Forrester Research, Inc. (FORR): History, Ownership, Mission, How It Works & Makes Money

Thinking about how to get ahead when the market is still this uncertain, especially with AI changing everything-doesn't that make you wonder how firms like Forrester Research, Inc. (FORR) maintain their influence? This independent research powerhouse, founded in 1983, is a critical guide for leaders who need to translate tech chaos into actionable strategy, and its financial health gives us a clear read on the state of corporate spending.

Honestly, the numbers show the pressure: Forrester Research, Inc. is guiding for Full-Year 2025 GAAP revenue of just $395.0 million to $405.0 million, reflecting a tough macroeconomic environment, but their recent launch of the generative AI tool, Forrester AI Access, is a clear bet on the future of their core mission-to help you achieve customer obsession.

With a market capitalization of roughly $148.79 million as of November 2025, and a third-quarter adjusted net income of $7.2 million, this company is defintely a case study in how a research firm navigates disruption; so, let's dig into the history, ownership, and precise mechanics of how they actually make money.

Forrester Research, Inc. (FORR) History

You're looking for the origin story of Forrester Research, Inc., and how it became a leading voice in technology and business strategy. The direct takeaway is this: Forrester started in a basement in 1983, not with venture capital, but with a singular focus on the business impact of emerging technology. Its evolution is a clear map of strategic acquisitions and a recent, critical pivot into generative AI, which is now central to its $395.0 million to $405.0 million full-year 2025 revenue guidance.

Forrester Research, Inc.'s Founding Timeline

Year established

The company was established in July 1983.

Original location

Forrester Research began in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Specifically, founder George F. Colony launched the firm from the basement of his home at 20 Cambridge Terrace in North Cambridge.

Founding team members

The company was founded by George F. Colony, who serves today as the CEO and Chairman.

Initial capital/funding

Details on the exact initial capital are not widely publicized. It was a bootstrapped start, launched from a home basement, focusing initially on telecommunications market research. Colony had five years of prior experience, so he started with intellectual capital and a clear market need, not a massive funding round.

Forrester Research, Inc.'s Evolution Milestones

Forrester Research, Inc.'s Transformative Moments

Forrester's trajectory wasn't a straight line; it was shaped by three major pivots. The first was the 1997 IPO, which provided the capital to scale. The second was a decade of strategic acquisitions, culminating in the $245 million purchase of SiriusDecisions in 2019, which dramatically expanded its focus from IT leaders to B2B marketing and sales executives.

The most recent, and arguably most important, shift is the company's aggressive move into artificial intelligence. This is a defintely a high-stakes bet on the future of research delivery.

• The 2025 launch of Forrester AI Access, built on their generative AI tool Izola, is a direct response to client demand for faster, self-service insights.
• This AI focus comes amid financial pressure: the company reported a third-quarter 2025 contract value (CV) of $288.1 million, a 7% decline year-over-year, reflecting ongoing market uncertainty.
• The full-year 2025 GAAP guidance projects a diluted loss per share between $4.40 and $4.50, largely due to an $83.9 million goodwill impairment charge recorded earlier in the year. This shows the real-world fiscal challenges of transformation.

The company is betting that AI-driven efficiency and new products will reverse the current revenue decline, which is projected to be between 8.7% and 6.4% for the full year 2025. To be fair, their adjusted full-year 2025 diluted EPS guidance is a positive $1.15 to $1.25, showing operational cost control is working. For a deeper dive into the market's view of these numbers, you should check out Exploring Forrester Research, Inc. (FORR) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

Forrester Research, Inc. (FORR) Ownership Structure

Forrester Research, Inc. is a publicly traded company, listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker symbol FORR. This structure means its ownership is distributed among a mix of institutional investors, company insiders, and the general public, but the founder's significant stake gives him substantial control over the decision-making process.

