Research Note: Forrester

Apr 17

Executive Summary

Forrester Research, Inc. stands as one of the most influential research and advisory firms in the world, delivering critical insights and guidance to help business and technology leaders leverage customer obsession to accelerate growth and drive competitive advantage. Founded in 1983 by George F. Colony, Forrester has evolved from a technology-focused research firm to a comprehensive advisory powerhouse serving clients across virtually every business function and industry vertical. With its headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and a global network of offices, Forrester provides objective analysis, strategic guidance, and practical tools that help organizations navigate complex market dynamics and technology landscapes. The company's research methodology combines rigorous data collection, including annual surveys of more than 675,000 consumers and business leaders worldwide, with expert analysis to deliver forward-looking insights on technology trends, customer behaviors, and market opportunities. As a publicly traded company on NASDAQ (FORR), Forrester's influence extends across technology, customer experience, digital transformation, marketing, sales, and product functions, making it an essential partner for organizations seeking to thrive in rapidly evolving digital markets.

Forrester's core value proposition centers on its ability to combine deep technological understanding with business strategy expertise, enabling clients to make customer-obsessed decisions that drive meaningful growth. The company's research portfolio is organized around its Forrester Decisions services, which provide executives, functional leaders, and their teams with the frameworks, tools, and guidance needed to address their most pressing strategic initiatives. Forrester's distinctive research methodologies, including The Forrester Wave™ evaluations and Forrester's Technology Landscapes, have become industry standards for vendor selection and technology assessment, influencing billions of dollars in enterprise technology investments annually. In 2023, the company introduced Izola, a generative AI tool for research insights, demonstrating its commitment to innovation in how clients consume research. As digital transformation continues to reshape industries and business models, Forrester's role as a trusted advisor has only expanded, making it an indispensable partner for leaders navigating complex customer, technology, and market challenges in an increasingly digital world.

Corporate Overview

Forrester Research, Inc. (NASDAQ: FORR) operates as a premier global research and advisory firm headquartered at 60 Acorn Park Drive, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA, with additional offices strategically positioned across North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific to serve its international client base. Founded in 1983 by George F. Colony, who continues to serve as the company's Chairman and CEO, Forrester has grown from its origins as a technology research firm to a comprehensive advisory business serving leaders across virtually every organizational function. The company has established itself as a trusted advisor to business and technology executives worldwide, providing insights, advice, and tools to accelerate growth through customer obsession. Forrester's workforce consists of experienced analysts, consultants, and business professionals who bring deep domain expertise across various industries and functional areas, enabling the company to deliver specialized insights tailored to specific client contexts. The organization's corporate structure is designed to maintain the independence and objectivity of its research, with strict policies preventing conflicts of interest that might compromise the integrity of its analysis and recommendations.

Forrester's business model is primarily subscription-based, with clients purchasing access to research services, advisory support, and specialized tools that provide ongoing value throughout the year. The company's flagship offering, Forrester Decisions, represents its portfolio of research services designed to help executives, functional leaders, and their teams plan and pursue their most pressing initiatives across technology, customer experience, marketing, sales, and product functions. This service model is complemented by Forrester Consulting, which provides project-based engagements that apply research insights to specific client challenges, and Forrester Events, which bring together executives and industry leaders to discuss emerging trends and best practices. The company serves a diverse client base that spans industries including financial services, retail, healthcare, manufacturing, and the public sector, working with organizations of various sizes from global enterprises to mid-market companies. Forrester's financial performance reflects its stable position in the market, though specific revenue figures were not prominently featured in the source materials.

Forrester's corporate identity is deeply rooted in its commitment to customer obsession, positioning this principle as the fundamental driver of business growth and competitive advantage. The company's research and advisory services are designed to help clients put customers at the center of leadership, strategy, and operations, creating experiences that build loyalty and drive revenue growth. This customer-centric philosophy shapes not only Forrester's client recommendations but also its own corporate culture and operations, establishing a consistent framework for decision-making and strategic planning. The organization's corporate values emphasize intellectual rigor, client service excellence, and bold thinking, creating an environment that attracts and retains top talent across research, advisory, and business functions. Forrester's leadership team combines deep industry expertise with strong operational capabilities, guiding the company through continued evolution in a rapidly changing business environment. The company's commitment to intellectual independence and research quality has been central to its reputation and success, establishing it as a trusted advisor to business leaders navigating complex digital transformations.

Forrester has continuously evolved its service offerings to address emerging client needs, expanding beyond traditional market research to provide comprehensive advisory services across the technology lifecycle. The company's research methodology combines qualitative insights from expert analysts with quantitative data from extensive market surveys and proprietary tools, creating a unique perspective that balances technological possibilities with practical business realities. Forrester has made strategic investments in artificial intelligence capabilities, most notably with its Izola tool, which uses generative AI to provide rapid synthesis of reports, data, and insights, revolutionizing how clients consume research. The company maintains a strong commitment to innovation in both its research methodologies and service delivery models, ensuring that its insights remain relevant and actionable in rapidly evolving digital markets. Forrester's corporate social responsibility initiatives focus on leveraging its unique capabilities to address global challenges, including sustainability and ethical technology use. This combination of methodological rigor, service innovation, and values-driven leadership has positioned Forrester as a distinctive voice in the research and advisory landscape, helping clients navigate complex market dynamics and technology disruptions.

