Magic Quadrant
Encyclopedia
The Gartner Magic Quadrant (MQ) is a proprietary research tool developed by Gartner
Inc., a US based research and advisory firm. According to Gartner, the Magic Quadrant aims to provide a qualitative analysis into a market and its direction, maturity and participants, thus possibly enabling a company to be a stronger competitor for that market.
Their analyses are conducted for several specific technical industries and are updated every 1 – 2 years.
Much of the criticism is focused on the lack of disclosure of the money received from the vendors it rates, raising conflict of interest issues. Also a source of criticism is the lack of disclosure on the vendor's component scores and the lack of transparency in Gartner's methodology used to derive the vendor's position on the MQ map.
Another criticism is that open source vendors are not considered sufficiently by analysts like Gartner, as has been published in an unusual online discussion between a VP from Talend
and a German Research VP from Gartner.
Gartner is currently the target of a federal law
suit (filed May 29, 2009) from software vendor, ZL Technologies
, challenging the “legitimacy” of Gartner’s Magic Quadrant rating system. Gartner filed a motion to dismiss by claiming First Amendment protection since it contends that its MQ reports contain "pure opinion," which legally means opinions which are not based on fact.
The court threw out the ZL case because it lacked a specific complaint, but the judge opened the door for the company to resubmit, which it plans to do shortly.
Gartner
Gartner, Inc. is an information technology research and advisory firm headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, United States. It was known as GartnerGroup until 2001....
Inc., a US based research and advisory firm. According to Gartner, the Magic Quadrant aims to provide a qualitative analysis into a market and its direction, maturity and participants, thus possibly enabling a company to be a stronger competitor for that market.
Their analyses are conducted for several specific technical industries and are updated every 1 – 2 years.
Rating
Gartner rates vendors upon two criteria: completeness of vision and ability to execute. Using different qualifiers per criteria for the varying industries, the Magic Quadrant then rates the participants along each of these parameters. Gartner does not share these component scores with the participant. Then, using a methodology which Gartner does not disclose, these component scores lead to a vendor position in one of four quadrants:- Leaders score higher on both criteria; the ability to execute and completeness of vision. Typically larger industry developed businesses with vision and potential for expansion.
- Challengers score higher the ability to execute and lower on the completeness of vision. Typically larger, settled businesses with minimal future plans for that industry.
- Visionaries score lower on the ability to execute and higher on the completeness of vision. Typically smaller companies that are unloading their planned potential.
- Niche players score lower on both criteria: the ability to execute and completeness of vision. Typically new additions to the Magic Quadrant, or market fledglings.
Criticism
It has been pointed out that the criteria for the Magic Quadrant cater more towards investors and large vendors than towards buyers.Much of the criticism is focused on the lack of disclosure of the money received from the vendors it rates, raising conflict of interest issues. Also a source of criticism is the lack of disclosure on the vendor's component scores and the lack of transparency in Gartner's methodology used to derive the vendor's position on the MQ map.
Another criticism is that open source vendors are not considered sufficiently by analysts like Gartner, as has been published in an unusual online discussion between a VP from Talend
Talend Open Studio
Talend Open Studio is an open source data integration product developed by Talend and designed to combine, convert and update data in various locations across a business.- History :...
and a German Research VP from Gartner.
Gartner is currently the target of a federal law
Federal law
Federal law is the body of law created by the federal government of a country. A federal government is formed when a group of political units, such as states or provinces join together in a federation, surrendering their individual sovereignty and many powers to the central government while...
suit (filed May 29, 2009) from software vendor, ZL Technologies
ZL Technologies
ZL Technologies, founded in 1999 as Ziplip, is a privately held developer of software for e-mail and files archiving and E-discovery, headquartered in Silicon Valley...
, challenging the “legitimacy” of Gartner’s Magic Quadrant rating system. Gartner filed a motion to dismiss by claiming First Amendment protection since it contends that its MQ reports contain "pure opinion," which legally means opinions which are not based on fact.
The court threw out the ZL case because it lacked a specific complaint, but the judge opened the door for the company to resubmit, which it plans to do shortly.
