covered the... Read More

Topics: Office of Finance, Business Planning, Financial Performance Management

Make Intelligent Decisions with Decision Intelligence

Posted by David Menninger on 27 December 2022

For far too long, business intelligence technologies have left the rest of the exercise to the reader. Many of these tools do an excellent job providing information in an interactive way that lets organizations dive into the data and learn a lot about what has happened across all aspects of the business. More recently, many of these tools have added augmented intelligence capabilities that help... Read More

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

InterSystems Transforming Organizations with Cloud Smart Data Fabric

Posted by Matt Aslett on 27 December 2022

The shift from on-premises server infrastructure to cloud-based and software-as-a-service (SaaS) models has had a profound impact on the data and analytics architecture of many organizations in recent years. More than one-half of participants (59%) in Ventana Research’s Analytics and Data Benchmark research are deploying data and analytics workloads in the cloud, and a further 30% plan to do so.... Read More

Topics: Business Intelligence, Cloud Computing, Data Management, Data, natural language processing, data operations, analytic data platforms, Analytics and Data, AI and Machine Learning

Master Metrics with Kyligence Zen

Posted by David Menninger on 23 December 2022

Analytics processes are all about how organizations use data to create metrics that help manage and improve operations. Yet, the discipline applied to analytics processes seems to be lacking compared to data processes. I’ve pointed out that the weak link in data governance is often analytics. Organizations can also do a better job tying AnalyticOps to DataOps and do more to define and manage... Read More

Topics: Analytics, Business Intelligence, Data Governance, Data, Digital Technology, Analytics and Data

Exploring the Case for Distributed SQL Databases

Posted by Matt Aslett on 22 December 2022

There is always space for innovation in the data platforms sector, and new vendors continue to emerge at regular intervals with new approaches designed to serve specialist data storage and processing requirements. Factors including performance, reliability, security and scalability provide a focal point for new vendors to differentiate from established vendors, especially for the most demanding... Read More

Topics: Cloud Computing, Data

The Data Pantry Accelerates Actionable Analytics for Decision-Making

Posted by Robert Kugel on 22 December 2022

Ventana Research uses the term “data pantry” to describe a method of data storage (and the technology and process blueprint for its construction) created for a specific set of users and use cases in business-focused software. It’s a pantry because all the data one needs is readily available and easily accessible, with labels that are immediately recognized and understood by the users of the... Read More

Topics: Continuous Planning, Business Intelligence, Data Management, Business Planning, Data, Financial Performance Management, Enterprise Resource Planning, continuous supply chain, data operations, Streaming Data Events, Analytics and Data, AI and Machine Learning