Market Analysis

The global technology research and advisory services market represents a substantial sector with continued growth potential, driven by organizations' increasing need for expert guidance in navigating complex digital transformations and technology investments. While specific comprehensive market size figures vary by definition and scope, industry estimates suggest the broader research and advisory services market addressing technology and business strategy exceeds $20 billion annually with projections for continued growth at a CAGR of 6-8% through 2030. Forrester operates in this competitive landscape alongside several major players, with Gartner maintaining the largest market share at approximately 33.4%, followed by Forrester, International Data Corporation (IDC), and other specialized research firms. The market is experiencing significant transformation driven by increasing demand for data-driven insights into emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and edge computing, creating both opportunities and challenges for established providers. Digital transformation initiatives across virtually every industry sector continue to drive strong demand for technology research and advisory services, as organizations seek guidance on navigating complex technology landscapes and optimizing business outcomes through technology investments.

Forrester has established a distinctive position in this competitive market through its customer-obsessed approach and broader business strategy focus compared to more technology-centric competitors. While Gartner maintains stronger market share and is known for its Magic Quadrants and comprehensive IT coverage, Forrester has differentiated itself through its emphasis on customer experience, digital business strategy, and the intersection of technology with broader business objectives. The company's primary assessment methodology, The Forrester Wave™, offers detailed comparative analyses of vendors across various technology categories, providing a comprehensive evaluation framework that complements Gartner's Magic Quadrant approach. International Data Corporation (IDC) focuses more heavily on market sizing, quantitative analysis, and data-driven research, offering a different value proposition from Forrester's strategic guidance orientation. Other competitors include specialized boutique research firms focused on specific technology domains or industry verticals, as well as the consulting practices of major professional services firms such as Deloitte, PwC, EY, and KPMG, which combine research with implementation services.

The technology research and advisory services market is evolving rapidly, with several key trends reshaping client expectations and service delivery models. There is growing demand for research that extends beyond technology evaluation to address business outcomes, digital transformation strategies, and customer experience improvement, areas where Forrester has established strong capabilities. Clients increasingly seek prescriptive guidance and implementation support beyond traditional market analysis, driving growth in consulting and advisory services that complement research offerings. Artificial intelligence is transforming both the subject of research (as clients seek guidance on AI implementation) and research delivery methods, with firms like Forrester introducing AI-powered tools to help clients more efficiently access and synthesize insights. Additionally, there is increased interest in peer perspectives and user experiences alongside expert analysis, reflected in platforms like Forrester's Peer Insights that provide verified customer reviews to complement analyst opinions. The market is also seeing increased specialization in certain domains, such as cybersecurity, customer experience, and digital commerce, where deep expertise and targeted insights are highly valued by clients navigating specific business challenges.

Forrester has responded to these market dynamics through continuous evolution of its research offerings, service delivery models, and methodological approaches. The company has expanded its research coverage beyond traditional IT domains to address broader business challenges, including customer experience, marketing technology, and digital business strategy. Forrester has enhanced its consulting capabilities to provide more hands-on support for implementation, helping clients bridge the gap between strategic insights and practical execution. The introduction of Izola, Forrester's AI-powered research tool, demonstrates the company's commitment to innovation in how research is accessed and utilized, creating more interactive, personalized experiences for clients. Forrester has also increased its focus on industry-specific insights and solutions, recognizing that digital transformation challenges often vary significantly across different sectors. Through these strategic adaptations, Forrester has maintained its position as a leading advisory firm while continuing to differentiate itself in an increasingly competitive market, positioning itself for sustained growth as digital transformation remains a top priority for organizations worldwide.

Product Analysis

Forrester's product portfolio encompasses a comprehensive suite of research, advisory, and consulting services designed to address the diverse needs of executives and their teams across multiple organizational functions. The company's core offering, Forrester Decisions, provides a portfolio of research services that help executives, functional leaders, and their teams plan and pursue their most pressing initiatives. This flagship service is structured around role-based offerings tailored to specific functional areas, including B2B marketing, B2C marketing, customer experience, technology leadership, digital business strategy, security and risk, and sales, ensuring that clients receive insights relevant to their specific responsibilities and challenges. Each service combines bold vision research, customer insights, trends and predictions, market forecasts, and technology assessments with curated tools and frameworks as well as hands-on guidance. This comprehensive approach enables clients to set strategic direction, align teams around common objectives, and implement specific initiatives with confidence, creating a continuous support system throughout the planning and execution process.

Forrester's methodological frameworks and evaluation tools represent another key component of its product portfolio, providing structured approaches for assessing technologies, vendors, and market trends. The Forrester Wave™ stands as the company's most recognized research methodology, offering objective evaluation of products and services within specific technology markets. Unlike some competitor methodologies that focus primarily on vendor positioning, the Wave provides detailed scoring across multiple criteria, creating a nuanced view of strengths and weaknesses that supports more informed decision-making. This evaluation framework is complemented by Forrester's Technology Landscapes, which provide comprehensive overviews of available solutions in emerging or evolving markets, and specialized methodologies for customer experience assessment, digital maturity evaluation, and technology impact analysis. These structured frameworks are supported by extensive market forecasts, trend analysis, and best practice research, creating a comprehensive toolkit for technology and business strategy development.