Analyzed markets
Analyzed markets include:| Magic Quadrant Name | External Link | Published | Link Verified |
|---|---|---|---|
| Application Infrastructure for Systematic SOA Service-oriented architecture In software engineering, a Service-Oriented Architecture is a set of principles and methodologies for designing and developing software in the form of interoperable services. These services are well-defined business functionalities that are built as software components that can be reused for... Application Projects |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/oracle/article163/article163.html | 21 Oct 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Application Performance Monitoring | http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/ca/vol2/article5/article5.html | 18 Feb 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Business Intelligence Business intelligence Business intelligence mainly refers to computer-based techniques used in identifying, extracting, and analyzing business data, such as sales revenue by products and/or departments, or by associated costs and incomes.... Platforms |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/oracle/article121/article121.html | 29 Jan 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Business Process Business process A business process or business method is a collection of related, structured activities or tasks that produce a specific service or product for a particular customer or customers... Analysis Tools |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/softwareag/volume2/article3/article3.html | 22 Feb 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Business Process Management Business process management Business process management is a holistic management approach focused on aligning all aspects of an organization with the wants and needs of clients. It promotes business effectiveness and efficiency while striving for innovation, flexibility, and integration with technology. BPM attempts to... Suites |
|||
| Communications Outsourcing Outsourcing Outsourcing is the process of contracting a business function to someone else.-Overview:The term outsourcing is used inconsistently but usually involves the contracting out of a business function - commonly one previously performed in-house - to an external provider... and Professional Services Professional services Professional services is an industry of infrequent, technical, or unique functions performed by independent contractors or by consultants whose occupation is the rendering of such services.... , Worldwide |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/csc/vol3/article9/article9.html | 03 Mar 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Continuous Controls Monitoring Continuous controls monitoring Continuous Controls Monitoring is the term used to describe techniques of continuously monitoring and auditing an IT system. Typically CCM solutions will be applied to Enterprise Resource Planning systems such as SAP.... |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/oracle/article125/article125.html | 23 Mar 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Corporate Performance Management Business performance management Business performance management is a set of management and analytic processes that enable the management of an organization's performance to achieve one or more pre-selected goals... Suites |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/oracle/article120/article120.html | 25 Jan 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| CRM Customer relationship management Customer relationship management is a widely implemented strategy for managing a company’s interactions with customers, clients and sales prospects. It involves using technology to organize, automate, and synchronize business processes—principally sales activities, but also those for marketing,... Customer Service Customer service Customer service is the provision of service to customers before, during and after a purchase.According to Turban et al. , “Customer service is a series of activities designed to enhance the level of customer satisfaction – that is, the feeling that a product or service has met the customer... Contact Centers Call centre A call centre or call center is a centralised office used for the purpose of receiving and transmitting a large volume of requests by telephone. A call centre is operated by a company to administer incoming product support or information inquiries from consumers. Outgoing calls for telemarketing,... |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/microsoft/vol3/article2/article2.html | 09 Apr 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| CRM Multichannel Campaign Management | http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/sas/vol7/article2/article2.html | 13 May 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Data Integration Data integration Data integration involves combining data residing in different sources and providing users with a unified view of these data.This process becomes significant in a variety of situations, which include both commercial and scientific domains... Tools |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/sas/vol6/article5/article5.html | 25 Nov 2009 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Data Warehouse Data warehouse In computing, a data warehouse is a database used for reporting and analysis. The data stored in the warehouse is uploaded from the operational systems. The data may pass through an operational data store for additional operations before it is used in the DW for reporting.A data warehouse... Database Management Systems Database management system A database management system is a software package with computer programs that control the creation, maintenance, and use of a database. It allows organizations to conveniently develop databases for various applications by database administrators and other specialists. A database is an integrated... |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/microsoft/vol13/article5/article5.html | 28 Jan 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Data Center Data center A data center is a facility used to house computer systems and associated components, such as telecommunications and storage systems... Outsourcing and Utility Services, Europe |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/hpes/article7/article7.html | 27 Apr 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| E-Commerce Electronic commerce Electronic commerce, commonly known as e-commerce, eCommerce or e-comm, refers to the buying and selling of products or services over electronic systems such as the Internet and other computer networks. However, the term may refer to more than just buying and selling products online... |
