Ventana Research's Value Indexes are the products of more than two decades of experience in and knowledge of the market and provide in-depth analyses of technology suppliers' products. The Value Index for Total Compensation Management is based on a comprehensive examination of vendors' products in seven evaluation categories, five that evaluate the products' ability to support the full compensation process and two that address vendor validation and total cost of ownership/return on investment. Making informed investments in such software can maximize an organization's ability to manage compensation and help the business retain employees and pay appropriately across salaries, bonuses, incentives and rewards.

The 2014 Value Index for Total Compensation Management finds that the companies that deliver the highest value, based on an overall weighted evaluation, are SuccessFactors, an SAP Company, which qualifies as a Hot vendor, followed by seven other Hot vendors: PeopleFluent, Oracle, Towers Watson, beqom, IBM, Decusoft and SumTotal Systems. One vendor, ADP, is rated Warm.

Each Value Index is the result of a detailed evaluation of the suitability-to-task of each offering's capabilities as well as the product's support of usability, manageability, reliability and adaptability. These aspects of the evaluation reflect how organizations conduct RFI/RFP; they are unique to the Value Index report and are not covered in depth by other analyst firms' ratings, which often include limited (or no) evaluation of actual products. Unlike the Ventana Value Index, those reports are based on customer lists and revenue of the vendors being evaluated. In contrast, the Value Index will help organizations confidently assess software and also develop the proper RFI/RFP for engaging in a well-designed and efficient selection process.

The Value Index also assesses the effectiveness of each vendor's support for the buying process and customer assurance. It gauges the value offered by a vendor and its products and presents the results in a clear and accessible graphic representation of a thermometer and in a precise numerical index. Technology vendors earning the highest Hot and Warm vendor classifications are those that Ventana Research certifies as most or more able to deliver value to buyers based on a thorough evaluation and audit - that is, based on research and verifiable facts. The Value Index is not just a selection of "cool" products; rather than evaluating a vendor primarily on its vision or market execution, the Index provides specific numerical ratings, both overall and for each of the seven components of the Value Index, for technology buyers to consider. Organizations can use the Value Index as a guide to assess existing technology providers and determine if their provider best meets their needs today and in the future.

"Compensation management software to support talent management processes is essential to the basics of effective human resources and management of employees," said Stephan Millard, VP and research director of Ventana Research. "This in-depth research provides confirmation that the nuances vary in how compensation management software operates across categories of evaluation criteria. Some vendors are better than others in one or several categories."

This new Value Index is a fully independent, research-based undertaking. It is neither sponsored nor influenced by technology vendors and is conducted solely in pursuit of Ventana Research's mission to provide value to business and IT through benchmark assessments, workshops and advisory services. Ventana Research's goal is to help guide organizations to optimal efficiency in their use of technology investments for business and IT. To learn more and receive a complimentary executive summary of the 2014 Value Index for Total Compensation Management, please visit www.ventanaresearch.com/TCMvalueindex/.

About Ventana Research

Ventana Research is the most authoritative and respected benchmark business technology research and advisory services firm. We provide insight and expert guidance on mainstream and disruptive technologies through a unique set of research-based offerings including benchmark research and technology evaluation assessments, education workshops and our research and advisory services, Ventana On-Demand. Our unparalleled understanding of the role of technology in optimizing business processes and performance and our best practices guidance are rooted in our rigorous research-based benchmarking of people, processes, information and technology across business and IT functions in every industry. This benchmark research plus our market coverage and in-depth knowledge of hundreds of technology providers means we can deliver education and expertise to our clients to increase the value they derive from technology investments while reducing time, cost and risk.

Ventana Research provides the most comprehensive analyst and research coverage in the industry; business and IT professionals worldwide are members of our community and benefit from Ventana Research's insights, as do highly regarded media and association partners around the globe. Our views and analyses are distributed daily through blogs and social media channels including Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Google+. To learn how Ventana Research advances the maturity of organizations' use of information and technology through benchmark research, education and advisory services, visit www.ventanaresearch.com.

Media: Copies of the Value Index report and analyst interviews are available upon request.

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