Forrester Consulting extends the company's value proposition beyond research and advisory services to hands-on support for strategic initiatives and technology implementations. This service helps clients apply Forrester's research insights to their specific organizational contexts through project-based engagements focused on areas such as customer experience design, technology strategy, digital transformation, and marketing optimization. Forrester Consulting combines the company's research expertise with implementation experience to deliver practical guidance and support throughout the initiative lifecycle. The consulting services are structured around solution frameworks that address common client challenges, providing repeatable methodologies and tools that accelerate delivery while incorporating Forrester's latest research insights. Unlike traditional consulting firms that may prioritize implementation revenue over strategic guidance, Forrester Consulting maintains the company's emphasis on intellectual independence and customer obsession, ensuring that recommendations align with client priorities and long-term objectives rather than short-term implementation opportunities.

Forrester Events represent a significant component of the company's product portfolio, with conferences and webinars that bring together executives, technology providers, and Forrester analysts for knowledge sharing and networking. These events feature presentations from Forrester analysts, case studies from practitioners, and opportunities for peer networking, creating immersive learning experiences that complement the company's research and advisory services. Key events focus on specific domains such as technology and innovation, customer experience, data strategy, and security and risk, ensuring relevant content for diverse client needs. In 2023, Forrester introduced Izola, an AI-powered tool available to Forrester Decisions and Forrester Market Insights clients that revolutionizes how clients consume research. Through rapid synthesis of reports, data, and insights, Izola empowers clients with quick responses to their top business and technology questions, helping them learn about new trends, strategize next steps, and make faster decisions based on Forrester's extensive research library. This innovation demonstrates the company's commitment to continuously improving how clients access and utilize its intellectual capital, creating more value from the research relationship.

Technical Architecture

Forrester's technical architecture for research and analysis is built on a sophisticated foundation of methodological frameworks, data collection systems, and analytical processes designed to generate consistent, high-quality insights across diverse domains. The company's research methodology combines rigorous quantitative data collection with qualitative expert analysis, creating a balanced approach that leverages both empirical evidence and domain expertise. Forrester conducts annual surveys of more than 675,000 consumers, business leaders, and technology decision-makers worldwide, creating a robust data foundation for market analysis, trend identification, and forecasting. This primary research is complemented by extensive analyst interactions with industry stakeholders, including technology vendors, enterprise clients, and market experts, providing real-world context and practical insights that inform research conclusions. The company employs rigorous quality control processes, including peer review, editorial oversight, and methodological governance, to ensure research outputs meet its standards for accuracy, objectivity, and actionability. These methodological foundations create a consistent structure for Forrester's diverse research initiatives while allowing for appropriate customization to address specific domains and research questions.

Forrester's data architecture integrates multiple information sources into a cohesive knowledge management system that supports research development, content delivery, and client engagement. The company maintains extensive databases on technology markets, customer behaviors, and business trends, continuously updated through systematic collection processes and analyst inputs. These data assets support numerous analytical models, including the frameworks underlying Wave evaluations, market forecasts, and impact assessments, ensuring methodological consistency while accommodating the unique characteristics of different domains. The integration of quantitative data with qualitative insights creates a rich foundation for identifying emerging trends, assessing market dynamics, and developing forward-looking perspectives that help clients anticipate changes rather than simply react to them. Forrester's data architecture is designed to surface connections between different domains and trends, recognizing that many business challenges span traditional boundaries between technology, marketing, customer experience, and operations. This integrated approach enables the company to provide holistic insights that address the interconnected nature of modern business challenges, differentiating its research from more narrowly focused competitors.

Forrester has developed a sophisticated digital delivery architecture that enables clients to access research content through multiple channels and formats aligned with their preferences and needs. The company's digital platforms provide personalized access to research reports, interactive tools, and multimedia content, with advanced search and recommendation capabilities that help clients discover relevant insights based on their roles, industries, and specific challenges. The introduction of Izola, Forrester's AI-powered research tool, represents a significant advancement in this digital architecture, using generative AI to rapidly synthesize information from across Forrester's extensive research library to answer specific client questions and provide tailored guidance. This innovation demonstrates the company's commitment to making research more accessible and actionable, helping clients extract maximum value from their research investment. The digital architecture also supports analyst inquiry services, webinars, and virtual events, providing multiple engagement options beyond traditional written research. These capabilities are complemented by collaboration tools that allow clients to share insights across their organizations, creating internal knowledge networks that amplify the value of Forrester's research.

Forrester's operational architecture combines advanced business systems with specialized research and delivery tools that support the company's core value creation processes. The company employs sophisticated client relationship management systems that track interactions, preferences, and engagement patterns, enabling personalized service delivery and targeted research recommendations. These systems are integrated with content management platforms that organize Forrester's extensive research library, ensuring efficient access and effective knowledge reuse across the organization. Collaborative workspaces support analyst teams in developing research initiatives, sharing insights, and conducting peer reviews, enhancing both productivity and quality. The company has invested significantly in data analytics capabilities that provide insights into research utilization, client engagement, and emerging topics of interest, informing both content development priorities and product evolution. Additionally, Forrester maintains robust information security and privacy protection systems that safeguard sensitive client information and proprietary research content. This integrated operational architecture enables Forrester to deliver high-quality research and advisory services at scale while maintaining the agility to address emerging client needs and market opportunities.

