Magic Quadrant

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.^[1]

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^[1] and ability to execute.^[1] 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.^[2]

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.^[3]

Gartner is currently the target of a federal lawsuit (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.^[4]

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.^[5]

Analyzed markets

Analyzed markets include:^[6]

Magic Quadrant Name	External Link	Published	Link Verified
Application Infrastructure for Systematic SOA Application Projects	[1]	21 Oct 2010	28 Nov 2010
Application Performance Monitoring	[2]	18 Feb 2010	28 Nov 2010
Business Intelligence Platforms	[3]	29 Jan 2010	28 Nov 2010
Business Process Analysis Tools	[4]	22 Feb 2010	28 Nov 2010
Business Process Management Suites
Communications Outsourcing and Professional Services, Worldwide	[5]	03 Mar 2010	28 Nov 2010
Continuous Controls Monitoring	[6]	23 Mar 2010	28 Nov 2010
Corporate Performance Management Suites	[7]	25 Jan 2010	28 Nov 2010
CRM Customer Service Contact Centers	[8]	09 Apr 2010	28 Nov 2010
CRM Multichannel Campaign Management	[9]	13 May 2010	28 Nov 2010
Data Integration Tools	[10]	25 Nov 2009	28 Nov 2010
Data Warehouse Database Management Systems	[11]	28 Jan 2010	28 Nov 2010
Data Center Outsourcing and Utility Services, Europe	[12]	27 Apr 2010	28 Nov 2010
E-Commerce
Enterprise Content Management	[13]	16 Nov 2010	28 Nov 2010
Enterprise LAN (Global)	[14]	10 Jun 2010	28 Nov 2010
Enterprise Marketing Management	[15]	14 Oct 2010	28 Nov 2010
Enterprise Single Sign-On	[16]	15 Sep 2009	28 Nov 2010
Enterprise Wireless E-Mail Software Market	[17]	10 Jun 2010	28 Nov 2010
Field Service Management
Global Network Service Providers	[18]	08 Mar 2010	28 Nov 2010
Help Desk Outsourcing, Europe	[19]	20 Jul 2010	28 Nov 2010
Horizontal Portals	[20]	03 Sep 2010	28 Nov 2010
Integrated Workplace Management Systems	[21]	31 Jul 2008	24 Jan 2011
Integration Service Providers	[22]	20 Nov 2009	28 Nov 2010
Integrated Software Quality Suites	[23]	31 Jan 2011	16 Mar 2011
IT Service Desk
IT Project and Portfolio Management	[24]	07 Jun 2010	28 Nov 2010
Managed File Transfer	[25]	18 Sept 2009	22 Sept 2009
Managed Security Service Providers, North America	[26]	16 Apr 2009	08 Aug 2009
Master Data Management for Customer Data	[27]	16 Jun 2009	08 Aug 2009
Master Data Management for Product Data	[28]	09 Jul 2009	08 Aug 2009
MFPs and Printers	[29]	09 Dec 2008	08 Aug 2009
Midmarket and Tier 2-Oriented ERP for Product-Centric Companies	[30]	04 Jun 2009	08 Aug 2009
Network Access Control	[31]	27 Mar 2009	08 Aug 2009
Network Configuration and Change Management
Network Intrusion-prevention system	[32]	04 Apr 2009	08 Aug 2009
Outage Management Systems	[33]	08 Jun 2009	08 Aug 2009
Product Life Cycle Management	[34]
Ruggedized Handheld-Computer	[35]
Sales Force Automation	[36]	28 Jul 2010	17 Aug 2010
Security Information and Event Management	[37]	29 May 2009	08 Aug 2009
SMB Multifunction Firewalls	[38]	10 Jul 2009	08 Aug 2009
Social Software	[39]	31 Oct 2008	08 Aug 2009
Softswitch Architecture	[40]
Software Change & Configuration Management (Distributed Platforms)	[41]	26 Mar 2009	08 Aug 2009
SSL VPNs	[42]	11 Dec 2008	08 Aug 2009
Transportation Management Systems	[43]	13 Apr 2010	29 Sep 2011
Unified Communications	[44]	12 Sep 2008	08 Aug 2009
Utilities Customer Information Systems	[45]	15 Jun 2009	08 Aug 2009
User Provisioning	[46]	15 Aug 2008	08 Aug 2009
Video Telepresence Solutions	[47]
WAN Optimization Controllers	[48]	30 Jun 2009	08 Aug 2009
Warehouse Management Systems	[49]	06 Apr 2009	08 Aug 2009
Web Conferencing	[50]
Web Content Management	[51]	05 Aug 2009	08 Aug 2009
Web Hosting and Hosted Cloud System Infrastructure Services (On Demand)	[52]	02 Jul 2009	08 Aug 2009
Wireless LAN Infrastructure	[53]	26 Nov 2008	08 Aug 2009

See also

• Hype cycle
• Product-Market Growth Matrix

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} "Magic Quadrants and MarketScopes: How Gartner Evaluates Vendors Within a Market". Gartner. 02/2008. http://www.gartner.com/DisplayDocument?doc_cd=131166. Retrieved 2009-07-27. 
2. ^ "Looking beyond the magic quadrant to find the nitty-gritty". CMS Watch. 2009-08-07. http://www.cmswatch.com/Trends/1660-Assessing-WCM-vendors. Retrieved 2009-08-08. 
3. ^ "Vendor complains in a very public blog post about Gartner's Data Integration Magic Quadrant". sagecircle. 2009-12-29. http://sagecircle.wordpress.com/2008/12/29/vendor-complains-in-a-very-public-blog-post-about-gartners-data-integration-magic-quadrant/. Retrieved 2009-08-08. 
4. ^ ZL Technologies Lawsuit http://www.scribd.com/doc/21393241/ZL-v-Gartner-Complaint
5. ^ Enterprisestorageforum.com
6. ^ "Magic Quadrants and MarketScopes". Gartner. 2009-08-03. http://www.gartner.com/it/products/mq/mq_ms.jsp. Retrieved 2009-08-08. 

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