Please note that a more recent version of this Gartner ITSM Magic Quadrant article from 2022 can be found here. In 2016 and 2017, I wrote articles that linked to some of the many free-to-access IT service management (ITSM)-related analyst research reports out there. Somehow it didn’t happen in 2018 but I’m back again with a refreshed list of free-to-access analyst reports for 2019 that coincides with the publication of the most-coveted ITSM tool report going – the 2019 Gartner ITSM Magic Quadrant.
There is now a newer 2021 version of this post featuring more recent analyst ITSM reports, including the 2020 Gartner ITSM Magic Quadrant. You can view this here.
Don’t miss out on free-to-access ITSM analyst reports
Most analyst research reports sit behind a paywall, exclusively for clients or potentially available to others for a fee. However, thanks to ITSM tool vendors and their marketing teams – along with membership organizations – many valuable ITSM-related analyst reports are available for free. Well, they’re free if you consider giving your email address in return as “free.”
In this article you’ll find links – sometimes multiple links – to ITSM tool vendor webpages to access the following twelve ITSM-related research reports for free:
- The 2019 Gartner ITSM Magic Quadrant
- The 2019 Gartner ITSM Critical Capabilities
- Forrester Wave: Enterprise Service Management, Q4 2019
- Forrester report: The Three Customer Service Megatrends In 2019: As AI Eats Jobs, Agents Are More Valued
- Gartner report: Design IT Self-Service for the Business Consumer
- Gartner report: IT Operations Management 2025: Shift to Succeed
- EMA report: Automation, AI, and Analytics: Reinventing ITSM
- Research in Action: Vendor Selection Matrix – IT and Enterprise Service Management
- Info-Tech 2019 ITSM Report
- HDI reports: Practices & Salary Reports 2018
- SDI report: A View from the Frontline 2019
- ITSM.tools report: The Future of ITSM 2019
For each report, I’ve listed the ITSM tool vendors offering it in alphabetical order, apart from ungated content, which is listed first, but please feel free to choose whichever you’d prefer to give your contact details to.
1. The 2019 Gartner ITSM Magic Quadrant
You can download the latest “Gartner IT Service Management Magic Quadrant” from:
Please remember that even Gartner states that the Magic Quadrant isn’t a review of the available ITSM tools – it relates to the capabilities of the ITSM tool vendors. Instead, the 2019 Gartner ITSM Critical Capabilities report (below) is the report that provides the more-granular reviews of ITSM tool capabilities.
2. The 2019 Gartner ITSM Critical Capabilities Report
This report often gets overlooked in favor of the Gartner ITSM Magic Quadrant, and fewer vendors license it, but it’s important that you look at the reports together. As mentioned above, the Magic Quadrant is very much about the ITSM tool vendors and the market, whereas the Critical Capabilities report is about the ITSM tools.
You can download the “2019 Gartner ITSM Critical Capabilities” report from:
3. Forrester Wave: Enterprise Service Management, Q4 2019
If you’re looking to use your ITSM tool beyond IT, in enterprise service management scenarios, then this paper by Charles Betz will be an interesting read.
You can download the “Forrester Wave: Enterprise Service Management, Q4 2019” report from:
- Atlassian
- BMC
- Cherwell
- Micro Focus
- ServiceNow
- TOPdesk
4. Forrester Report: The Three Customer Service Megatrends In 2019: As AI Eats Jobs, Agents Are More Valued
As ITSM and external customer support converge, there’s lots to be learned by our peers in customer service. Hence, I’ve included this megatrend report from Forrester.
You can download the “The Three Customer Service Megatrends In 2019: As AI Eats Jobs, Agents Are More Valued” report from (not all ITSM tool vendors):
- Aria – no longer available
- Genesys
- ServiceNow – no longer available
5. Gartner Report: Design IT Self-Service for the Business Consumer
This Gartner report offers advice on areas such as:
- Improving the user/employee experience of your self-service portal
- Real-world examples of key self-service capabilities
- Proven ways to encourage employee self-service adoption and use.
You can download the Gartner “Design IT Self-Service for the Business Consumer” report from:
6. Gartner Report: IT Operations Management 2025: Shift to Succeed
ITSM and IT operations management (ITOM) are increasingly being viewed as something that’s better done together. This 2018 report from Gartner looks at how ITOM practices are changing and will need to further evolve as we head toward 2025.
You can download the Gartner “IT Operations Management 2025: Shift to Succeed” report from:
- Axios Systems
7. EMA Report: Automation, AI, and Analytics: Reinventing ITSM
This 2019 Enterprise Management Associates (EMA) report states that IT leaders are relying more and more on automation, artificial intelligence (AI), and analytics to redefine ITSM. The report is based on a survey of 400 global IT leaders who are “active in ITSM.”
You can download the EMA “Automation, AI, and Analytics: Reinventing ITSM” report from:
- Micro Focus
- ScienceLogic
- SysAid
8. Research in Action: Vendor Selection Matrix – IT and Enterprise Service Management
This comparative research into ITSM tools was “collected in Q4 of 2018 and Q1 of 2019, covering 1,500 enterprise IT managers (with budget responsibilities) in a combined telephone and online survey.”
You can download the Research in Action “Vendor Selection Matrix – IT and Enterprise Service Management: The Top 20 Global Vendors” report from:
- CA Technologies (not gated)
- Micro Focus (not gated)
- OMNINET
9. Info-Tech 2019 ITSM Report
This report is based on verified customer data collected via the Software Reviews website – an evaluator of enterprise software that’s owned by Info-Tech Research Group. While the information will likely be helpful, please be aware of the pros and cons of peer review websites as per this article “The Flawed Nature of ITSM-Tool Peer Reviews Sites.”
You can download the “Info-Tech 2019 ITSM Report” report from:
- Cherwell
- OMNINET
10. SDI Report: A VIEW FROM THE FRONTLINE 2019
This annual Service Desk Institute (SDI) report is based on a survey that looks into the current pain points faced by IT service desk professionals, their frustrations, and the key innovations and changes forecasted to shape the future of the IT support industry.
You can download the “A View from the Frontline 2019” report from:
11. HDI Reports: Practices & Salary Reports 2018
HDI has created this report, now reports, annually for as long as I can remember. They’re packed with great statistics on IT support, with the legendary Roy Atkinson always involved.
The reports can be download from:
- (HDI Community sign up is required)
12. ITSM.tools Report: The Future of ITSM 2019
This is the result of a survey of over 300 ITSM professionals run by ITSM.tools in the first half of 2019. The survey asked 13 questions related to the potential future challenges and opportunities that people and their organizations face. The questions were wide-ranging and deliberately spread across six distinct areas:
- Working in IT
- Recruitment and retention
- New technology
- Best practice
- Meeting service expectations
- Enterprise service management.
The report was kindly sponsored by SysAid and you can download the “Future of ITSM 2019” report from:
If you’re aware of any other good ITSM research that would be suitable to add to this article (or the latest Gartner ITSM Magic Quadrant article), then please add it/them as a comment below and I’ll update the article.
Please note that a more recent version of this Gartner ITSM Magic Quadrant article from 2022 can be found here.
You might also like this article on service availability or availability management.
Sophie Danby
Sophie is a freelance ITSM marketing consultant, helping ITSM solution vendors to develop and implement effective marketing strategies.
She covers both traditional areas of marketing (such as advertising, trade shows, and events) and digital marketing (such as video, social media, and email marketing). She is also a trained editor. Y
