For B2B Market Research Professionals

The Online Panel Quality Wars: All Market Researchers Benefit — Especially B2B Tech

by Brad Bortner, November 20, 2009

At the same time that online quantitative research has taken off, dubiousness abounds about the representation of the online panel sample. Buyers ask: Are panels representative of the markets researchers use them for? What can we do about the moral hazard . . .

For Security & Risk Professionals

Know Your Code: How Static Analysis Tools Make Applications More Secure

by Chenxi Wang, Ph.D., Andrew Jaquith, November 20, 2009

Many companies, besieged by audit findings and application vulnerabilities, recognize the benefits of eliminating security vulnerabilities early in the software life cycle. For this reason, static analysis technologies for analyzing code-level security . . .

For B2B Market Research Professionals

What Type Of Market Research Online Community Vendor Should Tech B2B Market Researchers Use?

Three Choices Exist, Dependent On Budget, Usage Pattern, And Support Needs

by Brad Bortner, November 19, 2009

Market research online communities (MROCS) are the next wave in qualitative research, due to their combination of new qualitative research capabilities and ability to provide cheaper faster results. There is, however, buyer confusion about what type of . . .

For Business Process & Applications Professionals

The Forrester Wave™: Business Performance Solutions, Q4 2009

IBM Cognos, Oracle, SAP, And SAS Lead, With Clarity Systems In Close Pursuit

by Paul D. Hamerman, November 19, 2009

In Forrester's 89-criteria evaluation of business performance solutions (BPS) vendors, we found that IBM Cognos, Oracle, SAP, and SAS Institute led the pack because of their breadth of functionality and strength of their business intelligence (BI) foundations. . . .

For CIOs

Inquiry Spotlight: Retail Point-Of-Sale Systems, Q3 2009

by George Lawrie, November 19, 2009

Retail line-of-business executives know that technology plays a central role in helping to deliver improved customer service with increased margin. They look to CIOs to push what were once purely tactical point-of-sale (POS) systems to become solutions . . .

For Infrastructure & Operations Professionals

TechRadar™ For Infrastructure And Operations Professionals: Infrastructure Virtualization, Q4 2009

I/O Virtualization Enters Its Growth Phase

by Galen Schreck, November 16, 2009

Every major category of IT infrastructure has been endowed with some virtualization capability. Although virtualization can make your IT environment more cost-effective and agile, the underlying technologies have matured at different rates. Furthermore, . . .

For Infrastructure & Operations Professionals

The Low-Hanging Fruit That Service Operations Teams Should Consider Now

by Evelyn Hubbert, November 13, 2009

Some IT organizations are confident that they can weather the storm of our current economic situation. Others believe they can maintain their current staffing level, and some are saying that they can maintain their current IT technology investment levels. . . .

For Infrastructure & Operations Professionals

Q&A: New Workload Adoption On System z Mainframe

Why Linux, Why Mainframe, What "Best Fit" Workloads?

by Brad Day, November 13, 2009

Over the past six quarters, IBM has been very busy turning out a raft of customer case studies on new workload adoption on its System z mainframe, letting customers tell their feature/function/benefit impetus for deciding on the System z mainframe as . . .

For Infrastructure & Operations Professionals

Q&A: The New Math For New Mainframe Workloads

Can IBM's Solution Edition Series Get You To A Beer Budget?

by Brad Day, November 12, 2009

Justifying the transitioning of a wide variety of application types to a mainframe environment requires substantial upfront investigation. Migrating to a mainframe has become increasingly cost-effective thanks to the refresh to IBM's new quad-core System . . .

For Business Process & Applications Professionals

In-Database Analytics: The Heart Of The Predictive Enterprise

by James G. Kobielus, November 12, 2009

Visionary organizations are adopting an emerging practice known as "in-database analytics," which supports more pervasive embedding of predictive models in business processes and mission-critical applications. With in-database analytics, enterprises migrate . . .

For Application Development & Program Management Professionals

SAP Will Retrench With NetWeaver

SAP Will Focus On New Analytics Opportunities, Not Stack Wars

by John R. Rymer, November 12, 2009

Pop quiz: What is SAP's direction with NetWeaver? We couldn't answer that question either, so we traveled to SAP's TechEd conference in October to find out. NetWeaver is an also-ran in enterprise middleware but is vital to the many organizations that . . .

For Information & Knowledge Management Professionals

The Forrester Wave™: Enterprise Content Management Suites, Q4 2009

Traditional Players Continue To Lead, While Microsoft Makes Inroads

by Stephen Powers, Brian W. Hill, Craig Le Clair, November 12, 2009

In Forrester's 70-criteria evaluation of eight enterprise content management (ECM) suite vendors, we found that IBM, Oracle, EMC, and Open Text lead due to breadth and depth of functionality and a continued focus on end-to-end ECM needs. Strong Performer . . .

For Customer Experience Professionals

Four Mistakes To Avoid When Hiring An Interactive Agency For Design Projects

by Vidya L. Drego, November 11, 2009

Finding the right agency is difficult for clients and agencies alike. With so many agencies to choose from and so many skill sets to evaluate, narrowing a list of similar players down to one can be an overwhelming task — one fraught with potential missteps . . .

