Buyers Guide

Contact Centers Buyers Guide 2023

Posted by Keith Dawson on 23 August 2024

Executive Summary Contact Centers In this modern, digital age of customer experience, the journey of engagement across every channel and device must be orchestrated effectively. Organizations, no matter the industry, have inbound and outbound interactions and rely on contact centers to fulfill operational and revenue objectives. The utilization of cloud computing has enabled a new generation of... Read More

Topics: Customer Experience, Business-focused Software and Services

Payroll Management Buyers Guide 2023

Posted by Matthew Brown on 23 August 2024

Payroll Management The payroll preparation process has long been an inefficient, labor-intensive set of administrative tasks designed to ensure that everyone is paid correctly and on time. Historically, this has been a transactional- and compliance-centered function that involves manual adjustments, reconciliations and answering routine questions. Advances in digital technologies and delivery... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, Business-focused Software and Services

Domestic Payroll Buyers Guide 2023

Posted by Matthew Brown on 23 August 2024

Executive Summary Domestic Payroll The payroll preparation process has long been an inefficient, labor-intensive set of administrative tasks designed to ensure that everyone is paid correctly and on time. Historically, it has been a transactional- and compliance-centered function involving manual adjustments, reconciliations and the answering of repeated routine questions. Now, advances in... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, Business-focused Software and Services

Contact Center Suites Buyers Guide 2023

Posted by Keith Dawson on 23 August 2024

Executive Summary Contact Center and Agent Management In this modern, digital age of customer experience, the journey of engagement across every channel and device must be orchestrated effectively. Organizations, no matter the industry, have inbound and outbound interactions and rely on contact centers to fulfill operational and revenue objectives. The utilization of cloud computing has enabled a... Read More

Topics: Customer Experience, Business-focused Software and Services

Embedded Analytics Buyers Guide 2023

Posted by David Menninger on 23 August 2024

Executive Summary Embedded Analytics The processes and technology of the analytics and data software industry play an instrumental role in enabling an organization’s business units and IT to optimally utilize data in both tactical and strategic ways. To accomplish this, organizations must provide their workers technology that can access the data, generate and apply insights from analytics,... Read More

Topics: IT and Technology-focused Software and Services, Analytics and Data

Data Orchestration Buyers Guide 2023

Posted by Matt Aslett on 23 August 2024

Executive Summary Data Orchestration Data orchestration is a concept that has been growing in popularity in the past five years amid the rise of DataOps, which describes more agile approaches to data integration and data management. Data orchestration provides the capabilities to automate and accelerate the flow of data from multiple sources to support operational and analytics initiatives and... Read More

Topics: IT and Technology-focused Software and Services, Analytics and Data

Data Pipelines Buyers Guide 2023

Posted by Matt Aslett on 23 August 2024

Executive Summary Data Pipelines The development, testing and deployment of data pipelines is essential to generating intelligence from data. Just as a physical pipeline is used to transport water between turbines, generators and transformers in the generation of hydroelectric power, so data pipelines are used to transport data between the stages involved in data processing and analytics to... Read More

Topics: IT and Technology-focused Software and Services, Analytics and Data

Collaborative Analytics Buyers Guide 2023

Posted by David Menninger on 23 August 2024

Executive Summary Collaborative Analytics Analytics almost universally involves collaboration among a team of individuals. Interpreting the results of the analyses, choosing a course of action and tracking the implementation of those actions spans multiple roles and departments within an organization. As a result, most of today’s analytics and business intelligence (BI) products support some form... Read More

Topics: IT and Technology-focused Software and Services, Analytics and Data

Mobile Analytics Buyers Guide 2023

Posted by Matt Aslett on 23 August 2024

Executive Summary Mobile Analytics The processes and technology of the mobile analytics software industry play an instrumental role in enabling an organization’s business units and IT to optimally utilize data in both tactical and strategic ways. To accomplish this, organizations must provide technology that can access the data, generate and apply insights from analytics, communicate the results... Read More

