The IIAR is delighted to announce the winners of this year’s IIAR Analyst of the Year and Analyst Firm of the Year
AND THE WINNERS ARE…
Analyst of the Year:
- Gold medal – Alex Soejarto, Gartner (Research VP, outsourcing & IT services)
- Silver medal – Zeus Kerravala, ZK Research (Founder & principal analyst, communications)
- Bronze medal – R “Ray” Wang, Constellation Research (CEO & principal analyst, enterprise software)
Global Analyst Firm of the Year:
Independent Analyst Firm of the Year:
- Gold medal – ZK Research (communications, mobility)
- Silver medal – Aite Group (financial services)
- Bronze medal – HfS Research (sourcing)
Most innovative firm:
- HfS Research
This year marked a change from previous formats in that participants were asked to rate their chosen analyst against a list of 10 criteria ranging from ‘Quality of research’ to ‘End-user influence’, with the average of all criteria providing an overall rating. The winning analyst, Alex Soejarto, achieved the highest overall rating from multiple votes, with strong results in understanding, accessibility and end-user influence. Alex was just clear of Zeus Kerravala, who also performed well on accessibility as well as domain knowledge, and R “Ray” Wang, who rated well across the board.
Global and Independent Analyst firms of the year were run using the same format based on 15 criteria, but in separate categories to allow for more equitable comparisons between the smaller firms. The competition for Global Analyst Firm of the Year was closely fought with Ovum and IDC emerging as joint winners, followed by Forrester and Gartner. In the Independent Analyst Firm of the Year category, competition was also tight, with relatively recent market entrant, ZK Research, emerging clear of Aite Group and HfS Research.
The IIAR this year introduced a new category, ‘Most Innovative Firm of the Year’ to allow a comparison between the global and independent analyst firms. It prompted a strong response and HfS Research was the clear winner based on the volume of votes and the respondent commentary, which highlighted its innovative approach to conducting, analysing and presenting research directly relevant to business needs. Gartner and Forrester also performed well in this comparison, suggesting that innovation is not unique to smaller firms.
Over 200 AR professionals from across the globe took time to complete the survey and nominations were received for 204 individual analysts from 60 separate firms. The data was analysed by Dave Noble, IIAR Board member and MD, Intelligen AR.
A more detailed analysis of the findings will be posted soon – please watch this space for more.
Quotes:
“A most sincere thanks to all that voted for myself and ZK Research. It’s a true honor to be recognized by the analyst relations community in both the individual and independent firm categories. My philosophy as an analyst is to focus less on any one particular product area but instead look for markets that are in transition and how that will reshape the technology landscape so it’s nice to see that this methodology is being well received. Once again, a most sincere thank you.”
Zeus Kerravala, Founder and Principal Analyst, ZK Research
“It’s always an honor to be recognized by the analyst relations community, especially after you’ve left the legacy analyst firms. IIAR’s endless devotion to improving the profession demonstrates the impact of a well-run professional society.”
R “Ray” Wang, Constellation Research
“On behalf of our 1,000+ research analysts worldwide, IDC is honored to receive this recognition from the analyst relations community.”
Kirk Campbell, President & CEO of IDC
“We are delighted to see that the continued investment in our products and services is being recognized by the AR community. To receive the title of Global Analyst Firm of the Year is testament to the quality of Ovum’s people and research, our clear approach to the market, and our commitment to helping customers make better decisions. The market demands clear, independent insight in a fast-moving business landscape, and we recognize and appreciate the important role the IIAR plays in guiding selection of an appropriate research partner”
Brett Azuma, MD, Ovum
“Aite Group is honored to be identified as one of the top in class among worldwide AR professionals. This global accolade reflects our professional growth and international expansion efforts, and validates us as a leading independent research and advisory firm. A big thanks go to the IIAR and all their work, and to the AR community for recognizing us in this space.”
Frank Rizza Partner/Chief Operating Officer, Aite Group
“We would like to thank IIAR’s members for recognizing HfS as the most innovative analyst firm. Our goal has been to engage our 120,000-strong social community to conduct rapid research that is quick to market, easy to access and offers a unique perspective on new trends and dynamics. Having our efforts recognized by such a respected group of professionals proves our socially-driven research strategy is having a major impact.”
Phil Fersht, Founder & CEO, HfS Research
