Author Archive | equinn1952

[GUEST POST] How AR is Doing: An Ex-AR Practitioner’s View from the Other Side, by Evan Quinn / ESG

By equinn1952 on Friday 15th February 2013 in AR, AR Best practices, ESG, Guest Posts, Guest posts – AR pros 11

This guest post has been authored by Evan Quinn (LinkedIn, @evanquinn, blog) who is a Senior Principal Analyst at ESG (Enterprise Strategy Group) covering Data Management, Analytics, Big Data and Cloud Platform-as-a-Service. While at Axicom, Evan was also on the IIAR board .

Speech is free: Evan and ESG are not associated in any ways with the IIAR and the post below contains Evan’s opinions which might not reflect the views of IIAR’s members or ESG.

A couple of years ago I decided it was time to step away from the analyst/influencer relations function for at least awhile. The researcher/competitive analyst side of me was asking for an outlet, and so I left the AR ranks. But, ironically, in my current job as an industry analyst I have the opportunity to see how AR practitioners perform their jobs every business day. I am here to report that things have changed somewhat in AR, and in some cases not for the better. But first some background. Continue Reading →

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Wednesday July 27th: IIAR Virtual Lunch with Mike Harris, GVP, Gartner

By equinn1952 on Wednesday 20th July 2011 in AR, Gartner, IIAR, IIAR Discussion Group, IIAR Forum, IIAR Webinar, IT Analysis Firms 0

The IIAR and Symantec are pleased to host a virtual lunch (noon Pacific, but all are welcome of course) with Mike Harris, GVP at Gartner who oversees the Global Technology & Service Provider research group. Prep yourself by reading Mike’s recent interview from the Gartner’s June AR Community newsletter. Mike will provide an overview of the purpose and structure of his team, and then will open up the floor for Q&A.

Mike will provide an overview of the purpose and structure of his team, and then will open up the floor for Q&A.

Please register at Evite if you plan on attending. If you have any questions email Evan Quinn at evan_quinn@symantec.com.

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Gartner Wields the Most Influential Influencers, Peers, Not Analysts

By equinn1952 on Tuesday 12th April 2011 in AR, AR debates, Focus, Forrester, Gartner, IDC, IIAR, IT Analysis Firms, Wikibon 2

A Glimpse into Peer Connect

Every AR person knows that many of the most influential analysts in the information technology industry work at Gartner. But analysts are not the most influential influencers out there, peers are – IT buyers and practitioners most trust the insights of other IT buyers and practitioners who have been through similar buying and implementation processes. The historical blockades to peer-to-peer exchange, however, have been (a) finding qualified peers and (b) providing a safe harbor for peers that prefer to remain anonymous in order
to participate. Continue Reading →

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Five Worst Practices for Managing AR Headcount

By equinn1952 on Thursday 31st March 2011 in AR, AR Best practices 7

In my last post and in response to a friend’s question about how to size an AR team, I offered some criteria for consideration. This time let’s turn the equation around and discuss worst practices that often lead to wrong-sizing and related performance issues with AR. Here they are in no particular order.

1. Early Stage Vendor Leans on Agency PR to do AR

The analyst relationships required to establish interest in an early stage vendor among the sometimes cynical lot of industry analysts requires trust – where the AR person obtains the proverbial “seat at the table” with the analysts. PR agencies often over-depend on social media, hard pitches, or analysts who only play to the media. The by-product is the start-up flies under the radar of the analysts with sway with real customers or potential partners. Emerging vendors are better off with a part-time AR contractor, or letting a product manager or product marketing handle the AR work; it more important to be real than over-hyped during the early stages.
Continue Reading →

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5 Criteria for Right-Sizing AR Teams

By equinn1952 on Monday 28th March 2011 in AR, AR Best practices, IIAR 5

Note: This was cross-posted from IIAR board member Evan Quinn’s blog: link.

An AR friend of mine recently asked if there was a formula or guideline for right-sizing AR teams. Unfortunately, there is no simple formula to the staffing question, but off the top of my head there are five factors that contribute to determining a reasonable headcount model for right-sizing an AR team, whether full-time employee or 3rd party agency or contractors. Continue Reading →

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[Job Posting] AR Contract Role in San Francisco, BPO/FAO, Analytics and CRM

By equinn1952 on Friday 25th March 2011 in AR, Jobs -AR roles 0

Part-time AR contract role in the San Francisco/Silicon Valley area.

Looking for 3-5 years experience as an analyst relations specialist, preferably with knowledge of analysts and markets in the BPO/FAO, Business Analytics and/or CRM/Retail space.

The role includes core AR functions such as analyst identification and qualification, briefing facilitation and research filtering.

Please contact Beth Trier at beth a.t triercompany dotcom

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The IIAR at IDC Directions, Boston and San Jose

By equinn1952 on Thursday 24th March 2011 in AR, AR Best practices, IDC, IIAR, IT Analysis Firms 0

At IDC Directions on March 9th in Boston and on March 15th in San Jose, approximately 80 AR professionals attended the IDC-IIAR luncheon program – in fact the San Jose program was packed and IDC had to turn away walk-ins due to a lack of seats. The program at both venues included speeches by Crawford Del Prete / Executive Vice President of IDC’s worldwide research (bio, @craw), Barbara French / Senior Director of Analyst Relations, Juniper Networks (blog, @bfr3nch) and founder of Tekrati (now discontinued due to Barbara’s role at Juniper) and USA chapter heads from the IIAR. Continue Reading →

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IDC-IIAR Luncheons at IDC Directions: March 9th Boston, March 15th San Jose

By equinn1952 on Wednesday 23rd February 2011 in AR, IDC, IT Analysis Firms 1

Presentations by Crawford Del Prete, Barbara French and the IIAR

Going to IDC Directions in Boston or San Jose in March, or thinking about it? You are invited to attend a special luncheon co-hosted by the IIAR at IDC’s U.S. Directions for analyst relations professionals. Besides networking with fellow AR people, there will be presentations by IDC EVP Crawford DelPrete and Barbara French, founder of Tekrati and Sway (see www.barbarafrench.net). Continue Reading →

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[Guest post] V3: It’s All About the Analysts

By equinn1952 on Friday 21st May 2010 in AR, AR Best practices, Guest Posts, Guest posts – AR pros, IT Analysis Firms, V3 1

There is a kind of Google out there in the realm of IT industry analyst firms, a purveyor that turns the successful models of the “Big Three,” Gartner, Forrester and IDC, on their proverbial ears. This little firm does not market itself very much; it rather eschews the “branded analyst firm” approach where analysts largely become subsumed in the one-to-many brand-first approach, hoping for margins that impress boards and investors. Rather it aims for some simple values: It purely focuses on serving its affiliated analysts and helping its affiliated analysts service their clients. Maybe you have heard of “V3.”

I challenge you to find V3 on the Web: The URL is actually not www.v3.com but www.valleyviewventures.com – like International Data Corporation goes quite strictly by “IDC” these days, but the URL just hasn’t been changed yet. You will not be awed by the V3 web site, but that doesn’t matter one iota to Fred Abbott, V3′s founder, who says with utter sincerity, “It’s all about the analysts.” Continue Reading →

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