Topics: IT and Technology-focused Software and Services, Analytics and Data

DataOps Buyers Guide 2023

Posted by Matt Aslett on 23 August 2024

Executive Summary Data for the Enterprise Data Operations (DataOps) is a methodology focused on the delivery of agile business intelligence (BI) and data science through the automation and orchestration of data integration and processing pipelines, incorporating improved data reliability and integrity via data monitoring and observability. DataOps has been part of the lexicon of the data market... Read More

Topics: Analytics and Data

Data Observability Buyers Guide 2023

Posted by Matt Aslett on 23 August 2024

Data Observability The need to monitor the pipelines and processes in data-processing and analytics environments has driven the emergence of a new category of software: data observability. Data observability software provides an environment for monitoring the quality and reliability of data used for analytics and governance projects. Inspired by the observability platforms that provide an... Read More

Topics: IT and Technology-focused Software and Services, Analytics and Data

Business Planning Buyers Guide 2023 Executive Summary

Posted by Robert Kugel on 23 August 2024

Executive Summary Business Planning The purpose of business planning is not simply to create a plan — it is to make better decisions. Planning and budgeting software should make the process faster, more agile, less burdensome and more intelligent so that managers can make better decisions more consistently. Since the early 2000s, Ventana Research has advocated using a dedicated application to... Read More

Topics: Office of Finance, Business-focused Software and Services

Mobile Analytics Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by David Menninger on 22 August 2024

Executive Summary Mobile Analytics The processes and technology of the mobile analytics software industry play an instrumental role in enabling an organization’s business units and IT to optimally utilize data in both tactical and strategic ways. To accomplish this, organizations must provide technology that can access the data, generate and apply insights from analytics, communicate the results... Read More

Topics: IT and Technology-focused Software and Services, Analytics and Data

Product Experience Management 2023 Buyers Guide

Posted by Mark Smith on 22 August 2024

Product Experience Management Products and services are the foundation of every organization, regardless of its industry or size. In a black-swan event, demand for a product may spike or dip, so in these situations it is of the essence that products get the attention they deserve as they are marketed, sold, serviced and enhanced with innovations. In challenging times, a “customer-first” mentality... Read More

Topics: Marketing, Business-focused Software and Services

Augmented Analytics Executive Summary

Posted by David Menninger on 22 August 2024

Executive Summary Augmented Analytics For decades, organizations have been improving and expanding the way they use analytics and data software, commonly referred to as business intelligence (BI), to improve their operations. Vendors have made dramatic improvements to BI products with highly interactive visualizations and the ability to process and display very large volumes of data quickly.... Read More

Topics: IT and Technology-focused Software and Services, Analytics and Data

Analytics and Data Executive Summary

Posted by David Menninger on 22 August 2024

Executive Summary Analytics and Data The processes and technology of the analytics and data software industry continue to play an instrumental role in enabling an organization’s business units and IT to optimally utilize data in both tactical and strategic ways. To accomplish this, organizations must provide technology that can access the data, generate and apply insights from analytics,... Read More

Topics: IT and Technology-focused Software and Services, Analytics and Data

Data Platforms Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by Matt Aslett on 21 August 2024

Executive Summary Data Platforms Data platforms provide an environment for organizing and managing the storage, processing, analysis, and presentation of data across an enterprise. Data platforms play a critical role in operational efficiency, supporting and enabling operational applications that are used to run the business, as well as analytic applications that are used to evaluate the... Read More

Topics: Data Platforms, IT and Technology-focused Software and Services, Analytics and Data

Revenue Performance Management Buyers Guide 2023

Posted by ISG Software Research on 13 August 2024

Executive Summary Revenue Performance Management In many organizations, the sales department is being superseded by revenue teams. These revenue teams support a super-set of traditional sales functions that include not only those involved in gaining new customers, but also those with an increased focus on customer retention, expansion and cross-sell aimed at existing customers. As organizations... Read More

Topics: Revenue Performance Management, Office of Revenue, Business-focused Software and Services

