James McQuivey, PhD,

James McQuivey, PhD

VP, Research Director

James tracks and predicts behavior change, whether among consumers or employees. In his tenure at Forrester, he successfully forecast the rise of online shopping in 1998 and more recently predicted the arrival of Amazon’s Echo platform before it existed. His models succeed because he focuses on an understanding of core human needs and motivations, using that foundation to predict why, when, and how people will try new things. In February 2013, James published his book Digital Disruption: Unleashing the Next Wave of Innovation. Currently, he is the research director for Forrester's Future of Work team, guiding a team of analysts to not only identify changes in the world of work but also prepare clients in every industry to approach these changes as opportunities instead of threats.
Previously at Forrester, James ran Consumer Technographics® North America, Forrester's unparalleled consumer research effort. In addition to keynoting at industry events and Forrester forums, James is routinely sought after for comment by such publications as The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal.

Research Coverage

Planned Research

What research can you expect from Forrester in the next 12 months? Updated biweekly, our publishing plan will keep you current with market and technology trends. Use the link below to download a list of our upcoming research.

Download Planned Research
January 28th, 2026 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM Webinar

The Future Of Jobs And AI

There’s a common impression — among leaders, in the media, and among employees – that AI is already causing widespread unemployment. But the evidence doesn’t support this contention today, and we believe that AI will have a real but modest impact on jobs through 2030. Attend our webinar to get the deeper story — and to avoid making costly mistakes by trying to shed too many jobs in the hope that AI will replace them.Key takeaways: Learn evidence-based rules for understanding AI and jobs. Learn how many jobs will be lost to AI.Understand which job categories will see the most pressure.Target audience level: all levels
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January 29th, 2026 4:00 PM - 4:40 PM Webinar

Deep Listening Will Power The Future Of Work

GenAI presents powerful new opportunities for understanding employee experience (EX) inside of your organization. Deriving EX insights from the “digital exhaust” of employees’ daily work is now within reach. Forrester’s model combines existing tools with cutting-edge neurolinguistic processing capabilities and genAI using a privacy-by-design approach that protects employees’ identities while unlocking deeper insights into their sentiments, emotions, and experiences.Join David Brodeur-Johnson and James McQuivey, PhD for a conversation about what deep listening is, what it can do, and how to make it a reality for your organization. The results will transform leadership and change management practices through better visibility and understanding.Key takeaways: Learn what deep listening is and how it works. Explore the kinds of insights that deep listening can offer.Learn about the deep listening technology stack.Target audience level: intermediate and advanced
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