MicroStrategy and Microsoft Move Up in Gartner's BI Magic Quadrant
MicroStrategy and Microsoft have graduated into the increasingly crowded Market Leaders segment of Gartner's Magic Quadrant for business intelligence (BI) platforms. The two newcomers, however, still trail perennial Leaders Cognos, Business Objects, Oracle, and SAS Institute, the four vendors that continue to lead the way, according to Kurt Schlegel, the firm's research director for BI and information management.
Aside from those two improvements, few other changes differentiate this year's report ("Magic Quadrant for Business Intelligence Platforms, 1Q08") from last year's.
Microsoft moved into the Leaders' quadrant -- and outscored all vendors in terms of ability to execute -- because its Performance Point product gained more acceptance in the market, Schlegel says. "They've clearly gained more traction to win more deals," he adds.
But the days of standalone, best-of-breed leadership in the BI field may be numbered. "MicroStrategy is kind of the odd company out in that it wasn't part of a vendor acquisition," Schlegel says, referring to the industry consolidation that took place throughout 2007:
McLean, Va.-based MicroStrategy, Schlegel says, is "more of a BI specialist with no ancillary data integration or financial planning markets." Despite his belief that the company "arguably has the technically most sound BI platform in the market," negotiation difficulties with customers had kept the firm out of the Leaders' quadrant in the past.
Schlegel attributes MicroStrategy's move from Challenger to Leader this year to a sense that prospects and customers are finding the company easier to deal with, as well as recent upgrades to MicroStrategy's BI platform. And yet, as its peers in the top quadrant offer many other related applications in addition to BI, MicroStrategy will have to depend on maintenance revenue rather than on business growth to remain a viable player in the future, Schlegel says.
Though the MicroStrategy board -- which, according to remarks made by Sanju K. Bansal, MicroStrategy's vice chairman and chief operating officer, at a company conference in October, has more than half of the voting shares of the company's stock -- is committed to remaining independent, that may not be possible in the long term due to the business combinations among other vendors. (If MicroStrategy were to be sold, Schlegel adds, the most likely buyer would be Teradata.)
Among other firms listed in the report, Information Builders is cited as a Challenger, but literally on the cusp of edging into the Leaders' quadrant, missing only due to a perceived shortfall in completeness of vision. Still, the authors of the report state that Information Builders "continues to demonstrate its ability to execute...[and] has proven its worth with enterprise deployments," and note that surveyed customers "rate [the vendor's] support service among the best in the industry."
Meanwhile, Gartner lists QlikTech and Tibco Spotfire as Visionairies -- with QlikTech, according to Schlegel, needing just a bit more popularity before it can move up in the ranks. "QlikTech is inexpensive and very easy to use," he says, but its BI application doesn't have enough users yet to lift the firm into the Leaders' quadrant.
The report also lists four niche players in the BI market:
- Actuate Corp.;
- arcplan;
- Board International (the only newcomer to the report, the vendor was added, according to the report's authors, "due to its focus on BI and corporate performance management, and its growing BI revenue"); and
- Panorama Software.
Related articles:
SAS Tops Gartner's BI Magic Quadrant
2007: The market will experience more growth as the technology includes more users within an organization while application and suite providers enhance their own offerings.
Gartner Releases Its BI Magic Quadrant
2006: The analyst firm expects the business intelligence market to experience sustained growth as the technology includes more users within an organization.
Feature: The 2007 Market Awards: Business Intelligence
As the market for business intelligence matures and users become more sophisticated, more companies are buying into BI.
Feature: The BI Tools Bonanza
Simple BI tools have been developed over the past three years, quietly accelerating marketers' ability to see and hear.
BI Tools Market Shows Continued Growth
A study by IDC reveals that BI software is both popular and necessary; Business Objects and SAS continue to lead the field.
The Best Companies Do Better with BI
Strong companies get more out of business intelligence than weaker ones do.
Business Intelligence's Intelligent Leap
Not every step toward a best-in-class BI deployment is going to be a smooth transition.
Viewpoint: 10 Ways to Improve Your Business Intelligence
Friendly suggestions to help revitalize and maximize your company's BI strategy.
Front Office: You Drive Intelligence
I've noticed an unfortunate eagerness to view business intelligence as a business panacea.