Total Compensation Management 2023 Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by ISG Software Research on 13 August 2024

Executive Summary Total Compensation Management Compensation management is a key talent management process involving all workers and managers within an organization. Determining and providing the appropriate compensation for each person — whether it involves base pay, merit pay or variable pay and incentives such as bonuses — is critical to attracting and retaining productive members of the... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, Total Compensation Management, Business-focused Software and Services

Agent Management Buyers Guide 2023

Posted by Keith Dawson on 09 August 2024

Executive Summary Agent Management Agents are the foundation of the contact center processes that impact every customer experience. These processes, and the customer service function, must be able to operate from any location, at any time, and agents must be able to respond to customers via any communication channel for any request. Optimized contact center processes feature agents who are... Read More

Topics: Customer Experience, Contact Center, Business-focused Software and Services

Analytic Data Platforms Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by Matt Aslett on 09 August 2024

Executive Summary Analytic Data Platforms Analytic data platforms provide an environment for organizing and managing the storage, processing, analysis, and presentation of data, enabling enterprises to operate with greater efficiency. As enterprises strive to be more data-driven, thus increasing their reliance on data as a fundamental factor in business decision-making, the importance of the... Read More

Topics: Data Platforms, IT and Technology-focused Software and Services, Analytics and Data

Operational Data Platforms Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by Matt Aslett on 09 August 2024

Executive Summary Operational Data Platforms Operational data platforms provide an environment for organizing and managing the storage and processing of data generated by applications targeted at business users and decision-makers to run the business, including finance, operations and supply chain, sales, human capital management, customer experience and marketing. In contrast, analytic data... Read More

Topics: Data Platforms, IT and Technology-focused Software and Services, Analytics and Data

Digital Communications Platform Executive Summary 2024

Posted by Mark Smith on 09 August 2024

Executive Summary Digital Communications Platform The necessity of enterprise communications internally and to external constituents like customers, partners and suppliers needs to be digital yet efficient and enabled across any channel and device. Dramatic technological changes have made it simpler and more cost-effective to enable these interactions in every business process across the... Read More

Topics: Digital Business, Digital Communications, IT and Technology-focused Software and Services

Digital Communications Overall Buyers Guide Executive Summary 2024

Posted by Mark Smith on 09 August 2024

Executive Summary Digital Communications Overall The necessity of enterprise communications internally and to external constituents like customers, partners and suppliers needs to be digital yet efficient and enabled across any channel and device. Dramatic technological changes have made it simpler and more cost-effective to enable these interactions in every business process across the... Read More

Topics: Digital Business, Digital Communications, IT and Technology-focused Software and Services

Digital Communications Basic Suite Buyers Guide Executive Summary 2024

Posted by Mark Smith on 09 August 2024

Executive Summary Digital Communications Basic Suite The necessity of enterprise communications internally and to external constituents like customers, partners and suppliers needs to be digital yet efficient and enabled across any channel and device. Dramatic technological changes have made it simpler and more cost-effective to enable these interactions in every business process across the... Read More

Topics: Digital Business, Digital Communications, IT and Technology-focused Software and Services

Digital Communications Premium Suite Buyers Guide Executive Summary 2024

Posted by Mark Smith on 09 August 2024

Executive Summary Digital Communications Premium Suite The necessity of enterprise communications internally and to external constituents like customers, partners and suppliers needs to be digital yet efficient and enabled across any channel and device. Dramatic technological changes have made it simpler and more cost-effective to enable these interactions in every business process across the... Read More

Topics: Digital Business, Digital Communications, IT and Technology-focused Software and Services

Learning Content Solutions Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by Matthew Brown on 09 August 2024

Executive Summary Learning Content Solutions Over the last several years, the learning technology industry has experienced a remarkable evolution, gaining speed because of employer expectations, worker demands and an elevated focus being placed on ongoing development. As organizations recognize the critical role of continuous learning in driving productivity and employee engagement, the market... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, Business-focused Software and Services, Learning Management Systems