Strengths

Forrester's primary strength lies in its customer-obsessed approach that positions client success at the center of its research and advisory services. The company's fundamental philosophy that customer obsession drives business growth informs all aspects of its research methodology, analytical frameworks, and client engagement models. This customer-centric perspective enables Forrester to provide insights that balance technological possibilities with business realities, helping clients make decisions that deliver tangible value rather than simply implementing the latest technologies. The company's research process places particular emphasis on customer experience, customer insights, and customer-driven innovation, providing a distinctive perspective compared to more technology-centric research firms. Forrester's rigorous research methodology combines extensive survey data from hundreds of thousands of consumers and business leaders with expert analysis from experienced domain specialists, creating a powerful foundation for identifying emerging trends and developing actionable recommendations. This methodological rigor, combined with the company's commitment to intellectual independence, has established Forrester as a trusted source of objective guidance for organizations navigating complex digital transformations and strategic challenges.

Forrester has developed particular strength in specific domains that represent critical priorities for modern organizations, including customer experience, digital business strategy, and marketing technology. The company's long-standing focus on customer experience has positioned it as the leading authority in this domain, with comprehensive frameworks for measuring, designing, and optimizing experiences that drive loyalty and growth. Forrester's extensive research on digital transformation provides clients with practical guidance for reimagining business models, operational processes, and customer engagement strategies in an increasingly digital world. The company's coverage of marketing technology and B2B/B2C marketing strategies helps organizations navigate the complex vendor landscape and implement solutions that deliver measurable business outcomes. These specialized capabilities enable Forrester to address the most pressing challenges facing modern businesses, providing insights and guidance that directly impact revenue growth, cost optimization, and competitive differentiation. The company's ability to connect technology decisions to business outcomes differentiates its research from competitors that focus primarily on technical evaluations without sufficient business context.

The Forrester Wave™ methodology represents a significant competitive advantage, providing one of the most comprehensive and nuanced vendor evaluation frameworks in the industry. Unlike some competitor methodologies that simply position vendors in broad categories, the Wave offers detailed scoring across multiple criteria, creating a more granular view of strengths and weaknesses that supports informed decision-making. The transparency of the Wave methodology, including clearly defined evaluation criteria and comprehensive scoring explanations, enhances its credibility and utility for technology selection processes. Forrester's commitment to methodological rigor and vendor independence ensures that Wave evaluations remain free from commercial influence, providing truly objective assessments that clients can trust for critical technology decisions. The company's continuous improvement of the Wave methodology, including regular updates to evaluation criteria to reflect evolving market requirements, ensures that it remains relevant in rapidly changing technology landscapes. This evaluation framework has become an industry standard for vendor selection across numerous technology categories, influencing billions of dollars in enterprise technology investments annually.

Forrester's introduction of Izola, its artificial intelligence-powered research tool, demonstrates the company's commitment to innovation in how research is accessed and utilized. This cutting-edge capability enables clients to receive rapid answers to business and technology questions through AI-powered synthesis of Forrester's extensive research library, revolutionizing the research consumption experience. The AI tool represents a significant advance in making research more accessible and actionable, helping clients quickly navigate Forrester's vast intellectual capital to find specific insights relevant to their immediate challenges. This innovation positions Forrester at the forefront of the research industry's digital transformation, leveraging emerging technologies to enhance the value and utility of its services. By combining AI-powered automation with human expertise, Forrester creates a powerful hybrid model that scales its analysts' knowledge while maintaining the quality and relevance of insights. This innovative approach to research delivery differentiates Forrester from competitors that rely primarily on traditional publication models and manual discovery processes, creating a compelling advantage in an increasingly digital, real-time business environment where speed of insight often determines competitive advantage.

Weakness

Despite Forrester's comprehensive coverage, the company faces challenges in maintaining leadership across all technology domains simultaneously, particularly in highly specialized or emerging areas where boutique research firms might offer greater depth. While Forrester provides valuable insights across a broad range of technologies and business functions, its coverage depth can sometimes be uneven, with greater expertise in certain domains than others. The company's analytical frameworks, while robust for established technology categories, may occasionally struggle to fully capture the nuances of emerging technologies that don't fit established evaluation criteria. Additionally, Forrester's research development and publication cycles, though necessary for quality control, can sometimes result in slightly slower response times to rapidly emerging technology developments compared to smaller, more agile competitors. The company's primary focus on strategic insights rather than detailed technical evaluations may create gaps for clients seeking in-depth technical analysis of specific technologies or implementation guidance. These limitations can create challenges for clients with specialized needs in cutting-edge technology domains, potentially driving them to supplement Forrester research with insights from more focused providers or technical specialists.

