by Betsy Burton
I’m really excited about the release of the new Aragon Research Globe for Digital Business Platforms. In this 2020 globe, we’ve made a bunch of changes since last year. The digital business platform market is shifting rapidly, with new digital business models, technologies, and shifts in the global customer base transforming it.
In this blog, I explain the central topic of the note and give a preview of some Aragon insights for digital business platforms.
What Is a Digital Business Platform?
A digital business platform (DBP) is a multi-purpose hub that helps an organization coordinate work and supports business interactions between human beings and technology. Organizations that have large IT infrastructures may struggle to integrate different systems, costing valuable time and resources. For these use cases and more, a DBP can be a worthwhile investment.
With the future of artificial intelligence (AI) transforming the workplace alongside other emerging technologies, there are more buyers than ever looking for an integration hub. An effective DBP will need to support application and data integration across all of a business’s processes. It will need to deliver an interface that can orchestrate and manage these processes, as well as analytic tools that help optimize their performance. A strong DBP will need to have machine-to-machine capabilities for managing IoT devices as well as modern security features. We have found that consulting and advisory services are sought after features as well.
Digital Business Platform Market Trends
In our research, we found several trends that are likely to impact the DBP market. First off, with many companies looking to transform their business model to reach out to customers more effectively, there will be an accompanying need for new technologies to support these changes. For enterprises hoping to accomplish wide-reaching changes, a support system such as a DBP will be vital.
Figure 1. The current digital business platform market exists at the convergence of several other enterprise technology markets.
The need to optimize basic work processes is also creating more need for DBPs. Effectively managing user experience through streamlined dashboards and managing collaboration by organizing content and enabling communication are critical areas of demand.
As businesses adopt new technologies to improve their workflow, they will find a need for platforms to manage these technologies. DBPs will help companies manage the analytic systems that are increasingly relied upon to guide decision-making. Similarly, as Internet of Things (IoT) devices become more and more common, enterprises will search for unified systems that make it possible to track and manage their devices. The same goes for artificial intelligence, which has already become a pervasive business tool.
Another trend I chose to highlight in this globe was the demand for consulting services alongside DBPs. Due to the complexity of modern IT infrastructure, many who are in the market for a DBP are searching for an offering that is paired with complementary consulting and advisory services. Providers that can offer documented case studies, or that have proven knowledge of industry best practices will stand out in this market. In our report, we have taken special attention to highlight the digital business platform examples that stand out for consulting services.
Given the overlapping needs addressed by a DBP, it is no surprise that we have seen a collection of vendors with established market positions converging on this market. From application vendors to IoT vendors to information integration vendors, many different services are merging into DBP offerings (see Figure 1).
Bottom Line
We have changed a lot in this year’s digital business platform globe. With a special emphasis on integration, artificial intelligence, analytics, and consulting services, this globe provides valuable tools for those looking to select the right digital business platform to support their new digital business models. We looked at 16 different technology and service providers and divided the market into Contenders, Leaders, Specialists, and Innovators.
We hope you will find our our market insights and advice a valuable tool in helping to power your digital business decision-making. We also invite you to attend our webinar next week, during which I will be discussing many of these trends and highlighting the resulting market research