ISG Software Research Analyst Perspectives

2024 Market Agenda for Analytics and Data: Automating Intelligence

Posted by Matt Aslett on 26 January 2024

Ventana Research recently announced its 2024 Market Agenda for Analytics and Data, continuing the guidance we have offered for two decades to help enterprises derive optimal value and improve business outcomes. Enterprises of all sizes in all industries and geographies strive to improve efficiency, productivity and customer experiences through analytics and data. Doing so relies on the ability to... Read More

Topics: embedded analytics, Analytics, Business Intelligence, Data Governance, Data Management, natural language processing, data operations, Process Mining, Streaming Analytics, Streaming Data Events, analytic data platforms, Analytics and Data

Explorium Facilitates the Use of External Data for Analytics and AI

Posted by Matt Aslett on 03 January 2024

The phrase ‘big data’ may have largely gone out of fashion, but the concept of storing and processing all relevant data continues to be important for enterprises seeking to be more data-driven. Doing so requires analytic data platforms capable of storing and processing data in multiple formats and data models. This will be an important focus for the forthcoming Data Platforms Buyer’s Guide 2024.... Read More

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

Oracle Evolves Database Services for Generative AI and Multi-Cloud

Posted by Matt Aslett on 13 December 2023

I previously described how Oracle had positioned its database portfolio to address any and all data platform requirements. The caveat to that statement at the time was that any organization wanting to take advantage of the company’s flagship Oracle Autonomous Database could only do so using Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) cloud computing service, their own datacenter or a hybrid cloud... Read More

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

Vector Search and RAG Improve Trust in Generative AI

Posted by Matt Aslett on 31 October 2023

I previously discussed the trust and accuracy limitations of large language models, suggesting that data and analytics vendors provide guidance about potentially inaccurate results and the risks of creating a misplaced level of trust. In the months that have followed, we are seeing some clarity from these vendors about the approaches organizations can take to increase trust and accuracy when... Read More

Topics: Analytics, Business Intelligence, Data, Digital Technology, natural language processing, data operations, analytic data platforms, Analytics and Data

Stream and Event Processing Require Real-Time Analytics

Posted by David Menninger on 25 October 2023

In my past perspectives, I’ve written about the evolution from data at rest to data in motion and the fact that you can’t rely on dashboards for real-time analytics. Organizations are becoming more and more event-driven and operating based on streaming data. As well, analytics are becoming more and more intertwined with operations. More than one-fifth of organizations (22%) describe their... Read More

Topics: Analytics, Business Intelligence, Data, Digital Technology, Streaming Analytics, Streaming Data Events, Analytics and Data

Databricks Utilizes Unity Catalog to Support Generative AI Development

Posted by Matt Aslett on 17 October 2023

I previously described how Databricks had positioned its Lakehouse Platform as the basis for data engineering, data science and data warehousing. The lakehouse design pattern provides a flexible environment for storing and processing data from multiple enterprise applications and workloads for multiple use cases. I assert that by 2025, 8 in 10 current data lake adopters will invest in data... Read More

Topics: Analytics, Business Intelligence, Data Governance, Data Management, Data, Digital Technology, analytic data platforms, Analytics and Data, AI and Machine Learning

Generative AI Boosts Value Creation with Outcome-Led Data Integration

Posted by Matt Aslett on 27 September 2023

Despite a focus on being data-driven, many organizations find that data and analytics projects fail to deliver on expectations. These initiatives can underwhelm for many reasons, because success requires a delicate balance of people, processes, information and technology. Small deviations from perfection in any of those factors can send projects off the rails. For data projects, placing too much... Read More

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

Altair Accelerates Data Analytics with RapidMiner

Posted by David Menninger on 21 September 2023

Organizations are continuously combining data from diverse and siloed sources for analytical, artificial intelligence and machine learning projects. As the volume of data grows, it becomes challenging for organizations to manage and keep current to extract valuable insights in a timely manner. Businesses also face challenges such as a lack of required skills and a shortage of data science... Read More

Topics: Analytics, Business Intelligence, AI and Machine Learning

Microsoft Fabric Stitches Together Data and Analytics

Posted by Matt Aslett on 20 September 2023

I have written before about the rising popularity of the data fabric approach for managing and governing data spread across distributed environments comprised of multiple data centers, systems and applications. I assert that by 2025, more than 6 in 10 organizations will adopt data fabric technologies to facilitate the management and processing of data across multiple data platforms and cloud... Read More

