Forrester Wave

Forrester Wave is a proprietary vendor evaluation framework published by Forrester Research that ranks technology vendors across defined markets. It appears in sector reports that influence procurement decisions among corporations, investment firms, and public institutions, and it is cited by business leaders, analysts, and technology vendors across conferences and media outlets.

Overview

Forrester Research, Inc., founded by George F. Colony and headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, developed the Wave framework to compare technology vendors in segments such as enterprise software, cloud computing, and cybersecurity. Its reports are distributed to subscribers including Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, Microsoft Corporation, IBM, and Accenture. Analysts at Forrester collaborate with clients such as FedEx, Walmart, General Electric, Procter & Gamble, and Unilever to tailor vendor shortlists. Wave reports often appear alongside publications from Gartner, IDC, G2 Crowd, 451 Research, and Forbes in discussions at conferences such as Dreamforce, RSA Conference, AWS re:Invent, Mobile World Congress, and SXSW. Major vendors evaluated have included Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud Platform, Oracle Corporation, SAP SE, Salesforce, Cisco Systems, Palo Alto Networks, CrowdStrike, VMware, and Adobe Inc..

Methodology

Forrester's methodology combines quantitative scoring and qualitative interviews with vendors and clients, drawing on approaches used by research firms like Gartner and IDC while incorporating custom criteria. The framework assesses criteria such as strategy articulation, product roadmap, customer experience, and market presence, with input from executives at firms including CIOs from Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, HSBC, Citigroup, and Wells Fargo. Forrester analysts conduct structured vendor briefings similar to processes at McKinsey & Company and Boston Consulting Group and employ case study validation akin to methodologies used by Harvard Business School faculty. Peer benchmarks are gathered from procurement teams at Siemens, Toyota Motor Corporation, Volkswagen Group, BMW Group, and Boeing. Statistical techniques are applied in scoring that resemble practices from academic institutions such as Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, University of California, Berkeley, and University of Oxford.

Editions and Categories

Wave reports cover a wide array of markets and are periodically refreshed; categories mirror industry segmentation used by firms like Deloitte, PwC, KPMG, and Ernst & Young. Past editions have examined sectors including digital experience platforms, endpoint detection and response, identity and access management, data management platforms, business intelligence, marketing automation, supply chain management, contact center as a service, cloud infrastructure, edge computing, blockchain platforms, internet of things, robotic process automation, low-code platforms, customer data platforms, and zero trust security. Vendor participation often includes public companies such as Intel Corporation, NVIDIA Corporation, Cisco Systems, Dell Technologies, and Hewlett Packard Enterprise as well as private firms like Okta, Inc., Cloudflare, Inc., Snowflake Inc., Elastic NV, and HashiCorp. Regional editions and thematic slices have been produced for markets in North America, Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Africa, and timed with events such as CES, Mobile World Congress, IFA, and regional trade shows.

Impact and Reception

Wave reports influence procurement and strategy discussions within boards and executive suites at organizations including Amazon.com, Inc., Apple Inc., Meta Platforms, Inc., Netflix, Inc., TikTok (ByteDance), LinkedIn Corporation, and Snap Inc.. Investors and analysts at firms such as BlackRock, Vanguard Group, Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, and Benchmark Capital reference Wave placements when assessing market positioning. Media outlets including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Financial Times, Bloomberg L.P., Reuters, and The Economist have cited Wave findings in coverage of mergers, acquisitions, and product launches. Academic researchers from Harvard University, Columbia University, Yale University, Princeton University, and University of Chicago have used Wave reports as secondary sources in case studies and industry analyses.

Criticism and Controversies

Critics draw comparisons to controversies surrounding other analyst firms like Gartner regarding vendor influence and potential conflicts of interest, citing instances where commercial relationships with vendors raised questions. Legal and regulatory observers from bodies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission and policymakers in the European Commission have scrutinized the weight of analyst rankings in public company valuations and procurement. Open letters and opinion pieces in outlets like Wired, TechCrunch, ZDNet, The Verge, and Ars Technica have debated transparency, score weighting, and sample bias. Independent consultants from Rothschild & Co., Lazard, Bain & Company, and Oliver Wyman have recommended complementary due diligence, while trade associations such as the Information Technology Industry Council and TechUK advocate vendor engagement guidelines. Some vendors have publicly disputed placements, prompting comparisons to historical disputes involving firms like Microsoft Corporation in antitrust-era debates and prompting calls for clearer disclosure policies modeled on standards from Institute of Internal Auditors and International Organization for Standardization.

Category:Market research