|||
| Enterprise Content Management Enterprise content management Enterprise Content Management is a formalized means of organizing and storing an organization's documents, and other content, that relate to the organization's processes... |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/microsoft/vol14/article8/article8.html | 16 Nov 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Enterprise LAN Local area network A local area network is a computer network that interconnects computers in a limited area such as a home, school, computer laboratory, or office building... (Global) |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/juniper/vol6/article4/article4.html | 10 Jun 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Enterprise Marketing Management Enterprise marketing management Enterprise Marketing Management defines a category of software used by marketing operations to manage their end-to-end internal processes. EMM is subset of Marketing Technologies which consists of a total of 3 key technology types that allow for corporations and customers to participate in a... |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/sas/vol7/article3/article3.html | 14 Oct 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Enterprise Single Sign-On Single sign-on Single sign-on is a property of access control of multiple related, but independent software systems. With this property a user logs in once and gains access to all systems without being prompted to log in again at each of them... |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/passlogix/vol2/article1/article1.html | 15 Sep 2009 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Enterprise Wireless E-Mail Software Market | http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/microsoft/vol10/article13/article13.html | 10 Jun 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Field Service Management Field Service Management Field service management is an attempt to optimize processes and information needed by companies who send technicians or staff "into the field" . Optimization is difficult, since it involves intelligent scheduling and dispatching of multiple technicians to different locations daily, while... |
|||
| Global Network Service Provider Network service provider A network service provider is a business or organization that sells bandwidth or network access by providing direct backbone access to the Internet and usually access to its network access points... s |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/att/vol8/article1/article1.html | 08 Mar 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Help Desk Help desk A help desk is an information and assistance resource that troubleshoots problems with computers or similar products. Corporations often provide help desk support to their customers via a toll-free number, website and e-mail. There are also in-house help desks geared toward providing the same kind... Outsourcing Outsourcing Outsourcing is the process of contracting a business function to someone else.-Overview:The term outsourcing is used inconsistently but usually involves the contracting out of a business function - commonly one previously performed in-house - to an external provider... , Europe |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/fujitsu/201425.html | 20 Jul 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Horizontal Portals | http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/microsoft/vol13/article10/article10.html | 03 Sep 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Integrated Workplace Management Systems Integrated Workplace Management System An integrated workplace management system is characterized by an enterprise-class software platform that integrates five key components of functionality, operated from a single technology platform and database repository: real estate management, project management, facilities and space management,... |
http://www.gartner.com/DisplayDocument?doc_cd=158057 | 31 Jul 2008 | 24 Jan 2011 |
| Integration Service Providers Integrated Service Provider An Integrated Service Provider is a for-hire firm that performs a variety of logistics service activities such as warehousing, transportation, and other functional activities that constitute a total service package, as defined by the American Marketing Association... |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/e2open/172249.html | 20 Nov 2009 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Integrated Software Quality Software quality In the context of software engineering, software quality refers to two related but distinct notions that exist wherever quality is defined in a business context:... Suites |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/microfocus/vol4/article1/article1.html | 31 Jan 2011 | 16 Mar 2011 |
| IT Service Desk Service Desk (ITSM) A Service Desk is a primary IT service called for in IT service management as defined by the Information Technology Infrastructure Library . It is intended to provide a Single Point of Contact to meet the communication needs of both Users and IT employees. But also to satisfy both Customer and IT... |
|||
| IT Project and Portfolio Management Project Portfolio Management Project portfolio management is a term used by project managers and project management organizations, , to describe methods for analyzing and collectively managing a group of current or proposed projects based on numerous key characteristics... |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/microsoft/vol10/article12/article12.html | 07 Jun 2010 | 28 Nov 2010 |
| Managed File Transfer Managed File Transfer Managed file transfer ' refers to software solutions that facilitate the secure transfer of data, in flight and at rest, from one computer to another through a network . MFT solutions are often built to support the FTP network protocol... |