Forrester's pricing and packaging strategy, while appropriate for enterprise clients, may present accessibility challenges for smaller organizations with limited research budgets. The company's enterprise-focused business model typically involves substantial annual subscriptions that may be beyond the reach of small and mid-sized businesses seeking research guidance for technology decisions. This pricing approach potentially restricts Forrester's market penetration in the SMB segment and creates opportunities for competitors offering more affordable, focused research alternatives. Even for enterprise clients, the significant investment in Forrester services requires clear value demonstration, particularly during economic downturns or budget constraints when discretionary spending comes under scrutiny. The company's traditional emphasis on senior executive engagement may sometimes create visibility challenges regarding how effectively research insights cascade throughout client organizations, potentially limiting the realized value of subscriptions. Additionally, the breadth of Forrester's research library can create utilization challenges for clients who may struggle to identify the most relevant content for their specific needs, leading to potential underutilization of available resources despite the introduction of tools like Izola to improve content discovery.

While Forrester provides valuable strategic guidance and market analysis, its services may be perceived as less actionable for practical implementation compared to consulting firms that specialize in hands-on execution support. The company's research often focuses on high-level strategic insights and best practices rather than detailed implementation guidance, potentially creating a gap between recommendations and execution requirements. Though Forrester has expanded its consulting services, this business remains smaller than its core research and advisory offerings, limiting the company's ability to provide comprehensive implementation support compared to major consulting firms. Additionally, Forrester's vendor-neutral stance, while ensuring objectivity, means that it typically doesn't develop the deep product-specific expertise that technology implementation partners offer. Clients sometimes report challenges in translating Forrester's strategic guidance into practical action plans, particularly for complex technology initiatives that require detailed technical knowledge and industry-specific considerations. These limitations can drive clients to supplement Forrester's strategic insights with more tactical guidance from specialized consultants, systems integrators, or technology providers, potentially fragmenting the advisory relationship and creating integration challenges between strategic direction and practical execution.

Forrester's competitive position relative to larger competitors, particularly Gartner, presents ongoing challenges in terms of market perception, client access, and resources for research expansion. Gartner maintains a dominant market share in the technology research and advisory space, with broader name recognition and greater influence in certain technology domains. Forrester's smaller size compared to Gartner may create perception challenges among some enterprise buyers who default to the market leader for critical research relationships. The company's analyst team, while offering deep expertise in its focus areas, is smaller than Gartner's, potentially limiting Forrester's ability to provide the same breadth of coverage across all technology domains and geographic regions simultaneously. Additionally, Forrester's events business, though well-regarded, operates at a smaller scale than Gartner's flagship conferences, limiting opportunities for market influence and client engagement through this channel. These competitive challenges require Forrester to maintain clear differentiation through its customer-obsessed approach, specialized domain expertise, and innovative service offerings, ensuring that it remains a compelling alternative to larger competitors despite resource differences.

Client Voice

Enterprise technology executives value Forrester for providing strategic guidance that connects technology decisions to business outcomes, helping them navigate complex vendor landscapes and digital transformation initiatives. CIOs and IT leaders particularly appreciate Forrester's ability to translate technical capabilities into business value, enabling more effective communication with business stakeholders and stronger alignment between technology investments and organizational priorities. Many report using Forrester's Wave evaluations as essential tools for vendor selection, appreciating the detailed criteria assessment and transparent scoring that facilitate more informed decision-making. Technology leaders value the company's forward-looking research on emerging technologies and market trends, which helps them anticipate changes rather than simply react to them. Clients frequently highlight the value of analyst inquiry sessions, which allow them to discuss specific challenges and receive personalized guidance tailored to their organizational context. The depth and quality of Forrester's research on specific technology domains, such as cybersecurity, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence, provides technology executives with the insights needed to make strategic investment decisions and develop implementation roadmaps that deliver measurable business value.

Business executives beyond IT increasingly engage with Forrester as digital transformation initiatives span organizational boundaries and technology becomes integral to virtually every business function. Chief Marketing Officers highlight Forrester's insights into marketing technology landscapes, digital commerce strategies, and customer experience trends as valuable guides for navigating rapidly evolving digital marketing environments. Customer experience leaders rely on Forrester's frameworks and benchmarks to assess current performance, identify improvement opportunities, and develop experience strategies that drive loyalty and revenue growth. Digital business leaders turn to Forrester for guidance on business model innovation, organizational change management, and technology-enabled business transformation. These cross-functional clients value Forrester's ability to bridge technical and business perspectives, providing guidance that addresses both the "what" and the "why" of technology investments. Several executives note that Forrester's expansion beyond pure technology research has increased its strategic relevance at the enterprise level, facilitating more integrated approaches to digital transformation that span organizational boundaries.

Technology providers recognize Forrester as a crucial influence on enterprise purchasing decisions, with inclusion and positioning in its Wave evaluations often significantly impacting market perception and sales opportunities. Vendor executives acknowledge that favorable Forrester assessments frequently serve as validation that opens doors with enterprise clients and accelerates sales cycles. Many technology providers invest substantial resources in managing their Forrester relationships, ensuring analysts fully understand their offerings, strategies, and customer successes. While some vendors express frustration with the time and effort required to participate in Wave evaluations, most recognize the value of the rigorous assessment in enhancing their market credibility. Technology executives particularly value Forrester's ability to identify emerging market trends and evolving buyer priorities, which often inform product development roadmaps and go-to-market strategies. The relationship between Forrester and technology providers represents a complex ecosystem, with vendors simultaneously being subjects of research, sources of market intelligence, sponsors of events, and in some cases, clients of advisory services, creating multifaceted interactions that benefit the broader technology marketplace.

