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IT Industry Insights: Where to Find Reliable Reports

The short answer

Reliable IT industry insights come from three kinds of report: market research from analyst firms such as Gartner, Forrester and IDC; research from industry bodies and surveys; and technical papers from cloud vendors. Judge each one by its author, method, date, audience and sponsor, and compare several sources before you act on any single report.

Written by

Siddharth Kajaria, Founder and CEO

Published

Updated

Reading time

3 min read

A man at a desk by a window holds one report up to inspect its cover, with other open reports spread in front of him.
In this post3 min read
  1. What kinds of IT industry reports are there?
  2. Why read industry reports at all?
  3. How do you judge whether a report is reliable?
  4. Building a fuller picture: beyond individual reports
  5. Turning report data into something people can explore
  6. Conclusion: informed choices in a changing industry

The IT industry keeps changing. New technologies appear, established markets shift and trends take hold quickly. For businesses and individuals alike, keeping up with those changes matters, and IT industry reports and insights are one of the best tools for it: they help you understand the landscape and make informed decisions.

What kinds of IT industry reports are there?

There are three main kinds of IT industry report: market research reports, analyst and research-body reports, and technology vendor reports. Each answers a different question.

Market research reports

These reports analyse specific IT sectors in depth: market size, growth forecasts, the main players and how the market is structured. Examples:

  • Gartner Magic Quadrant: places technology vendors within a specific market.
  • The Forrester Wave: assesses technology vendors and their capabilities against set criteria.
  • IDC MarketScape: profiles and assesses vendors within one IT market.

Analyst and research-body reports

Industry analysts and research bodies comment on future trends in information technology, how the industry is changing and where new opportunities lie. Examples:

  • NASSCOM research: reports on India’s technology industry from its industry body.
  • The Stack Overflow Developer Survey: a yearly survey of the languages, tools and working habits of developers.
  • The World Economic Forum’s reports: research on how technology affects jobs, business and the economy.

Technology vendor reports

Large technology companies publish papers on market trends, customer patterns and their own product roadmaps. Examples:

  • Google Cloud white papers: cloud computing trends and best practices.
  • Microsoft Azure e-books: in-depth technical guides to Azure services.
  • Amazon Web Services (AWS) whitepapers: new developments and use cases for AWS products.

Why read industry reports at all?

Reading industry reports helps you spot opportunities early and avoid known pitfalls, which saves time and money. A report can show you where a market is heading, what other organisations are investing in and which problems are already solved, before you spend your own budget finding out.

How do you judge whether a report is reliable?

Judge a report by who wrote it, how they gathered the data, when it was published, who it was written for and who paid for it. Not all reports are equally useful, so check each of these:

  • Author’s expertise: the author’s reputation and experience in that technology field.
  • Methodology: how the data was gathered and analysed.
  • Date of publication: whether the report reflects the current market, not an outdated one.
  • Target audience: whether the report’s focus matches your needs.
  • Bias and sponsorship: whether the author’s affiliation or the report’s sponsor could bias the findings.
  • Data and report aggregators: Statista, plus press-release services such as Business Wire for company announcements
  • Technology news and analysis: TechCrunch, The Verge and VentureBeat
  • Subscription research: Gartner, Forrester and IDC
  • Industry events and conferences: SXSW, Mobile World Congress and CES
  • Podcasts, talks and courses: the a16z Podcast, the Google for Developers YouTube channel and MIT OpenCourseWare

For more free starting points, see our list of free IT resources.

Building a fuller picture: beyond individual reports

A single report rarely gives the whole picture. Here’s how to build a fuller understanding of the IT landscape:

  • Follow several analysts and publications: you’ll get different perspectives.
  • Attend industry events and webinars: they keep you up to date with new trends.
  • Talk to people in the industry: share what you know and learn from your peers.
  • Think critically: weigh the evidence yourself and draw your own conclusions.

Turning report data into something people can explore

Many reports publish their data as tables and PDFs, which are hard to explore. Research teams increasingly publish the data itself, as an interactive dashboard or an open data portal, so readers can filter it, compare it and download what they need. Tailwebs built the dashboards for CEEW’s Green Finance Centre (GFC): the EV dashboard and Renewables India with the CEA. If you publish research, see our work on data portals and dashboards for research teams and interactive data visualization.

Conclusion: informed choices in a changing industry

The IT landscape can feel like a whirlwind, but knowledge helps. Read reports from several kinds of source, think critically about each one and stay connected to the wider tech community. That way you can make informed decisions and keep your business or career moving forward as the industry changes.

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