Extended Enterprise Learning Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by Matthew Brown on 09 August 2024

Executive Summary Extended Enterprise Learning Over the last several years, the learning technology industry has experienced a remarkable evolution, gaining speed because of employer expectations, worker demands and an elevated focus being placed on ongoing development. As organizations recognize the critical role of continuous learning in driving productivity and employee engagement, the market... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, Business-focused Software and Services, Learning Management Systems

Subscription Management Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by Stephen Hurrell on 09 August 2024

Executive Summary Subscription Management The era of subscriptions has transformed the way businesses operate and consumers engage with services across every industry. Enterprises are increasingly adopting both a digital approach to selling as well as offering digital products and services that complement physical products. Customers now have the option to purchase through periodic subscription... Read More

Topics: Subscription Management, Office of Revenue, Business-focused Software and Services

B2B Subscription Management Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by Stephen Hurrell on 09 August 2024

Executive Summary B2B Subscription Management The era of subscriptions has transformed the way businesses operate and consumers engage with services across every industry. Enterprises are increasingly adopting both a digital approach to selling as well as offering digital products and services that complement physical products. Customers now have the option to purchase through periodic... Read More

Topics: Subscription Management, Office of Revenue, Business-focused Software and Services

B2C Subscription Management Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by Stephen Hurrell on 09 August 2024

Executive Summary B2C Subscription Management The era of subscriptions has transformed the way businesses operate and consumers engage with services across every industry. Enterprises are increasingly adopting both a digital approach to selling as well as offering digital products and services that complement physical products. Customers now have the option to purchase through periodic... Read More

Topics: Subscription Management, Office of Revenue, Business-focused Software and Services

Subscription Management Platforms Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by Stephen Hurrell on 09 August 2024

Executive Summary Subscription Management Platforms The era of subscriptions has transformed the way businesses operate and consumers engage with services across every industry. Enterprises are increasingly adopting both a digital approach to selling as well as offering digital products and services that complement physical products. Customers now have the option to purchase through periodic... Read More

Topics: Subscription Management, Office of Revenue, Business-focused Software and Services

Workforce Management Suites Buyers Guide Executive Summary 2024

Posted by Matthew Brown on 09 August 2024

Executive Summary Workforce Management Suites A major focus of investment and optimization efforts for decades, workforce management processes and activities have undergone a huge transformation in recent years. In our view, this is mostly a function of two significant trends: the continuing maturation of technology innovation associated with maximizing artificial intelligence, machine learning... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, Workforce Management, Business-focused Software and Services

Workforce Management Basics Buyers Guide Executive Summary 2024

Posted by Matthew Brown on 09 August 2024

Executive Summary Workforce Management Basics A major focus of investment and optimization efforts for decades, workforce management processes and activities have undergone a huge transformation in recent years. In our view, this is mostly a function of two significant trends: the continuing maturation of technology innovation associated with maximizing artificial intelligence, machine learning... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, Workforce Management, Business-focused Software and Services

Learning Management Systems Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by Matthew Brown on 08 August 2024

Executive Summary Learning Management Systems Over the last several years, the learning technology industry has experienced a remarkable evolution, gaining speed because of employer expectations, worker demands and an elevated focus being placed on ongoing development. As organizations recognize the critical role of continuous learning in driving productivity and employee engagement, the market... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, Business-focused Software and Services, Learning Management Systems

Financial Consolidation Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by Robert Kugel on 08 August 2024

Executive Summary Financial Consolidation The financial records of an enterprise must be periodically reviewed and summarized to create financial statements that inform executives and interested third parties of the organization’s financial condition and performance. A consolidation of the financial records and other departmental close processes involves an intricate set of repeated processes... Read More

Topics: Office of Finance, Business-focused Software and Services, Financial Consolidation and Close Management

Financial Consolidation and Close Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by Robert Kugel on 08 August 2024

Executive Summary Financial Consolidation and Close The financial records of an enterprise must be periodically reviewed and summarized to create financial statements that inform executives and interested third parties of the organization’s financial condition and performance. A consolidation of the financial records and other departmental close processes involves an intricate set of repeated... Read More