Implementation partners and consultancies value Forrester's research as a foundation for their client engagements, providing strategic context and best practices that inform their service offerings and delivery approaches. Systems integrators and digital agencies use Forrester insights to develop their market positioning, identify growth opportunities, and enhance their expertise in emerging technology domains. These partners appreciate Forrester's focus on business outcomes and customer experience, which aligns well with their own value propositions centered on practical implementation and measurable results. Consultancies often leverage Forrester research to support client recommendations, adding third-party validation to their proposals and implementation plans. The combination of Forrester's strategic insights with these partners' implementation capabilities creates a complementary relationship that benefits enterprise clients seeking both vision and execution support for their digital initiatives. This ecosystem of research, advisory, and implementation services demonstrates the broader impact of Forrester's intellectual capital beyond its direct client relationships, influencing how technology and business services are delivered across the market.

Bottom Line

Forrester Research stands as a premier global research and advisory firm, providing distinctive insights that help business and technology leaders leverage customer obsession to accelerate growth. The company's unique value proposition lies in its ability to connect technology decisions to business outcomes, helping clients navigate complex digital transformations with strategies that focus on customer value rather than technology for its own sake. With extensive coverage across customer experience, digital business strategy, marketing technology, and core IT domains, Forrester provides a comprehensive perspective that addresses the interdisciplinary challenges facing modern organizations. The company's methodological rigor, particularly evident in its Wave evaluations and forecasting models, ensures reliable, objective guidance for critical business and technology decisions. Forrester's introduction of innovative service delivery mechanisms, including its AI-powered Izola tool, demonstrates its commitment to continuously enhancing how clients access and utilize research insights. For organizations seeking to harness technology as a competitive differentiator while maintaining customer centricity, Forrester represents an essential strategic partner providing the market intelligence and expert guidance needed to make informed decisions in rapidly evolving digital landscapes.

Forrester is best positioned to serve mid-sized to large enterprises with significant digital transformation agendas and a commitment to customer-centric strategies. The company's comprehensive research coverage, strategic advisory capabilities, and premium service model align most effectively with organizations that view technology as a strategic enabler of business outcomes rather than simply an operational necessity. Forrester provides particular value to cross-functional leadership teams seeking to align technology investments with customer needs and business priorities, including CIOs, CMOs, CDOs, and customer experience leaders. Organizations undergoing major business transformations, such as digital commerce expansion, customer experience redesign, or marketing technology modernization, benefit significantly from Forrester's interdisciplinary insights and best practice guidance. The company's customer-obsessed perspective is especially valuable for organizations in competitive industries where customer loyalty and engagement directly impact business performance, including retail, financial services, healthcare, and B2B services. For technology providers, Forrester represents an essential influence on market perception and buyer decisions, particularly for those targeting enterprise clients with solutions addressing customer experience, digital business, or marketing technology needs.

While Forrester's services deliver substantial value for many organizations, certain limitations should inform decisions about research partnerships. The company's enterprise focus and pricing model may present challenges for smaller organizations with limited research budgets, who might find more targeted, affordable alternatives better aligned with their needs. Organizations seeking highly specialized expertise in niche technologies or technical implementation guidance might need to supplement Forrester's insights with more focused research sources or implementation partners. Companies requiring extensive hands-on execution support beyond strategic guidance might benefit from complementing Forrester with partners that provide specialized implementation services. Organizations with minimal digital transformation ambitions or those viewing technology primarily as a utility rather than a strategic enabler may find less value in Forrester's comprehensive approach compared to more tactical, focused alternatives. These considerations highlight the importance of aligning research partnerships with specific organizational needs, priorities, and resources, ensuring that investments in market intelligence deliver appropriate value based on an organization's digital maturity and strategic objectives.

For executives evaluating potential engagement with Forrester, several factors should guide the decision-making process. Consider the strategic importance of customer experience and digital transformation to your organization's competitive positioning and future growth, with greater strategic significance justifying more comprehensive research partnership. Assess the complexity and scale of your technology environment and upcoming decisions, as more complex landscapes benefit more from Forrester's integrated perspective across multiple domains. Evaluate your internal capabilities for market intelligence and technology assessment, with Forrester providing greater value where internal resources need supplementation with external expertise. Define clear use cases and value expectations for research services, establishing specific outcomes that will justify the investment and enable effective utilization. Consider the cultural alignment between your organization's decision-making style and Forrester's customer-obsessed, evidence-based approach to ensure research insights will effectively influence key decisions. These considerations can help organizations determine the appropriate level of engagement with Forrester, from targeted utilization of specific research to comprehensive enterprise partnerships that leverage the full range of services across multiple business functions.