http://www.gartner.com/DisplayDocument?id=1184113 | 18 Sept 2009 | 22 Sept 2009 |
| Managed Security Service Managed Security Service In computing, managed security services are network security services that have been outsourced to a service provider. A company providing such a service is a managed security service provider Also Managed security services is a systematic approach to managing an organization's security needs... Providers, North America |
http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/at&t/vol5/article1/article1.html | 16 Apr 2009 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| Master Data Management Master Data Management In computing, master data management comprises a set of processes and tools that consistently defines and manages the non-transactional data entities of an organization... for Customer Data Customer Data Integration In data processing, customer data integration combines the technology, processes and services needed to set up and maintain an accurate, timely, complete and comprehensive representation of a customer across multiple channels, business-lines, and enterprises — typically from multiple sources of... |
http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/oracle/article78/article78.html | 16 Jun 2009 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| Master Data Management for Product Data Product Data Management Product data management is the business function often within product lifecycle management that is responsible for the creation, management and publication of product data... |
http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/oracle/article82/article82.html | 09 Jul 2009 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| MFPs Multifunction printer An MFP , multifunctional, all-in-one , or Multifunction Device , is an office machine which incorporates the functionality of multiple devices in one, so as to have a smaller footprint in a home or small business setting , or to provide centralized document... and Printers |
http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/hp/163288.html | 09 Dec 2008 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| Midmarket and Tier 2-Oriented ERP Enterprise resource planning Enterprise resource planning systems integrate internal and external management information across an entire organization, embracing finance/accounting, manufacturing, sales and service, customer relationship management, etc. ERP systems automate this activity with an integrated software application... for Product-Centric Companies |
http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/microsoft/vol4/article12/article12.html | 04 Jun 2009 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| Network Access Control Network Access Control Network Access Control is an approach to computer network security that attempts to unify endpoint security technology , user or system authentication and network security enforcement.-Background:Network Access Control is a computer networking solution that uses a set of protocols to define and... |
http://www.gartner.com/it/products/mq/mq_ms.jsp#n | 27 Mar 2009 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| Network Configuration and Change Management Network configuration and change management Network configuration and change management a discipline in information technology. According to research from IDC and Gartner, NCCM is one of the fastest growing markets in the ITOM market. Organizations are using NCCM as a way to:* automate changes;* reduce network downtime;* meet compliance.... |
|||
| Network Intrusion-prevention system | http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/juniper/vol4/article4/article4.html | 04 Apr 2009 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| Outage Management Systems Outage management system An Outage Management System is a computer system used by operators of electric distribution systems to assist in restoration of power.- Major Functions of an OMS :Major functions usually found in an OMS include:... |
http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/oracle/article76/article76.html | 08 Jun 2009 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| Product Life Cycle Management Product Information Management Product information management or PIM refers to processes and technologies focused on centrally managing information about products, with a focus on the data required to market and sell the products through one or more distribution channels... |
http://www.gartner.com/it/products/mq/mq_ms.jsp#p | ||
| Ruggedized Handheld-Computer Rugged computer A rugged computer is a computer specifically designed to reliably operate in harsh usage environments and conditions, such as strong vibrations, extreme temperatures and wet or dusty conditions... |
http://www.gartner.com/it/products/mq/mq_ms.jsp#r | ||
| Sales Force Automation Sales force management system Sales force management systems are information systems used in CRM marketing and management that help automate some sales and sales force management functions... |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/microsoft/vol10/article18/article18.html | 28 Jul 2010 | 17 Aug 2010 |
| Security Information Security Information Management Security information management is the industry-specific term in computer security referring to the collection of data into a central repository for trend analysis... and Event Management Event management Event management is the application of project management to the creation and development of festivals, events and conferences.Event management involves studying the intricacies of the brand, identifying the target audience, devising the event concept, planning the logistics and coordinating the... |
http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/loglogic/article1/article1.html | 29 May 2009 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| SMB Multifunction Firewalls Firewall (computing) A firewall is a device or set of devices designed to permit or deny network transmissions based upon a set of rules and is frequently used to protect networks from unauthorized access while permitting legitimate communications to pass.... |