Topics: Office of Finance, Business-focused Software and Services, Financial Consolidation and Close Management

Cloud Computing Platforms Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by Jeff Orr on 08 August 2024

Executive Summary Cloud Computing Platforms Cloud computing has emerged as a fundamental technology driving the digital transformation of enterprises, irrespective of their size or maturity level. It provides a robust and scalable infrastructure that supports the dynamic needs of modern businesses, enabling them to stay competitive in a digital world. Three ways that cloud computing is essential... Read More

Topics: Digital Technology, IT and Technology-focused Software and Services, Cloud Platforms

Hybrid Cloud Platforms Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by Jeff Orr on 08 August 2024

Executive Summary Hybrid Cloud Platforms Cloud computing has emerged as a fundamental technology driving the digital transformation of enterprises, irrespective of their size or maturity level. It provides a robust and scalable infrastructure that supports the dynamic needs of modern businesses, enabling them to stay competitive in a digital world. Three ways that cloud computing is essential to... Read More

Topics: Digital Technology, IT and Technology-focused Software and Services, Cloud Platforms

Private Cloud Platforms Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by Jeff Orr on 08 August 2024

Executive Summary Private Cloud Platforms Cloud computing has emerged as a fundamental technology driving the digital transformation of enterprises, irrespective of their size or maturity level. It provides a robust and scalable infrastructure that supports the dynamic needs of modern businesses, enabling them to stay competitive in a digital world. Three ways that cloud computing is essential to... Read More

Topics: Digital Technology, IT and Technology-focused Software and Services, Cloud Platforms

Knowledge Management Buyers Guide

Posted by Keith Dawson on 08 August 2024

Executive Summary Knowledge Management All enterprises maintain storehouses of knowledge about themselves and their activities. Knowledge management is the practice of using technology to organize that information for practical purposes: to create it, store it, keep it current and make it accessible to employees when needed. Knowledge is fundamentally different from data; it is made up of data,... Read More

Topics: Customer Experience, Customer Experience Management, Business-focused Software and Services

Customer Experience Management Buyers Guide Executive Summary 2024

Posted by Keith Dawson on 08 August 2024

Executive Summary Introduction For many organizations, managing the customer experience (CX) has not been a centralized operation nor the responsibility of one leader who governs and optimizes the CX across every channel of interaction. But organizations are now making use of more integrated software and platforms that tie together customer relationship management (CRM) and contact center... Read More

Topics: Customer Experience, Customer Experience Management, Business-focused Software and Services

Customer Journey Management Buyers Guide Executive Summary 2024

Posted by Keith Dawson on 08 August 2024

Executive Summary Customer Journey Management Customer Journey Management (CJM) software is a component of broader experience management platforms that allows organizations to design the pathways that customers take as they interact with businesses. The underlying metaphor behind managing customer experiences is that of the journey: customers follow a path through distinct stages, with different... Read More

Topics: Customer Experience, Customer Experience Management, Business-focused Software and Services

Learning Experience Platforms Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by Matthew Brown on 01 August 2024

Executive Summary Learning Experience Platforms Over the last several years, the learning technology industry has experienced a remarkable evolution, gaining speed because of employer expectations, worker demands and an elevated focus being placed on ongoing development. As organizations recognize the critical role of continuous learning in driving productivity and employee engagement, the market... Read More

Topics: Human Capital Management, Business-focused Software and Services, Learning Management Systems

Public Cloud Platforms Buyers Guide Executive Summary

Posted by Jeff Orr on 01 August 2024

Executive Summary Public Cloud Platforms Cloud computing has emerged as a fundamental technology driving the digital transformation of enterprises, irrespective of their size or maturity level. It provides a robust and scalable infrastructure that supports the dynamic needs of modern businesses, enabling them to stay competitive in a digital world. Three ways that cloud computing is essential to... Read More

Topics: Digital Technology, IT and Technology-focused Software and Services, Cloud Platforms