10 STRATEGIC PLANNING ASSUMPTIONS FOR FORRESTER AND THE RESEARCH ADVISORY INDUSTRY

1. AI-Powered Research Consumption Transformation

Because traditional analyst-written research alone cannot meet escalating demands for personalized, contextual insights, by 2027, Forrester will transform 70% of its research delivery through advanced AI capabilities, extending beyond Izola to create an intelligent research ecosystem that reduces time-to-insight by 65% while increasing research utilization rates by 40%. (Probability: 0.85)

This fundamental shift will move research consumption from document-centric models to continuous, conversational interactions with research content, combining generative AI capabilities with Forrester's intellectual capital. The company will develop sophisticated knowledge models that understand client context, track usage patterns, and proactively recommend relevant insights based on specific business challenges and roles. This transformation will enhance the accessibility and actionability of research, enabling clients to extract greater value from Forrester's extensive intellectual property. The AI advancement will not replace analysts but amplify their impact by automating information synthesis while preserving the strategic insight that distinguishes premium research services. Organizations will increasingly expect this level of intelligent research delivery, forcing all major research firms to develop similar capabilities or risk losing relevance in an AI-enhanced knowledge economy.

2. Verticalized Business Solutions Framework

Because generic technology and business research increasingly fails to address industry-specific transformation challenges, by 2026, Forrester will reorganize 60% of its research framework around industry-specific business solutions rather than horizontal technology categories, fundamentally changing how actionable insights are structured and consumed. (Probability: 0.80)

This reorganization will replace the traditional technology-centric or function-centric research organization with industry-aligned frameworks that provide comprehensive guidance for specific business outcomes in vertical markets such as financial services, healthcare, retail, and manufacturing. Each vertical solution will integrate guidance across technology, customer experience, marketing, and operational domains required to achieve specific industry outcomes, breaking down traditional research silos. The verticalized approach will enable Forrester to provide more contextually relevant guidance on technology selection, implementation approaches, and value realization pathways specific to each industry's unique characteristics and regulatory considerations. This transition will be accelerated by client demand for more prescriptive, outcome-focused research that directly addresses their specific industry challenges rather than requiring them to synthesize insights across multiple research domains.

3. Research and Implementation Integration Platform

Because the gap between strategic insights and practical execution creates significant client value leakage, by 2028, Forrester will develop a comprehensive digital platform that connects its strategic research with implementation guidance and partner ecosystems, increasing successful digital initiative outcomes by 45%. (Probability: 0.75)

This platform will transform how research translates into action by providing structured implementation frameworks, reference architectures, and execution roadmaps alongside strategic guidance. The ecosystem will incorporate certified implementation methodologies and success frameworks that ensure consistent application of Forrester's strategic insights during technology deployment. A collaborative environment will facilitate seamless knowledge transfer between Forrester's advisory services and implementation partners, maintaining continuity throughout initiative lifecycles. Performance measurement frameworks will track implementation outcomes against strategic objectives, creating accountability and enabling continuous improvement across the ecosystem. This evolution addresses a critical market need to bridge the divide between strategic vision and practical execution, significantly increasing the realized value of research investments while creating new revenue opportunities through implementation partnerships and certification programs.

4. Immersive Experience Delivery Revolution

Because traditional text-based research struggles to convey complex concepts effectively, by 2027, Forrester will transform 50% of its content into immersive, interactive formats leveraging visualization, simulation, and guided experiences that improve comprehension by 60% and retention by 55%. (Probability: 0.70)

This revolution in research presentation will move beyond static documents to create dynamic, interactive experiences that adapt to individual learning styles and information needs. Advanced data visualization capabilities will transform complex market data and frameworks into intuitive visual formats that reveal patterns and relationships more effectively than traditional charts and text. Simulation environments will allow clients to explore different scenarios and test strategic approaches in virtual settings before implementing them in the real world. Guided digital experiences will combine narrative storytelling with interactive elements to make complex concepts more accessible and actionable. This transformation will require significant investment in visualization expertise, interface design, and digital delivery platforms, but will create compelling differentiation in how research insights are consumed and applied.

5. Embedded Decision Intelligence Integration

Because standalone research consumption is increasingly disconnected from daily decision workflows, by 2029, Forrester will integrate its market intelligence directly into client operational systems through 60+ enterprise software partnerships, fundamentally changing how research influences real-time decisions. (Probability: 0.75)

This transformation will move beyond traditional research delivery models to embed Forrester's intelligence directly into the applications and platforms where business decisions are made, including CRM systems, marketing platforms, product management tools, and IT planning environments. The integration will feature contextual delivery of relevant market data, competitive insights, and strategic guidance at precisely the moment when stakeholders are making operational and strategic decisions. Advanced APIs, microservices architecture, and standardized data models will enable seamless integration with diverse client systems while maintaining security and appropriate access controls. This evolution addresses the growing challenge of research utilization, where valuable insights often fail to influence decisions because they aren't accessible at the right time or in the right context, positioning Forrester to maintain value and relevance as intelligence consumption increasingly shifts from dedicated research activities to embedded decision support within everyday business processes.

6. Quantified Business Impact Framework

Because subjective research insights increasingly fail to justify substantial subscription investments, by 2026, Forrester will develop a comprehensive Business Value Framework that quantifies the economic impact of its recommendations across multiple dimensions with 90% confidence intervals. (Probability: 0.85)

This framework will transform traditional qualitative guidance into precise measurement of business impact, including productivity improvements, revenue enhancement, cost reduction, and risk mitigation across different implementation scenarios. The methodology will incorporate both leading and lagging indicators of value realization, creating a powerful tool for executives to justify research investments and technology decisions. Forrester will establish industry-specific benchmarks and comparative metrics that enable organizations to evaluate their performance against peers and identify specific improvement opportunities based on quantified value gaps. The Business Value Framework will be embedded throughout Forrester's research portfolio, creating consistent measurement approaches across different domains and enabling clients to compare value potential across diverse strategic options. This evolution positions Forrester to address growing pressure for demonstrable ROI from research services, particularly during economic uncertainty when discretionary spending faces intense scrutiny.