Forrester Research, Inc.'s Current Status

As of November 2025, Forrester Research is a public company (NASDAQ: FORR) with a market capitalization of approximately $135.87 million. The stock price was around $7.15 per share as of November 18, 2025. This public status subjects the firm to rigorous SEC reporting and governance standards, but its concentrated ownership structure means a few key stakeholders wield considerable influence. You can dive deeper into the market perception and trading activity by Exploring Forrester Research, Inc. (FORR) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

Forrester Research, Inc.'s Ownership Breakdown

The company's ownership is highly concentrated, a key factor for any investor to defintely note. Founder, Chairman, and CEO George F. Colony is the single largest shareholder, holding approximately 38.85% of the shares. This level of insider control is unusual for a public company and means he has significant voting power. Institutional investors collectively hold the majority of the remaining shares, but no single institution approaches the founder's stake.

Forrester Research, Inc.'s Leadership

The company is steered by a seasoned executive team, with founder George F. Colony maintaining a dual role as Chairman and CEO. This structure ensures the strategic vision remains closely tied to the company's original mission, but it also centralizes power. The leadership team is responsible for navigating the company's strategic transformation, especially given the full-year 2025 revenue guidance of $400 million to $410 million.

Here's the quick math on influence: Colony's near-39% stake means he can often dictate the outcome of shareholder votes, even with a majority of institutional ownership. So, the management team's priorities are paramount.

• George F. Colony: Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
• Chris Finn: Chief Financial Officer (CFO), overseeing all finance functions.
• Carrie Johnson: Chief Product Officer, leading the research portfolio and digital strategy.
• Sharyn Leaver: Chief Research Officer (CRO), managing the analyst and analytics teams.
• Andrew Cox: Chief Marketing Officer (CMO).
• Ryan Darrah: Chief Legal Officer (CLO).
• Michael Facemire: Chief Technology Officer (CTO).
• Christophe Favre: Interim Chief Sales Officer (CSO), leading global sales strategy.

Forrester Research, Inc. (FORR) Mission and Values

Forrester Research, Inc. stands on a foundation of customer obsession, aiming to be the indispensable guide that empowers business and technology leaders to make bold, confident decisions. This commitment to client success and a culture of courage forms the company's cultural DNA, driving its research and advisory services beyond simple profit motives.

Forrester's Core Purpose

As a financial analyst, I look past the balance sheet to see what a company truly values, and for Forrester, it's clear: they are selling confidence and accelerated growth. Their entire model is built around helping you put the customer at the center of your strategy, which they call 'customer obsession.'

Official Mission Statement

The mission is straightforward and action-oriented. Forrester aims to empower leaders across technology, customer experience (CX), digital, marketing, sales, and product functions to be bold at work and accelerate growth through customer obsession. To be fair, this is a clear, single focus.

• Empower leaders to be bold at work.
• Accelerate client growth through customer obsession.
• Provide unique research and continuous guidance for faster, confident outcomes.

Vision Statement

While a formal, single-sentence vision statement isn't always public, Forrester's actions and stated promise define their long-term aspiration: to be the most influential research and advisory firm that gives leaders a clear vision of 'what's now and what's next.'

Their promise to you, the client, is the de facto vision:

• You perform at your very best, every day.
• You drive growth and achieve more.
• You can be bold at work.

This is a powerful vision because it maps directly to your desired business outcome: success. If you're looking at their investment profile, you should also be Exploring Forrester Research, Inc. (FORR) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

Forrester's Core Values

These values are the operating principles that govern how Forrester delivers on its mission. They are the scaffolding for the whole organization.

• Client: We are customer obsessed.
• Courage: We are bold.
• Collaboration: We are always learning and teaching.
• Integrity: We do the right thing.
• Quality: We set the bar high.

Here's the quick math on why these values matter: In Q3 2025, Forrester reported a total revenue of $94.3 million and a contract value (CV) of $288.1 million. This CV, a key performance indicator, saw a 7% year-over-year decline. This near-term risk means their 'Client' and 'Quality' values are under pressure to improve retention and drive the full-year 2025 adjusted diluted EPS guidance of $1.15 to $1.25. They defintely need to live those values now.

