What It Means: A Forrester Podcast

This is a recently recorded classic that asked a question many leaders are now living with. As AI tools become part of day-to-day management, this conversation clarifies where AI can help and where human judgment still makes the difference. We hope you enjoy this episode.

This episode was recorded previously, but it has aged exceptionally well. As AI becomes embedded in everyday work, the reminder that success depends on people, not just technology, is even more important now than when we first recorded it. We hope you enjoy this episode.

This is a classic episode recorded earlier in our AI journey, but its core idea has only grown more relevant. As organizations move from experimenting with AI to running it at scale, the need to align AI by design has become a business imperative. We hope you enjoy this episode.

We recorded this episode earlier, but its insights have only sharpened with time. As AI reshapes how buyers discover information and conversations continue at Forrester’s B2B Summit event, this episode offers timely perspective on what marketers must rethink. We hope you enjoy this episode.

This is a classic episode that feels even more relevant today. As B2B leaders prepare for the Forrester B2B Summit, its focus on expertise and credibility speaks directly to how trust is earned in today’s buying environment. We hope you enjoy this episode.

This episode is quickly becoming a classic for B2B leaders. As we head into the Forrester B2B Summit, its perspective on buying networks and modern buying complexity is still essential listening for anyone focused on growth. We hope you enjoy this episode.

Our flagship podcast is on pause as we think about what comes next and how we can best bring our insights to life in an era of nonstop change.

Discover how Southwest Airlines nails its customer experience, the latest updates to WhatsApp for Business, and how AI is solving its own energy challenges.

Find out how AI is being used by B2B buyers and healthcare consumers, and get the latest forecast on the impact of AI on US jobs.

Happy New Year! We kick off 2026 by unpacking lessons from 2025 and what they signal for the year ahead. This episode brings together security, marketing, and content leaders’ perspectives so you can act with confidence.

The holiday season is in full swing, and as retailers vie for consumer dollars, some of the biggest ones are branching out to answer engines like ChatGPT and Perplexity. In this episode, we describe what that experience looks like now and what brands should do in response. We also look at the lasting implications of a high-profile legal case for CISOs and the state of AI in B2B sales.

It’s Predictions season here at Forrester. We recently published our 2026 predictions across a variety of business functions, industries, and geographies. In this episode, we take a detailed look at three of our boldest calls for the coming year.

Recently, a very bad day for AWS became everyone else’s very annoying day. And while the disruption was fairly short-lived, there are longer-term lessons to be learned. In this episode, we look at the lessons from the recent AWS outage as well as an overdue step by a social media giant and a reimagining of how we access information on the web.

Predictions season is upon us! Forrester is about to release nearly 150 predictions across a variety of business and technology areas, and our guests in this episode can hardly keep from spilling the beans.

Heading into the fourth quarter, there are no signs of a slowdown in developments that will keep business and technology leaders on their toes. This episode dives into the latest impacts of geopolitics on the tech industry and AI’s impact on commerce and buying networks.

Are you wondering about the emerging technologies and shifting market dynamics that might shape your strategy for 2026 and beyond? Then this episode is for you. Get a detailed look at how three big shifts could dramatically impact plans and strategies for the year ahead (and get a preview for one of our upcoming 2026 Predictions reports, to boot).

As we move into September, we dig into new sponsorship options for brands and find out how AI agents are impacting the customer success function as well as the industrial manufacturing and supply chain industries.

As we hurtle toward the end of August, it’s time to look toward the future. More specifically, the future of Anthropic (and other AI firms), the future of AI as a technology, and the future of the CMO role.

As the annual budgeting and planning season comes into full swing, we drill down into two unique pricing trends. We then take a detailed look at how to measure developer productivity.

July heats up with a look at the impact of some regulatory moves in the US and a deep dive into a new AI trend for developers that may be more useful than you think.

As we look back at the spring conference and events season, Forrester analysts dive into three topics that came out of recent industry events.

From pickleball to nuclear energy, this week’s episode covers a lot of ground. Listen in as Forrester analysts put three recent business headlines into context for sales, marketing, and technology leaders.

If there’s one constant in business today, it’s change. New partnerships, new strategies, and new risks are popping up in all areas. In this episode, we look at three major changes taking place in the B2C, B2B, and enterprise application spaces and tap our analysts for their guidance on how to manage these changes.

In this episode, we look at how to avoid the risks of AI-enabled tools in three common business use cases: coding, marketing, and product design. The key takeaway from all three areas: There’s still a strong need to have a human in the loop to review your AI outputs.

In this episode, we look at how one online retailer is working to minimize the impact of tariffs on its business, provide a review of a major cybersecurity conference, and highlight a new trend in software-as-a-service (SaaS) pricing.

In this episode, we look at a major legal ruling that could shake up the adtech market, some new capabilities to make AI agents even smarter, and a tech industry deal that could breathe new life into a struggling giant.

In this episode, we look at the ongoing fallout from two healthcare data breaches involving Oracle servers and what the on-again, off-again tariffs could mean for CIOs. Then we discuss the rising prominence of social media influencers in the B2B space — and why tapping your own employees could be a smart move.

What does it take to make the most of AI in the enterprise? Hint: It’s not the tools. VP and Principal Analyst J. P. Gownder shares insights on the value of putting humans at the center of your AI strategy.