7. Collaborative Intelligence Platform

Because traditional analyst-only research cannot capture the diverse perspectives needed for complex business challenges, by 2027, Forrester will transform 40% of its research model through a collaborative intelligence platform that combines analyst expertise with practitioner insights and peer experiences. (Probability: 0.70)

This transformation will reimagine how business and technology intelligence is created, moving from a centralized production model to a distributed knowledge network that leverages collective expertise from practitioners, subject matter experts, and clients alongside Forrester's analysts. The collaborative platform will incorporate structured contribution frameworks, quality control mechanisms, and reputation systems that ensure appropriate expertise validation while expanding perspective diversity. Advanced knowledge management systems will organize, connect, and synthesize diverse inputs into coherent intelligence products that maintain Forrester's methodological rigor. The collaborative approach will be particularly valuable for complex transformation initiatives, emerging practices, and industry-specific challenges where practical implementation experience provides essential context for strategic recommendations. This evolution creates new scaling opportunities for Forrester's research operations while addressing the inherent limitations of centralized expert teams in capturing diverse real-world perspectives and implementation learnings.

8. Consolidated Research and Advisory Market

Because the research and advisory market is increasingly fragmented while clients seek integration, by 2029, the industry will experience significant consolidation with the top three firms capturing 75% of enterprise market share, primarily through acquisition of specialized boutiques and vertical-focused providers. (Probability: 0.80)

The market consolidation will be driven by client demand for integrated perspectives across technology, business strategy, and industry-specific challenges, forcing smaller specialized providers to either join larger platforms or focus on highly differentiated niches. Major players like Gartner and Forrester will strategically acquire specialized research firms to enhance their capabilities in high-growth areas such as artificial intelligence, sustainability, cybersecurity, and industry-specific digital transformation. The consolidation will create more comprehensive research ecosystems that provide clients with unified access to diverse expertise through integrated subscription models. This market evolution will increase competitive pressure on mid-sized firms caught between the scale advantages of industry leaders and the specialized expertise of boutique providers, potentially forcing further consolidation or strategic repositioning. For Forrester, this trend creates both opportunity and threat, requiring careful strategic positioning to either participate in consolidation as an acquirer or maintain distinctive value through specialized capabilities that resist commoditization.

9. Continuous Strategy Services Evolution

Because periodic research publications cannot keep pace with accelerating business change, by 2026, Forrester will transition 80% of its delivery model to continuous strategy services with embedded analyst teams, real-time insights, and ongoing advisory support replacing traditional research subscriptions. (Probability: 0.75)

This transformation will reimagine the fundamental business model of research firms, moving from publication-centric subscriptions to continuous service relationships characterized by ongoing engagement, real-time guidance, and embedded expertise. The continuous strategy services will feature dedicated analyst teams aligned with specific client initiatives, providing consistent support throughout planning and implementation phases rather than periodic touchpoints. Digital collaboration environments will facilitate continuous knowledge sharing between analysts and client teams, creating more efficient advisory relationships than traditional inquiry-based models. Outcome-based pricing structures will increasingly replace standard subscriptions, aligning Forrester's compensation with measurable client success rather than access to a fixed research library. This evolution addresses growing client frustration with the disconnect between static research publications and dynamic business environments where strategic decisions require real-time guidance rather than quarterly insights. For Forrester, this transition creates opportunities for deeper client relationships and higher-value services, but requires fundamental changes to analyst deployment models, operational processes, and financial structures.

10. Research-as-a-Service Platform Emergence

Because enterprise research needs are increasingly diverse and dynamic, by 2028, Forrester will develop a modular Research-as-a-Service platform that enables clients to construct customized research experiences combining core insights, specialized data, collaborative tools, and on-demand advisory based on specific needs and budgets. (Probability: 0.85)

This platform will fundamentally transform how research services are packaged and consumed, replacing traditional one-size-fits-all subscriptions with flexible, modular offerings that address specific client scenarios. The service architecture will enable organizations to select precisely the research components, data assets, advisory services, and collaborative tools that align with their strategic priorities and budget constraints. AI-powered recommendation engines will suggest optimal service configurations based on client profiles, industry characteristics, and strategic objectives, creating more personalized research experiences. The platform will incorporate dynamic pricing models that adjust based on actual consumption patterns and realized value, creating more transparent and equitable commercial relationships. This evolution addresses growing client demands for more tailored, cost-effective research solutions that provide precisely the insights and support needed without unnecessary components, positioning Forrester to capture additional market share through increased accessibility for organizations previously unable to justify comprehensive research subscriptions. The shift to Research-as-a-Service represents the culmination of digital transformation within the research industry itself, reimagining how intellectual capital is packaged, delivered, and monetized in an increasingly digital, service-oriented economy.

David Wright https://www.fourester.com