Original Research on The Skills Connection

Rating The Skills Connection

4.5/5 Stars

How our organization uses The Skills Connection:

We use Skills Connection as an extension of our Marketing team to manage our analyst relations.

Would you recommend The Skills Connection?

Absolutely – and I do often. They’ve transformed how we interact with, and communicate to, the core analysts in our industry. They helped us hit our Magic Quadrant goal and as a result, have allowed us to give the sales team the ammo they need to be more aggressive when positioning the company against our competitors.

Case Study: Medium Enterprise Computer Software Company

Introduction

This case study of a medium enterprise computer software company is based on a March 2016 survey of The Skills Connection customers by TechValidate, a 3rd-party research service. The profiled company asked to have their name blinded to protect their confidentiality.

“The Skills Connection team work with us on a range of activities. This starts with our overall analyst engagement, including briefings and participation in various vendor evaluations. In addition, they are working with us on our user conference. This involves training staff on presenting, helping them to work out the right content and reviewing their draft presentations. Lastly, they are also a part of the team that is working to improve our product roadmap document; ensuring that all our messages are really clear.”

“I would strongly recommend The Skills Connection for the following reasons: – they have always provided very good advice on how to create a convincing story, their ability to structure our arguments to focus on the main ideas, their capacity to understand new developments quickly and integrate them into our story for the relevant analysts. Overall they have the capacity to help craft an effective storyline and bring out the essential elements, they provide very constructive feedback, and have a very effective structured approach.”

“With their help we became a leader in the Magic Quadrant and have remained a leader for the last 3 years. We are now also a leader in the relevant IDC MarketScape (on our first attempt) as well as a leader in Nelson Hall’s NEAT assessment where we are one of the most highly ratedd suppliers.”

Challenges

Engaged with The Skills Connection for the following reasons:
- Did not have the in-house expertise to effectively engage with analysts
- Wanted to learn how to effectively differentiate themselves from their competitors when talking with analysts
- Wanted to change their position in the MQ/Wave/Marketscape to generate new business

Use Case

Uses The Skills Connection to:
- Provide the necessary expertise to effectively engage analysts
- Show them how to gather the right information for analysts
- Show them how to effectively communicate their story to analysts
- Help them improve their position in an MQ/Wave/Marketscape
- Create compelling evidence-based cases for analysts

Results

Experiences gained with The Skills Connection:
- Confidence communicating the unique value of their solution to analysts
- The ability to create a strong evidence-based case to analysts covering their product / service
- The skills needed to communicate with analysts in the future
- Unique insights about their solution that were instrumental in winning over analysts
Benefits from working with The Skills Connection:
- Positively shifted their position in the MQ/Wave/Marketscape
- Received better results than when they had engaged with analysts
- Provided their internal team the tools and skills to effectively engage with analysts
- Effectively communicates the unique value of their products / services
Rates The Skills Connection 5 out of 5 stars.

87% of surveyed customers use The Skills Connection to help them improve their position in an assessment such as a Gartner Magic Quadrant, Forrester Wave or IDC Marketscape

Case Study: Small Business Security Products & Services Company

Introduction

This case study of a small business security products & services company is based on a March 2016 survey of The Skills Connection customers by TechValidate, a 3rd-party research service. The profiled company asked to have their name blinded to protect their confidentiality.

“The Skills Connection support us during the Gartner Magic Quadrant (MQ) process, the preparation and execution of analyst briefings and analyst relations planning in general.”

“As a result of their work, we have developed a clearer understanding of our strengths, weaknesses and value that we provide and were able to improve our position in the Gartner Magic Quadrant.”

“I would reccomend them as they bring in a valuable outside view and challenge the team to produce better results. What you see/read is what you get with The Skills Connection.”

Challenges

Engaged with The Skills Connection for the following reasons:
- Did not have the in-house expertise to effectively engage with analysts
- Wanted to learn how to effectively differentiate themselves from their competitors when talking with analysts
- Wanted to change their position in the MQ/Wave/Marketscape to generate new business

Use Case

Uses The Skills Connection to:
- Show them how to gather the right information for analysts
- Help them improve their position in an MQ/Wave/Marketscape
- Create an internal learning environment so that their team can be more effective in the future
- Provide the tools and best practices needed to build a strong case for analysts

Results

Experiences gained with The Skills Connection:
- Confidence communicating the unique value of their solution to analysts
- The ability to create a strong evidence-based case to analysts covering their product / service
Benefits from working with The Skills Connection:
- Made the most effective use of their internal resources
- Positively shifted their position in the MQ/Wave/Marketscape
- Provided their internal team the tools and skills to effectively engage with analysts
Rates The Skills Connection 4 out of 5 stars.

How Companies Use The Skills Connection

Check all of the following statements that describe how you use The Skills Connection.

Give us the necessary expertise to effectively engage analysts	61%
Show us how to gather the right information for analysts	63%
Show us how to effectively communicate our story to analysts	94%
Help us improve our position in an MQ/Wave/Marketscape	87%
Help us enter an assessment such as an MQ/Wave/Marketscape for the first time	15%
Focus just on what was needed, and avoid wasting time on anything else	42%
Create an internal learning environment so that our team can be more effective in the future	31%
Provide the tools and best practices needed to build a strong case for analysts	52%
Create compelling evidence-based cases for analysts	71%

Meeting Our Clients Deadlines

When asked if The Skills Connection met their internal schedules and deadlines, customers said:

Strongly Agree: 74%

Agree: 24%

Disagree: 2%

TechValidate Research on The Skills Connection

These pages present data that TechValidate has sourced via direct research with verified customers and users of The Skills Connection. TechValidate stands behind the authenticity of all published data. Learn more »

About TechValidate Research

Selected Research Highlights

Rating The Skills Connection

How our organization uses The Skills Connection:

Would you recommend The Skills Connection?

Case Study: Medium Enterprise Computer Software Company

Introduction

Challenges

Use Case

Results

Company Profile

About The Skills Connection

Case Study: Small Business Security Products & Services Company

Introduction

Challenges

Use Case

Results

Company Profile

About The Skills Connection

How Companies Use The Skills Connection

Meeting Our Clients Deadlines

More to Explore

About The Skills Connection