Business Objects Leads the Pack in BI ROI
An evaluation observes that standardization is growing as a trend, but that dashboards are driving BI adoption.
Business Objects: Refocusing BI's Role?
An OEM partnership for predictive analysis and a new retail solution indicate positive implications for operational BI and upped emphasis on verticals.
IBM Acquires Cognos
The $5 billion deal marks ongoing consolidation in the Tier One business intelligence market; a "significant change" in IBM's direction, one analyst notes.
Cognos To Purchase Applix
The $339 million acquisition is the latest example of the convergence of business intelligence and performance management.
SAP to Acquire Business Objects
The friendly takeover folds new business intelligence capabilities into one of the leading enterprise software platforms; amidst differing opinions, rumors loom of a counteroffer from Oracle or IBM.
Business Objects Will Acquire Inxight and Align with IBM
The BI provider will now supply customers with enhanced search capabilities for unstructured data; an alliance with IBM will help tap the Asia Pacific market.
Oracle Is Set to Purchase Hyperion
The $3.3 billion acquisition would be Oracle's largest since Siebel, and continues Oracle's focus on BI while undermining rivals; more BI acquisitions are to come, according to analysts.
BI Will Be Pervasive
Gartner analysts predict more business intelligence usage throughout enterprises, with increasing focus on seamless deployment into strategy and business processes.
McDonald's Credits Business Intelligence for Recent Growth
A top executive tells the Microstrategy Fall Symposium that the key to successful BI is making sure the strategy is designed to deliver value, not merely to collect data for data's sake.
Related Articles
Oracle Brings Out Business Intelligence 11g
16 Jul 2010
"Oracle BI is definitely back," comments one industry analyst.
New Challengers Added to Gartner Magic Quadrant for Business Intelligence
17 May 2010
Magic Quadrant for Business Intelligence '10: Smaller vendors gain traction, but 75 percent of the market remains controlled by the top five vendors, with Oracle on top yet again.
Four BI Vendors Crest the Forrester Wave
08 Aug 2008
Forrester Wave '08: The latest report on enterprise business intelligence shows SAP's BusinessObjects property in a tight race with three other respected vendors.
Recession May Be the Best Thing for BI
10 Mar 2009
Gartner Business Intelligence Summit '09: Industry experts weigh in on aligning BI initiatives with business strategy.
5 Common Snags in Your BI Strategy
09 Mar 2009
Gartner Business Intelligence Summit '09: BI remains a top priority, but one that often conflicts with reality.
Oracle Bolsters Business Intelligence Roadmap
10 Feb 2009
Oracle BI Forum: Blending BI and performance management can lead to operational and management excellence.
Megavendors Look Smart in Gartner Magic Quadrant for Business Intelligence
09 Feb 2009
Magic Quadrant '09: This year's edition shows the biggest players dominating the BI Platform market.
MicroStrategy Dresses to the 9s
21 Jan 2009
MicroStrategy 9, the business intelligence company's first major release in nearly four years, boasts enhanced features and an increase in both scalability and flexibility.
Business Objects Ups the Ante on On-Demand BI
17 Dec 2008
SAP's business intelligence division strengthens its abilities in data warehousing and data exploration with its latest BI OnDemand release.
The 9 Fatal Flaws of Business Intelligence
28 Nov 2008
A recent Gartner report bemoans the fact that "companies tend to view business intelligence as [just] a bunch of technology."
Are Small Businesses More Intelligent?
05 Jun 2008
New research shows that business intelligence tools have a higher adoption rate among small businesses than their medium-sized counterparts.
Building on BI with Predictive Analytics
03 Jun 2008
Information Builders Summit '08: Information Builders strengthens its WebFOCUS platform, delivering on cost-effectiveness and demands for analytics.
Business Intelligence Comes Out of the Back Office
04 Jun 2008
Information Builders Summit '08: Analysts weigh in on the BI industry and a changing market.
Intelligent CRM Requires Business Intelligence
01 Apr 2008
Gartner Business Intelligence Summit '08: The need for better CRM is one of the factors driving growth in the BI marketplace.
Gartner Releases Its BI Magic Quadrant
11 Jan 2006
Magic Quadrant '06: The analyst firm expects the business intelligence market to experience sustained growth as the technology includes more users within an organization.
Buyer's Guide Companies Mentioned