Firms Improving Data Management for AI Outcomes, ISG Says
Advanced data software tools help companies provide integrated, trusted, well-governed data for effective AI implementations, new research says
Many enterprises are making long-overdue investments in data management software to prepare for the requirements of AI, according to new research from global AI-centered technology research and advisory firm Information Services Group (ISG) (Nasdaq: III).
The ISG Buyers Guides™ for Data Management, produced by ISG Software Research, provide the rankings and ratings of 42 software providers and their products to support intelligent data management across an enterprise. The research finds that data management has been central to enterprise IT strategies for decades but is becoming even more essential as companies launch AI initiatives that rely heavily on integrated, well-organized, high-quality data.
"Enterprises recognize that successfully deploying AI at scale requires instant access to trusted and curated data of all kinds," said Matt Aslett, director of research, Analytics and Data, for ISG Software Research. "Many have recognized their data is not fit for purpose and are improving data management to accelerate future AI initiatives."
Data management encompasses several functions that enable organizations to collect, store and process data in accordance with their goals and regulatory requirements, the research finds. All are evolving as data becomes more central to IT and operations strategies.
Data integration lets companies combine data from multiple platforms for use cases that create business value, such as targeting the most lucrative customers with offers to adopt the latest product. To carry out strategic, enterprise-wide data integration, organizations need to orchestrate a complex mesh of data pipelines that continuously evolve as data sources and business needs change. Through 2027, ISG expects three-quarters of enterprises to adopt data fabric technologies to manage data across multiple data platforms and cloud environments.
Data governance is an essential part of data management that ensures data is cataloged, trusted and protected, the research shows. It has a symbiotic relationship with AI in which data governance improves AI outcomes while AI automates and accelerates governance processes. GenAI's effectiveness depends heavily on data governance, which can prevent GenAI from misusing sensitive data or inadvertently generating harmful content.
It becomes more important to ensure data quality and trust as companies strive to be more data-driven, but creating a "single version of the truth" that is accepted across the organization is a perennial challenge, ISG's research finds. Master data management (MDM) establishes and protects foundational reference data through validation, data modeling and the matching and merging of duplicate records. Through 2027, ISG predicts, three-quarters of enterprises will use MDM and data quality tools to increase trust in the data used to support AI and business intelligence (BI) applications.
Data intelligence software also plays a key role in helping data administrators understand and manage the use of data in AI and BI. It combines data discovery and inventory with metadata management, data governance and other capabilities to ensure business users and data analysts can find and access the data they need.
For its 2025 Buyers Guides™ for Data Management, ISG evaluated software providers across six platform categories — Data Integration, Data Governance, Data Quality, Master Data Management and Data Intelligence — and produced a separate Buyers Guide for each. A total of 42 providers were assessed: Actian, Alation, Alibaba Cloud, Alteryx, Ataccama, AWS, Boomi, CData Software, Cloud Software Group, Cloudera, Collibra, Confluent, Databricks, Denodo, Domo, Experian, Fivetran, Google Cloud, Huawei Cloud, IBM, Informatica, Jitterbit, Microsoft, Oracle, Pentaho, Precisely, Qlik, Quest, Reltio, Rocket Software, Salesforce, SAP, SAS Institute, Securiti, Snowflake, Software AG, Solace, Stibo, Syndigo, Syniti, Tencent Cloud and Workato.
ISG Software Research rates software providers in seven evaluation categories. Five are related to product experience: usability, manageability, reliability, capability, and adaptability. Two are related to customer assurance: validation and total cost of ownership and return on investment (TCO/ROI). Providers ranked in the top three for each evaluation category are named as Leaders. Within each platform category, those with the most Leader rankings are named as Overall Leaders.
The Overall Leaders of the 2025 Buyers Guides™ for Data Management were the following:
Data Management: Informatica was the top Overall Leader, followed by IBM and Oracle. Informatica was designated a Leader in five evaluation categories, IBM in one and Oracle in six. All three Overall Leaders were rated Exemplary, along with Actian, AWS, Databricks, Google Cloud, Microsoft, Pentaho and SAP. Alibaba Cloud and Qlik were rated Innovative.
Data Integration: Oracle was the top Overall Leader, followed by Informatica and Boomi. Oracle was designated a Leader in six evaluation categories, Informatica in five and Boomi in one. All three Overall Leaders were rated Exemplary, along with Alteryx, AWS, Databricks, Domo, Google Cloud, IBM, Microsoft, Pentaho, Salesforce and SAP. CData Software, Qlik and Rocket Software were rated Innovative.
Data Governance: Informatica was the top Overall Leader, followed by IBM and Databricks. Informatica was designated a Leader in five evaluation categories, IBM in one and Databricks in five. All three Overall Leaders were rated Exemplary, along with Actian, Alation, AWS, Collibra, Google Cloud, Microsoft, Pentaho and SAP. Alibaba Cloud, Qlik, Rocket Software, Securiti and Tencent Cloud were rated Innovative.
Data Quality: Informatica was the top Overall Leader, followed by Pentaho and Actian. Informatica was designated a Leader in five evaluation categories, Pentaho in one and Actian in two. All three Overall Leaders were rated Exemplary, along with Alation, AWS, Collibra, Google Cloud, IBM, Microsoft and Oracle. Alibaba Cloud, Experian and Qlik were rated Innovative.
Master Data Management: Oracle was the top Overall Leader, followed by Informatica and IBM. Oracle and Informatica were designated Leaders in six evaluation categories each and IBM in three. All three Overall Leaders were rated Exemplary, along with Boomi, SAP, Stibo Systems and Syndigo. No providers were rated Innovative.
Data Intelligence: Informatica was the top Overall Leader, followed by Microsoft and IBM. Informatica was designated a Leader in five evaluation categories. All three Overall Leaders were rated Exemplary, along with Actian, Alation, AWS, Collibra, Databricks, Google Cloud, Oracle, Pentaho and SAP. Alibaba Cloud, Qlik and Tencent Cloud were rated Innovative.
"The need for more unified and secured data management presents enterprises with a complex set of requirements that can be hard to meet with existing software," said Mark Smith, partner and chief software analyst, ISG Software Research. "This research reveals the comparative strengths of data management software providers and how their products can help companies orchestrate data architectures for AI deployments."
The ISG Buyers Guides™ for Data Management are the distillation of more than a year of market and product research efforts. The research is not sponsored nor influenced by software providers and is conducted solely to help enterprises optimize their business and IT software investments.
Visit this webpage to learn more about the ISG Buyers Guides™ for Data Management and read executive summaries of each of the six reports. The complete reports, including provider rankings across seven product and customer experience dimensions and detailed research findings on each provider, are available by contacting ISG Software Research.
About ISG Software Research
ISG Software Research provides authoritative coverage and analysis of the business and IT software industry. It distributes research and insights daily through its user community, and provides a portfolio of consulting, advisory, research and education services for enterprises, software and service providers, and investment firms. Its ISG Buyers Guides™ help enterprises evaluate and select software providers through tailored assessments powered by ISG's proprietary methodology. Visit http://research.isg-one.com/ for more information and to sign up for free community membership.
About ISG
ISG (Nasdaq: III) is a global AI-centered technology research and advisory firm. A trusted partner to more than 900 clients, including 75 of the world's top 100 enterprises, ISG is a long-time leader in technology and business services that is now at the forefront of leveraging AI to help organizations achieve operational excellence and faster growth. The firm, founded in 2006, is known for its proprietary market data, in-depth knowledge of provider ecosystems, and the expertise of its 1,600 professionals worldwide working together to help clients maximize the value of their technology investments.
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