Are the problems at Forrester a canary in the coal mine for the Research and Insights sector?

For anyone in the market research and insights world, Forrester's latest quarterly results are a must-read and a sobering signal of the shifts happening under our feet, as reported by MRWeb.

In summary, the picture is as follows. Forrester Research Inc. is grappling with a crisis highlighted by significant financial decline and customer attrition. In its third quarter of 2025, the company reported an 8% drop in total revenue, missing analyst forecasts, with its core Research and Consulting divisions shrinking by approximately 6% and 8%. This downturn is compounded with a 7% decline in contract value, a key indicator of future revenue, and a persistent client retention problem. Their current retention rate is reported as 74%. To counteract these falling revenues and maintain profitability, the company has implemented aggressive cost-cutting measures, including a reduction in total headcount of more than 120 employees over the past year. The severity of the situation is underscored by a substantial $83.9 million goodwill impairment charge earlier this year, signalling a significant and long-term devaluation of its business assets.

To anybody saying that research and insights should protect itself by being ‘more consulting’, the numbers paint a clear picture. It is not just the traditional research business feeling the pressure. Both core research and consulting revenues are trending downwards, with consulting seeing a significant 8% drop. This is a crucial data point for anyone who believed that high-touch advisory work was a safe harbour from the commoditization affecting other parts of our industry. A major factor cited was a pullback in spending from large government clients, who are actively looking to AI to do more with fewer resources.

This isn't just a story about one company's quarterly performance: it is a case study on the disruptive force of AI. The very knowledge work that has been the bedrock of our industry for decades is being automated and redefined. When clients can get "good enough" answers in minutes from an AI prompt, the value proposition for traditional, human-powered analysis is fundamentally challenged.

The response at Forrester has been a sharp focus on efficiency, which has involved significant cost-cutting and a reduction in total headcount.

This isn't a doom-and-gloom post. It's a call to action. The pressure on legacy models is immense, but it's also a powerful catalyst for innovation. The future isn't about being replaced by AI but about finding new ways to partner with it. The firms and professionals who will thrive are those who can move up the value chain, focusing on strategic interpretation, nuanced judgment. The problem Forrester is facing, I believe, is a problem of commoditized consultancy. The old paths are eroding, but for those willing to explore, new, more valuable ones are emerging. But, we need to remember, research and insights does not have a ‘right’ to exist. We have to continually earn our position and show value.