http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/sonicwall/vol3/article1/article1.html | 10 Jul 2009 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| Social Software Social Software In philosophy and the social sciences, social software is an interdisciplinary research program that borrowsmathematical tools and techniques from game theory and computer science in order to analyze and design social procedures... |
http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/microsoft/vol6/article5/article5.html | 31 Oct 2008 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| Softswitch Softswitch A softswitch is a central device in a telecommunications network which connects telephone calls from one phone line to another, typically via the internet, entirely by means of software running on a general-purpose computer system... Architecture |
http://www.gartner.com/it/products/mq/mq_ms.jsp#s | ||
| Software Change & Configuration Management Software configuration management In software engineering, software configuration management is the task of tracking and controlling changes in the software. Configuration management practices include revision control and the establishment of baselines.... (Distributed Platforms) |
http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/microsoft/vol4/article9and10/article9and10.html | 26 Mar 2009 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| SSL VPNs | http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/citrix/163232.html | 11 Dec 2008 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| Transportation Management System Transportation management system A transportation management system is a subset of supply chain management concerning transportation operations and may be part of an enterprise resource planning system.... s |
http://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/reprints/oracle/article129/article129.html | 13 Apr 2010 | 29 Sep 2011 |
| Unified Communications Unified communications Unified communications is the integration of real-time communication services such as instant messaging , presence information, telephony , video conferencing, data sharing , call control and speech recognition with non-real-time communication services such as unified... |
http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/microsoft/vol6/article1/article1.html | 12 Sep 2008 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| Utilities Customer Information Systems | http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/oracle/article77/article77.html | 15 Jun 2009 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| User Provisioning | http://www.gartner.com/it/products/mq/mq_ms.jsp#u | 15 Aug 2008 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| Video Telepresence Telepresence Telepresence refers to a set of technologies which allow a person to feel as if they were present, to give the appearance of being present, or to have an effect, via telerobotics, at a place other than their true location.... Solutions |
http://www.gartner.com/it/products/mq/mq_ms.jsp#v | ||
| WAN Optimization WAN Optimization WAN optimization is a collection of techniques for increasing data-transfer efficiencies across wide-area networks. In 2008, the WAN optimization market was estimated to be $1 billion , and it will grow to $4.4 billion according to Gartner, a technology research firm.The most common measures of... Controllers |
http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/riverbed/165875.html | 30 Jun 2009 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| Warehouse Management Systems Warehouse management system A warehouse management system, or WMS, is a key part of the supply chain and primarily aims to control the movement and storage of materials within a warehouse and process the associated transactions, including shipping, receiving, putaway and picking... |
http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/oracle/article66/article66.html | 06 Apr 2009 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| Web Conferencing Web conferencing Web conferencing refers to a service that allows conferencing events to be shared with remote locations. Most vendors also provide either a recorded copy of an event, or a means for a subscriber to record an event. The service allows information to be shared simultaneously, across geographically... |
http://www.gartner.com/it/products/mq/mq_ms.jsp#w | ||
| Web Content Management Web content management system A web content management system is a software system that provides website authoring, collaboration, and administration tools designed to allow users with little knowledge of web programming languages or markup languages to create and manage website content with relative ease... |
http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/oracle/article91/article91.html | 05 Aug 2009 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| Web Hosting Web hosting service A web hosting service is a type of Internet hosting service that allows individuals and organizations to make their own website accessible via the World Wide Web. Web hosts are companies that provide space on a server they own or lease for use by their clients as well as providing Internet... and Hosted Cloud System Cloud computing Cloud computing is the delivery of computing as a service rather than a product, whereby shared resources, software, and information are provided to computers and other devices as a utility over a network .... Infrastructure Services (On Demand) |
http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/terremark/168687.html | 02 Jul 2009 | 08 Aug 2009 |
| Wireless LAN Wireless LAN A wireless local area network links two or more devices using some wireless distribution method , and usually providing a connection through an access point to the wider internet. This gives users the mobility to move around within a local coverage area and still be connected to the network... Infrastructure |
http://mediaproducts.gartner.com/reprints/merunetworks/163188.html | 26 Nov 2008 | 08 Aug 2009 |
External links
- The Register Article showing blind spots and alternate presentations
- E-Commerce Times Problems with Magic Quadrant
- Demystifying the Magic Quadrant Review of oddities in MQ for ECM
- Federal Computer Week IG criticizes over-reliance of Magic Quadrant for US Government contract
- Downfall of AR and the Gartner Magic Quadrant Technobabble 2.0 reuses well known Downfall meme to create parody of Gartner's Magic Quadrant from an analyst relations perspective