What does it take to make the most of AI in the enterprise? Hint: It’s not the tools. VP and Principal Analyst J. P. Gownder shares insights on the value of putting humans at the center of your AI strategy.

The big challenge with AI for business is risk. How can an organization minimize the risk while maximizing the benefit of AI? In this episode, Vice President and Principal Analyst Brandon Purcell proposes a solution to this challenge — AI alignment — and outlines how an “align by design” approach can help.

For more than a decade, risk managers have been trying to use the three lines of defense (3LOD) framework for enterprise risk management. But it was never meant for that. In this episode, Senior Analysts Alla Valente and Cody Scott walk through the new Forrester Continuous Risk Management Model, a more holistic and business-centric risk management approach.

Changing buying dynamics and generative AI are bringing already strained B2B buying processes to a breaking point. This week on What It Means, VP and Research Director Steven Casey and VP and Principal Analyst Barry Vasudevan discuss these forces and introduce the concept of buying networks as they preview new research debuting at Forrester’s B2B Summit North America.

As generative AI changes how buyers search for information, what should marketers do to adapt their content strategies? This week on What It Means, Principal Analyst Lisa Gately shares her advice and previews her session on the topic at Forrester’s B2B Summit North America.

What are the latest trends in the semiconductor industry, and what does it mean for your technology plans? Senior Analyst Alvin Nguyen discusses the latest semiconductor advancements and market dynamics in this episode of What It Means.

What’s the difference between AI agents and agentic AI? In this episode VP and Principal Analyst Craig Le Clair and Senior Analyst Christina McAllister discuss the nuances of the two and use cases for both.

What distinguishes a manager from a coach-like leader? This week, Principal Analyst Betsy Summers and VP and Principal Analyst Peter Ostrow explore the evolving role of managers and how adopting coaching behaviors can empower teams for long-term success. They also preview their session on the topic at Forrester’s upcoming B2B Summit North America.

How important are your tech infrastructure decisions in the age of AI? Principal Analysts Michele Pelino and Naveen Chhabra review some of the latest tech infrastructure trends and predictions tech leaders should know as they build out their AI strategies.

Procurement is taking a more strategic role in two key areas. On this episode, Principal Analyst Gina Bhawalkar and Senior Analyst Jeffrey Rajamani discuss the opportunities for enterprises to align their procurement strategies with ESG and accessibility compliance goals.

Cryptocurrency is in the spotlight as a crypto-friendly US administration takes office. What might the coming months bring in terms of regulation? And how might uses of cryptoassets evolve? This week on What It Means, Vice President and Principal Analyst Martha Bennett and Principal Analyst Peter Wannemacher discuss the different types of cryptoassets, the state of regulation, and potential applications and risks.

What does an award-winning technology strategy look like? Find out as we highlight two of the most recent winners of Forrester’s Technology Strategy Impact Award, Best Buy and First Student.

Business and tech leaders expect (slightly) bigger budgets this year. How should they use them? On this episode of What It Means, VPs and Group Research Directors Stephanie Balaouras, Keith Johnston, and Srividya Sridharan dive into Forrester’s Budget Planning Guides’ recommendations for tech, marketing and sales, and customer experience (CX) leaders.

Despite Google’s recent reversal on third-party cookies, marketers need to prepare for data deprecation. Yet many aren’t. This week on What It Means, Senior Analyst Stephanie Liu and Principal Analyst Brett Kahnke discuss how B2C and B2B marketers can adapt their data strategies to maintain consumer trust and compliance.

Is creativity the hidden spark behind innovation? VP and Research Director Pascal Matzke and Principal Analyst Bernhard Schaffrik unpack why creativity is often undervalued and share strategies for leaders to foster it within their organizations.

Is alignment between B2B marketing and sales teams overrated? The concept may be in need of a rethink, say Principal Analysts John Arnold and Rick Bradberry. This week on What It Means, they describe what more productive marketing-sales relationships might look like.

Just as B2B companies are adopting generative AI (genAI) to gain efficiencies, so are their buyers. This week on What It Means, Principal Analyst John Buten looks at how buyers are using genAI in the purchasing process and what marketers and sellers should do in response.

The big challenge with AI for business is risk. How can an organization minimize the risk while maximizing the benefit of AI? In this episode, Vice President and Principal Analyst Brandon Purcell proposes a solution to this challenge — AI alignment — and outlines how an “align by design” approach can help.

With so much investment and attention, there’s growing impatience around AI. In this episode, VP of Emerging Technology and Principal Analyst Brian Hopkins and VP and Principal Analyst Ted Schadler take a longer view and discuss how AI will change the world in the next 20 years.

The holiday season is here. How do consumers feel about spending? This week on What It Means, VP and Principal Analyst Sucharita Kodali and VP and Research Director Emily Collins dive into Forrester’s latest research on holiday spending trends and share advice for retailers.

Two major antitrust lawsuits could loosen Google’s grip on online search and advertising. What are the potential implications, and how should brands and advertisers prepare? Senior Analysts Nikhil Lai and Mo Allibhai discuss the cases and the broader shifts ahead for search marketing and advertising on this week’s What It Means episode.

The role of the chief information security officer (CISO) is more vital than ever. But how are CISOs holding up under the spotlight, and how is the role changing? VP and Principal Analyst Jeff Pollard and Principal Analyst Jess Burn share some new research on the future of the CISO.