Examining the 2017 Forrester Wave for Services Procurement
Forrester Research, the Cambridge, MA-based research company that provides advice on existing and potential impact of technology to the public, has released the latest version of its Wave report for Services Procurement solutions.
In today’s highly competitive market, firms depend heavily on outside resources like consulting firms, outsourcers, and contractors to complement and supplement their internal staff. Acquiring and managing these external resources is critical, in terms of both cost and meeting customer needs. Services procurement products help firms get the best results from their external resources and talent. Services procurement software is a valuable application that integrates management of an organization’s extended workforce of contingent and contract labor.
In their 40-criteria evaluation of services procurement vendors, Forrester researchers Andrew Bartels, Matthew Guarini, Robert Valdovinos and Ian McPherson identified the top eight vendors that they consider most significant in the category – Beeline, DCR Workforce, IQNavigator, PeopleFluent, PIXID, PRO Unlimited, Provade, and SAP Fieldglass. They then researched, analyzed and scored them.
In order to help professionals choose the right vendor for their firm’s needs, the Forrester Wave report shows how each provider measures up and helps CIOs, sourcing and vendor management (SVM) professionals make the right choice. The report details their findings and examines how each vendor meets (or falls short of) the evaluation criteria and where vendors stand in relation to each other. It also provides a grid chart with ratings on the vendor’s current offerings, strategy, and market presence.
Below are our key takeaways from the report.
Four Vendors Lead the Pack
The Forrester Wave Report outlines the current state of the market and separates the top providers into Leaders, Strong Performers, Challengers, and Contenders. The research found that Beeline, DCR Workforce, PRO Unlimited, And SAP Fieldglass are in the Leaders category offering developing solutions.
Forrester praised SAP’s Fieldglass portfolio of external talent management and services procurement solutions as it continues to be one of the most capable services procurement vendors, with the largest client base, the most spend under management, and the widest geographic presence. The report also noted that SAP Fieldglass solutions provide very effective coverage of all aspects of contingent worker and freelancer engagement and competitive coverage of other service categories.