CRM Watchlist 2013: And now, the winners!

This is it. We're are now running the last couple of laps. Today we are announcing the 2013 winners of the CRM Watchlist. There is a lot done differently in this announcement than in the past--and for the first time, I will do the complete list of winners, including:

The vendorsThe consulting/systems integratorsThe Ones to WatchThe Ready to LeapThe Lifetime Achievement

All of them are here--a departure from last year, when I did the list after I had started the reviews. So here's what will happen from here:

I publish the list of winners here

Then the review of the Lifetime Achievement winner in the next post

Following that, I will reviews the vendors categorically (the categories depend on how I group them so that they are fluid). This will take several posts

After the vendors are done, I'll do the consulting/SI reviews

I'll then produce a yearbook in PDF form for free distribution, which will have the 2014 criteria--a sneak peak, so to speak

In late February, registration for 2014's questionnaire will open--and the whole thing starts all over again.

I hope this helps those of you out there who asked about why they didn't know about the 2013 Watchlist--which was decent-sized in number. I wasn't shy about publishing details. If you want to know about 2014's CRM Watchlist, either read this blog or follow the #crmwatchlist hashtag on Twitter. I can't do much more than that.

Finally, if you want to see the criteria for 2013, and the format, please read this blog post.

Okay, enough of the preliminary chatter. Without further ado...

There will be much more on the IBM Institute for Business Value in the initial review post next week. It is an amazing outfit, and it, like the charter lifetime achievement award winner last year, Peppers and Rogers, has a body of work from over many years that is truly extraordinary. They have managed to have an impact over a length of time that goes above and beyond. Just know they won. We'll hear from them next week, alonf with my review.

This was an incredibly difficult set of choices, but ultimately, the revised numbers ruled and the below are the winners. There were mitigating circumstances that affected some of the choices. For example, finalist VirtuOz was acquired by Nuance. That, and because of multiple factors--including some uncertainty on how long it will take to merge cultures; the integration into the Nuance customer base, etc.; and just the plain amount of time it takes to effect a transformation like this--took them out of the running. On the other hand, Eloqua has been a market leader for a long time in the marketing automation/revenue performance management/revenue marketing world (take your pick of names), and will stand strong even as they make the transformation, so they became a winner. Eloqua's offering will likely remain a strong viable part of Oracle's portfolio over 2013, and in their case, the time it will take to integrate works to their advantage. For 2014, however, they will be just part of Oracle, and I will treat them as such.

But, as I said, the numbers were revised and some of the choices for finalists didn't quite have the winner's mantle in their cards yet. However, that doesn't mean that they aren't great companies, just that they need something else to make them the impact champs they are likely to be. A few barely missed--thus the other two categories of awards (more on them later).

This year, Blackbaud barely (and I do mean barely) retained its number one status. Its impact in the non-profit market is even stronger than it was last year (for reasons that will be revealed in its review). To tease you all a bit more, the companies you see in italics are in the top 10 percent of the winners, after Blackbaud (in bold and italics)--and one of them came very close to unseating Blackbaud this year.

Here are the vendor winners in alphabetical order, except for Blackbaud (though I guess that's obvious, isn't it?)

BlackbaudAttensityArtesian SolutionsBPM OnlineClarabridgeCoveoCrowdtapEloquaGet SatisfactionGigyaHubspotInforInfusionsoftJiveKANALattice EnginesLithiumMarketoMicrosoftMoxieNeolaneNetSuiteNexJNimbleOracleParaturePegasystemssalesforce.comSAPSugarCRMTeradata AprimoThunderheadXactly.

These are the companies that are about a year from becoming real players on the scene. They each were finalists, but they haven't quite yet made the winners circle. However, in 2014 —, watch out.

AllegianceDemandbase UPDATE!Tracx.

These are the companies that have a 2015 (most likely) arrival date as a true impact player. Let me be clear. Their products and services are purchase-worthy right now. They are exceptional companies. But they are being compared with much longer-standing companies in many cases, and what they are missing is several of the other components they need to actually impact the market and customers in the way that the winners of the Watchlist do. For the most part, it's because they are young. With some seasoning, increased revenues spent on various aspects of their strategy, and of course, a good game plan, these are poised to make a mark in 2015, even as you buy their products or services today. That's why you should be watching them now, and getting in while you still can.

Next PrinciplesNearstream.

The standards for the consulting/SI winners are different than for the vendors--similar categories, marginally different questions, different weights and values assigned, and different "secret things" that I'm looking for. These winners should be damned proud of themselves because it was easy to be eliminated in this category. The reviews will speak for themselves when they come out. Here, too, we had an acquisition that affected the result--Innoveer was acquired by Cloud Sherpa--which raises all the uncertainties that acquisitions have. However, the acquisition makes Cloud Sherpa a possible contender for 2014--if they register.

AccentureCSCErnst and Young AdvisorySolvis ConsultingThe Pedowitz Group.

Now comes the good stuff. All the reviews begin with the next post, starting with the lifetime achievement winner: the IBM IBV. The fun is just starting.

Congratulations to all the winners of CRM Watchlist 2013!

Your badges will be on the way soon. And the reviews, as soon as I write them. You all did really well.

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