Forrester's Tagline

The most consistent, human-centric phrase they use to summarize their offering is a call to action for their clients.

• Be Bold at Work.

Forrester Research, Inc. (FORR) How It Works

Forrester Research, Inc. operates as a highly influential research and advisory firm that helps business and technology leaders use customer obsession to accelerate their growth. They deliver proprietary, data-driven insights through a subscription-based model, translating complex market dynamics into clear, actionable strategies for their clients.

Honestly, their business is simple: they sell knowledge and the confidence to act on it. This model is underpinned by their flagship platform, Forrester Decisions, which accounted for approximately 80% of the company's contract value (CV) as of late 2024.

Forrester Research, Inc. (FORR) Product/Service Portfolio

Forrester Research, Inc. (FORR) Operational Framework

Forrester's operational framework is built on a cycle of research, productization, and client engagement, which directly drives their revenue. For the full year 2025, the company is guiding for total revenues between approximately $395.0 million and $405.0 million, with an adjusted operating margin expected to be between 7.5% and 8.5%.

Here's the quick math on how they create value:

• Proprietary Research Engine: They invest heavily in creating original research, data, and analytical models, forming the intellectual property (IP) foundation for all products. This is what clients are defintely buying.
• Subscription-First Model: The majority of revenue comes from subscription-based research services like Forrester Decisions, which ensures a predictable, recurring revenue stream. Contract Value (CV), a key metric, stood at $288.1 million as of the third quarter of 2025.
• Consulting as Implementation: Consulting services take the general research and tailor it to a client's specific needs, helping them implement strategies like High-Performance IT, which focuses on Alignment, Trust, and Adaptivity.
• AI-Driven Self-Service: The launch of Forrester AI Access using their generative AI tool, Izola, is a strategic move to scale their advisory capacity and offer faster, self-service insights, improving client engagement-Izola saw a 44% increase in prompts in Q2 2025.

Forrester Research, Inc. (FORR) Strategic Advantages

In a crowded market, Forrester's competitive edge comes down to the depth of its data, the influence of its brand, and its forward-looking investment in AI. They serve a significant portion of the world's largest companies, with 61% of Fortune 100 companies being clients.

• Influential Brand and IP: The Forrester Wave™ and other proprietary research methodologies provide a canonical, trusted benchmark for technology and business leaders globally.
• Focus on Customer Obsession (CX): Their long-standing focus on the customer experience (CX) domain gives them a deep, specialized niche that other generalist firms can't easily replicate.
• AI Research Leadership: They are actively positioning themselves as a leader in AI research and application, using their own tool, Izola, to deliver client insights, which is a crucial differentiator in a 2025 tech landscape.
• High Client Value: Despite market headwinds, the contract value per client increased 10% in 2024 to $158,000, showing their ability to deepen relationships with their core client base.

If you want to understand the investor perspective on these dynamics, you should read Exploring Forrester Research, Inc. (FORR) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

Forrester Research, Inc. (FORR) How It Makes Money

Forrester Research, Inc. primarily makes money by selling subscription-based research and advisory services to business and technology leaders, essentially monetizing proprietary data and expert analysis. The business model is rooted in recurring revenue from these subscriptions, supplemented by project-based consulting and revenue from industry events.

Forrester Research, Inc.'s Revenue Breakdown

The company's revenue streams are heavily weighted toward its subscription research products, which provide a more predictable, recurring income base. The financial results for the third quarter of 2025 show total revenue of $94.3 million, with Research accounting for the vast majority.

Here's the quick math: Research revenue was $72.7 million in Q3 2025, and Consulting revenue was $21.5 million, with Events revenue at approximately $0.1 million, which clearly shows where the core value lies. The total revenue for the full-year 2025 is projected to be in the range of $395.0 million to $405.0 million, a decline of 6.4% to 8.7% versus the prior year.

Business Economics

Forrester Research, Inc.'s economic engine is built on high-margin intellectual property (IP) delivered via a subscription model. The core product, the Forrester Decisions platform, accounts for about 80% of the company's contract value (CV), which is the total value of all signed client agreements.

