Analyst One-On-One Sessions

What is an Analyst one-on-one?

Analyst one-on-ones (or one-on-ones) are engagements with a Forrester analyst scheduled as 20-minute in-person meetings conducted during a Forrester event. Analyst one-on-ones are designed to address questions based on the analyst’s research and areas of expertise. The scope of each one-on-one covers one to four specific questions including:

• Questions about a technology or services market (customer trend, competitive dynamic, prediction, or big idea) and the implications for our clients.
• Questions about a technology.
• Questions about a specific piece of Forrester research.
• Questions about an analyst’s research agenda or coverage. For more details, please see the section below on using inquiries to address research plans.

One-on-ones may not be used to:

• Address the frameworks, models, and best practices exclusively available in the Forrester Decisions portfolio. Clients who wish to discuss these topics may subscribe to our Forrester Decisions services and discuss these topics in Guidance Sessions. 
• Brief analysts on technology and services offerings. Briefings are reserved for our briefings process, available to clients and non-clients. See the sections below on Briefings, and our Briefing FAQs. 
• Conduct detailed document or messaging reviews.  Inquiries are a time to ask questions and have conversations with our analysts. Detailed document and messaging reviews are reserved for our advisory and consulting services.    
• Discuss Wave details. Waves are managed through a detailed Wave methodology. Following this methodology provides equal opportunities to all Wave participants. While clients may use inquiry sessions to ask about the general timing and focus of upcoming Waves, we will not discuss criteria, scoring, nor will we take scorecard feedback during inquiry sessions. 

Do I have access to Analyst one-on-ones?

One-on-ones are reserved exclusively for Forrester Event attendees with specified access to one-on-ones as defined by the terms of your licensing agreement. This includes all Full conference attendees. This excludes Sponsoring company staff not attending on Full conference passes.

Contact the Forrester Events team if you have questions about your access to one-on-ones via events@forrester.com

How do I submit a one-one-one request?

Prior to and during the live conference days, you will receive email instructions for how to request a one-on-one meeting with a Forrester Expert.

What information should I include in my request?

Be specific about your challenges and your goal of the Inquiry Session. Whenever possible, please provide your business objective, as that helps us put your request in context and deliver a more personalized response. Submit one to three questions. For example:

• I’m working on my company’s strategic plan. We would like some insight on the US Tech Market Outlook report. Can you provide a bit more detail on the numbers behind Cloud Spend vs On-Premise spend?
• I’m working on the messaging for our new threat intelligence solution. We would like to engage with an analyst to gain more insight into the threat intelligence landscape.
• We’re expanding the scope of our Commerce solution. How do you see the demand for offerings like Social Commerce? What are buyers expecting in this market?
• I want to understand the market dynamics that will affect my products next year. Is there meaningful innovation happening in the Enterprise Content Management market? What are the biggest customer pain points that still need to be addressed?

How many one-on-ones can I request?

Entitled attendees can have one analyst one-on-one meeting request. If additional slots are available on site, attendees may be invited to request more than one meeting.

What should I expect during a One-on-one?

After a brief introduction, you and the analyst will discuss your questions and any additional context you can provide, such as business goals. Please do not assume the analyst knows your full set of questions or business needs in advance of the meeting. By interacting with you and asking more detailed questions, we can better understand your objectives.

One-on-ones can last up to 20-minutes. You will meet in-person with the Forrester expert on-site at the Event during a pre-scheduled time in a location in event venue as specified by Forrester events.

What if the analyst can’t help with my request?

If your questions fall outside our coverage areas, we will contact you as soon as possible.

Analysts will decline one-on-ones if they are not covering the topic or market in question. They may also decline the request if clients do not have a specific question, if the scope of the request is too broad for a 20-minute discussion, or if the questions relate to Forrester products and services that the client has not purchased.

Can I set up a One-on-one with more than one analyst?

No.

Can I invite others to participate in my One-on-one?

No. One-on-ones are reserved exclusively for Forrester event attendees with one-on-one access, as defined by the terms of your registration.

Can I schedule One-on-ones and have colleagues attend on my behalf?

No.

Can I have an analyst review my documents in a One-on-one?

No. Document Reviews are a distinct type of Inquiry Session, reserved for Forrester clients with specific access. Please contact your Forrester account team if you have questions about document reviews

Can I record my One-on-one conversation?

No. Forrester clients may take notes but not record Inquiry Sessions.

Can I use a One-on-one to brief an Analyst?

No. One-on-ones are designed to answer specific questions or discuss research, while briefings are designed to inform analysts about a product, service offering, or event. Analysts may accept or deny briefings based on their research agenda or calendar availability. For this reason, slideware presentations are reserved for briefings. If your goal is to brief our analysts, please work through our briefing process.

Can I use a One-on-one to get feedback on my messaging?

One-on-ones are not designed to provide detailed feedback on a client’s messaging.  Detailed feedback on these topics is reserved for Forrester’s Advisory and Consulting Services.

Clients may request, and analysts may offer, some general feedback on strategy, messaging, and previously scheduled engagements (like briefings and advisory sessions) as part of a One-on-one. This feedback is high-level in nature and based only on an analyst’s impressions of the interaction, not a detailed analysis.

Can I use a One-on-one to talk to an analyst about their upcoming research plans?

Please do this selectively. We recommend starting with the planned research tool to view Forrester’s upcoming research for the next 12 months.

Research agenda check-ins are subject to analyst availability. We may also decline requests to speak to analysts who do not cover your specific questions, market, or area of focus.

Should I use a One-on-one to discuss whether my company’s product will be included in an upcoming Wave report?

No. Waves are research reports that are planned months in advance of publication. Companies are screened for participation in Waves as part of a comprehensive review of the market landscape, objective screening criteria, and a strict methodology. There is no need to schedule time with analysts to discuss Wave participation and analysts may decline.

What’s the difference between a One-on-one and an  Inquiry Session?

A one-on-one is essentially an Inquiry Session conducted over 20-minutes on-site at a Forrester Event versus 30-minutes via phone/web for Clients. To learn more about Inquiry, please visit https://www.forrester.com/help/inquiry/

What’s the difference between a One-on-one and a Research Request?

A Research Request is a complimentary service available to all Forrester seat holders. It is distinct from a one-on-one. In a Research Request, a Customer Success Specialist will locate the most relevant published research for a client’s business needs. You can submit your question at forrester.com and will receive a response within two business days. 

What’s the difference between a One-on-one and a Briefing?

Briefings enable technology and service providers to update Forrester about their firm’s strategic developments such as new product releases or acquisitions. Analyst participation is based on their interest and availability. There is no fee for this service. 

Briefings are an opportunity for technology and service providers to present to Forrester, but they are not interactive sessions. Briefing requests can be submitted by both Forrester clients and non-clients by submitting an online form or by sending an email to briefings@forrester.com. 

By contrast, a One-on-one is an engagement with a Forrester analyst, scheduled as a 20-minute  in-person meeting conducted during a Forrester Event. One-on-ones are only available to Forrester Event attendees with One-on-one access. One-on-ones may not be used to brief analysts.

What’s the difference between a One-on-one and an Advisory engagement?

One-on-ones provide quick access to a Forrester analyst, enabling you to ask specific questions about existing research in a conversational format. Advisory engagements take a more strategic approach to the analyst’s area of expertise through more detailed interactive sessions, and are considered a part of Forrester’s Consulting Services. If we believe the scope of your questions go beyond what we can answer in a 30-minute inquiry session, we may suggest an Advisory engagement.