For Infrastructure & Operations Professionals

The Forrester Wave™: WAN Optimization, Q4 2009

Blue Coat And Riverbed Lead, With Expand And Cisco Close Behind

by Chris Silva, November 10, 2009

In Forrester's 65-criteria evaluation of wide-area network (WAN) optimization vendors, we found that Blue Coat Systems and Riverbed Technology lead the pack, in part due to the changes these vendors made over the past year through acquisition of complementary . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Looking Beyond Global Providers For SAP Services

Smaller Providers, Regional, And Industry Specialists Offer Strong Options

by Liz Herbert, November 10, 2009

Firms seeking SAP services expertise often ask if smaller, regional providers and industry specialists can fill their needs. Beyond the global multinational consultancies (MNCs) and leading offshore providers featured in The Forrester Wave™: SAP . . .

For Infrastructure & Operations Professionals

Unified Communications Vendor Selection Criteria

Many Categories Of Products Make Vendor Selection Challenging

by Elizabeth Herrell, November 6, 2009

Unlike most commercial software applications that have a preset number of features, unified communications (UC) provides a software framework for linking multiple discrete applications on a common platform. UC integrates enterprise mobility, conferencing, . . .

For Consumer Product Strategy Professionals

The Forrester Wave™: US Online Video Platforms, Q4 2009

Brightcove And Ooyala Lead A Maturing Market

by Bobby Tulsiani, November 6, 2009

In Forrester's 37-criteria evaluation of online video platform vendors, Brightcove and Ooyala lead the pack with their end-to-end product offerings that target organizations of all sizes. VMIX and Kaltura follow closely behind with comprehensive offerings . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Refresher Course: Hiring VARs

Most Enterprises Have Experience With Value-Added Resellers, But Updating The Selection Process Can Bring More Value For Clients

by Duncan Jones, Caroline Roeleveld-Hoekendijk, November 5, 2009

Most enterprises use value-added resellers (VARs), but in our research we found that clients are dissatisfied with their resellers' value for money. Sourcing managers should work out what they are spending with resellers across all product and business . . .

For Security & Risk Professionals

Market Overview: Network Access Control (NAC)

Evolving NAC Market Focuses On Features That Provide Operational Efficiency

by Usman Sindhu, November 3, 2009

Network access control (NAC) is high on the security professionals' wish list, but few are able to justify the business case for it. Complex deployments, too many architectural options, and a quickly changing vendor landscape have pushed most NAC deployments . . .

For Security & Risk Professionals

The Forrester Wave™: Identity And Access Management, Q4 2009

Oracle, CA, And IBM Lead, With Novell And Sun Microsystems Close Behind

by Andras Cser, November 3, 2009

In Forrester's 79-criteria evaluation of identity and access management (IAM) vendors, we found that Oracle, CA, and IBM lead the pack because of a rich IAM portfolio (both organically developed and acquired), an understanding of a rapidly changing market, . . .

For Infrastructure & Operations Professionals

Q&A: IT Asset Disposition

What Infrastructure And Operations Professionals Should Know When Disposing End-Of-Life IT Assets

by Doug Washburn, Onica King, October 30, 2009

While all organizations dispose of IT equipment in some way, IT asset disposition (ITAD) has long been an afterthought. But recent changes — from increasing data security and environmental regulations to firms seeking opportunities to reduce costs and . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

The Forrester Wave™: Oracle Services Providers, Q4 2009

IBM And Accenture Lead; Infosys, Oracle, and Deloitte Are Strongest In Key Areas

by Liz Herbert, October 30, 2009

In Forrester's 60-criteria evaluation of Oracle services providers, we found that IBM and Accenture led the pack because of the overall breadth and depth of their Oracle services resources across applications and industries, and the breadth of services . . .

For Enterprise Architecture Professionals

The Forrester Wave™: B2B Service Providers, Q4 2009

GXS, Inovis, And Sterling Commerce Lead, With Seeburger, Axway, And Crossgate Close Behind

by Ken Vollmer, October 29, 2009

In Forrester's 85-criteria evaluation of B2B service provider vendors, we found that GXS, Inovis, and Sterling Commerce led the pack due to the comprehensive nature of their business to business (B2B) hosted document exchange and managed services offerings . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

The Forrester Wave™: Managed Global MPLS Services, Q4 2009

AT&T Leads On Strategy And Market Presence; Orange Has The Best Service Offer

by Brownlee Thomas, Ph.D., October 27, 2009

In Forrester's 54-criteria evaluation of nine managed global MPLS service providers, the Leaders included AT&T, BT Global Services, Orange Business Services, and Verizon Business. AT&T had the highest scores in both strategy and market presence, . . .

For Technology Product Management & Marketing Professionals

How B2B Technology Buyers Use Social Media

Support Forums Rank Highest Among Emerging Tactics

by Laura Ramos, October 26, 2009

Technology buying is a highly considered, collaborative process, one ideally suited for social interactions. To see how emerging digital media affect the process, Forrester surveyed 1,217 technology decision-makers to find out which online sources will . . .