• Pricing Strategy: The model shifts from a per-seat license to an enterprise-wide pricing structure, exemplified by its new self-service offering, Forrester AI Access, which aims to democratize research access across a client's organization.
• Retention is Key: In Q3 2025, client retention was 74%, but wallet retention-measuring the contract value retained from existing clients-was up 1 point to 86%. This means while the company is losing some clients, the ones who stay are spending more.
• AI as a Differentiator: The launch of the generative AI tool, Izola, and the AI Access product is a strategic move to position the company as an 'AI research company,' aiming to drive new contract wins, including a large government contract signed in Q3 2025.
• Headwinds: The market is defintely challenging; contract value was down 7% year-over-year to $288.1 million in Q3 2025, reflecting persistent macroeconomic uncertainty and corporate budget tightening.

The business is effectively a fixed-cost model with high operating leverage once the research is created, so declining revenue hits the bottom line hard, but cost control has been a priority.

Forrester Research, Inc.'s Financial Performance

Despite top-line revenue challenges, the company has managed to improve profitability on an adjusted basis, largely through operational efficiency and cost management. The full-year 2025 adjusted guidance provides a clearer picture of the underlying business health, excluding significant one-time charges like the $83.9 million goodwill impairment recorded in Q1 2025.

• Adjusted Profitability: Full-year 2025 Adjusted Operating Margin is projected to be between 7.5% and 8.5%.
• Earnings Per Share (Adjusted): Adjusted diluted EPS for the full year is guided to be in the range of $1.15 to $1.25.
• Liquidity: The balance sheet remains strong, with cash and cash equivalents of approximately $132 million at the end of Q3 2025, against total debt of only $35 million.
• Cost of Capital: Interest expense for the full year 2025 is expected to be a modest $2.7 million, reflecting the low debt load.

You can see the full context of these numbers and what they mean for the long-term outlook here: Breaking Down Forrester Research, Inc. (FORR) Financial Health: Key Insights for Investors. The focus now is on converting the AI product pipeline into a tangible revenue stream to reverse the current decline.

Forrester Research, Inc. (FORR) Market Position & Future Outlook

Forrester Research, Inc. is currently navigating a challenging macroeconomic climate, evidenced by its full-year 2025 revenue guidance of approximately $395.0 million to $405.0 million, which represents a decline of up to 8.7% versus the prior year. The company's future hinges on the successful migration of clients to its flagship Forrester Decisions platform and its aggressive push into generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) to stabilize contract value, which stood at $288.1 million as of Q3 2025.

Competitive Landscape

In the research and advisory space, Forrester competes against a few massive players and a host of smaller, specialized firms. Honestly, the market is dominated by one gorilla, which makes Forrester's fight for market share defintely an uphill battle. Here's the quick math on how the major players stack up in the core research and advisory segment, based on relative scale and focus:

Opportunities & Challenges

The company's strategic pivot is clear: double down on AI and the Forrester Decisions platform. But still, the persistent decline in contract value and client count is a real headwind. You need to map these opportunities against the risks to see the true trajectory.

Industry Position

Forrester holds a strong position as a premium, thought-leading research firm, but it's a niche player in a market where the largest competitor's revenue is exponentially higher. Its core strength lies in its methodology, particularly the Forrester Wave, which evaluates vendors based on strategy and current offering, and its focus on the business-side of technology adoption, not just the tech itself.

• The company's emphasis on customer obsession and digital transformation positions it well to capture spending from Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs) and Chief Customer Officers (CCOs), a segment less saturated by traditional IT research.
• Client retention is relatively stable at 74% as of Q2 2025, suggesting a loyal core customer base, even as the total client count is down.
• The launch of new self-service generative AI offerings like Forrester AI Access is a crucial move to improve client engagement and operational efficiency.
• To understand the foundation of this strategy, you should review the Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Forrester Research, Inc. (FORR).

The key action for the company is accelerating the sales cycle and improving retention among smaller clients, where churn risk is elevated.