Topics: Analytics, Business Intelligence, Cloud Computing, Data Governance, Data Management, Data, Digital Technology, analytic data platforms, Analytics and Data, AI and Machine Learning

Reversing the ETL Process Improves Data Operations

Posted by David Menninger on 19 September 2023

At one point, analytics and business intelligence were considered non-mission critical activities. One of the primary concerns in designing analytics systems was to ensure they didn’t interfere with or draw computing resources away from operational systems. But today, analytical systems are integral to many aspects of operations. More than 9 in 10 participants in our Analytics and Data Benchmark... Read More

Topics: Analytics, Business Intelligence, Data Management, Data, Digital Technology, data operations, Analytics and Data

Combining Scenario Evaluation with BI Delivers Better Decisions

Posted by David Menninger on 29 August 2023

If I had a magic wand, I would want to add scenario evaluation to all business intelligence tools on the market. I have previously written about the need to make intelligent decisions with decision intelligence. The data and analytics markets have evolved so that organizations have far greater capabilities to utilize data in decision-making processes. While there is some convergence around the... Read More

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

GoodData’s Embedded Analytics Democratizes Data-Driven Decisions

Posted by David Menninger on 17 August 2023

The current market landscape of data and analytics is undergoing rapid evolution, presenting organizations with a wide array of challenges and opportunities. As data sources and warehouses steadily migrate to the cloud, a significant number of organizations still depend on conventional tools. This reliance on legacy systems hinders the seamless accessibility and adoption of analytics and business... Read More

Topics: embedded analytics, Analytics, Business Intelligence, Streaming Analytics, AI and Machine Learning

IBM’s Watsonx Provides a Foundation for Generative AI

Posted by Matt Aslett on 09 August 2023

It is a mark of the rapid, current pace of development in artificial intelligence (AI) that machine learning (ML) models, until recently considered state of the art, are now routinely being referred to by developers and vendors as “traditional.” Generative AI, and large language models (LLMs) in particular, have taken the AI world by storm in the past year, automating and accelerating the... Read More

Topics: Analytics, Business Intelligence, Cloud Computing, Data Governance, Data, Digital Technology, natural language processing, analytic data platforms, Analytics and Data, AI and Machine Learning

Data is the Strategic Raw Material of Finance Departments

Posted by Robert Kugel on 07 June 2023

The Office of Finance can be compared to a numbers factory where the main raw material, data, is transformed into financial statements, management accounting, analyses, forecasts, budgets, regulatory filings, tax returns and all kinds of reports. Data is the strategic raw material of the finance and accounting department. It is the key ingredient in every sale and purchase as well as every... Read More

Topics: Office of Finance, embedded analytics, Analytics, Business Intelligence, Data Management, Business Planning, ERP and Continuous Accounting, data operations, analytic data platforms, AI and Machine Learning

MicroStrategy World Showcases the Power of ONE Platform

Posted by David Menninger on 23 May 2023

MicroStrategy is a long-standing business intelligence and analytics vendor that operates worldwide. Founded in 1989, this publicly traded company with hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue recently held its first in-person conference since prior to the pandemic. Similar to previous in-person events, the event was well attended by about 2,000 attendees and exhibitors. The theme,... Read More

Topics: embedded analytics, Analytics, Business Intelligence, Digital Technology, natural language processing, Analytics and Data

Snowflake Expands Beyond Analytics in the Cloud

Posted by Matt Aslett on 11 May 2023

The data platforms market has traditionally been divided between products specifically designed to support operational or analytic workloads, with other market segments having emerged in recent years for data platforms targeted specifically at data science and machine learning (ML), as well as real-time analytics. More recently, we have seen vendor strategies evolving to provide a more... Read More

Topics: Analytics, Business Intelligence, Cloud Computing, Data, Digital Technology, analytic data platforms, Analytics and Data, AI and Machine Learning

MongoDB’s Atlas Delivers Data-Driven Applications

Posted by Matt Aslett on 19 April 2023

The recent publication of our Value Index research highlights the impact of intelligent applications on the operational data platforms sector. While we continue to believe that, for most use cases, there is a clear, functional requirement for either analytic or operational data platforms, recent growth in the development of intelligent applications infused with the results of analytic processes,... Read More

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

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

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

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