Gartner Usage Policy

Acceptable Use

After reading a Banking and Investment Services Gartner Research document, George (Licensed User) would like to speak with the Gartner Industry research advisor who authored it to ask some second-level questions regarding the information he read. Since George has the necessary Advisor-level access with his Industry Advisory Services License, George may ask Gartner to schedule an Inquiry session with the relevant Gartner Industry research advisor.

Unacceptable Use

Sally (Non-User) must provide guidance to her senior leadership team on how to best restructure their network and communications systems. Sally's colleague, Frank (Licensed User) schedules an Inquiry session; Sally participates in his place. This is unacceptable use because Non-Users may not participate on Inquiry sessions. Frank may, however, take notes on his Inquiry session and share those notes with Sally on an ad hoc basis; or alternatively, the company may contact their Account Representative to purchase a User License for Sally so that she can participate in her own right on Inquiry sessions. The Account Representative will make sure to find an appropriate solution to meet Sally's requirement.

Acceptable Use

George (Licensed User) is working with a group of colleagues, all of whom have Advisor-level licenses for Industry Advisory Services. They are launching a project related to gaining a competitive edge in the global manufacturing market. In preparation for the launch, George would like to schedule an Inquiry session with an Industry research advisor to better understand the key issues. This is an acceptable use of Inquiry, as all participants have an Advisor-level license for Industry Advisory Services.

Dawn (Licensed User) subscribes to the IT Leadership Team solution, and her company has designated her as the Leader Licensed User. She and her IT Leadership Team Members are assessing a potential vendor and need to speak to a Gartner research advisor regarding the vendor selection process. As the Leader, Dawn schedules the Inquiry session for herself and the IT Leadership Team Members. This is an acceptable use of Inquiry, as all the participants subscribe to the IT Leadership Team license (i.e., Leader and Member(s)).

Unacceptable Use

Frank (Licensed User) is an Enterprise Architect who is responsible for multiple projects throughout the year. Frank likes to have other colleagues join him in his Inquiry sessions to ensure that there is consensus and that all relevant questions are answered during the session. Sometimes, Frank invites a large group of participants to these Inquiry sessions, none of whom has the Advisor-level or team license required for participation. This is an unacceptable use of Inquiry sessions, because only Licensed Users with the correct access level for the relevant service may participate in Inquiry sessions. If Frank wants to have other colleagues participate with him in Inquiry sessions, Frank should contact his Account Representative who will help Frank find an appropriate solution to meet his requirements.

Sally (Licensed User) is an administrator in the IT department of her company and currently subscribes to an Advisor-level license for Industry Advisory Services. Often times she sets up Inquiry sessions for others in her department working on key projects (i.e., regardless if the other person is a non-User or Licensed User with a different level of access). Sally never joins the Inquiry sessions. As a general rule, participation in Inquiry sessions is limited to Licensed Users who are entitled to Inquiry for the same type of service under their company's contract with Gartner. Non-Users, inside or outside the Client company, may not participate in Inquiry sessions.

Dawn (Licensed User) is an Analyst Relations professional and has scheduled an Inquiry session to discuss a new product launch. Dawn would like to invite Non-Users to participate in the Inquiry session. She promises that they will only listen and not engage with the Gartner research advisor. This is an unacceptable use of Inquiry sessions, because (i) only Licensed Users with the correct access level for the relevant service are permitted to participate, attend, or listen to an Inquiry session; and (ii) Non-Users are prohibited from both (a) physically attending an Inquiry session or (b) listening in to an Inquiry session.

John (Licensed User) is a Product Development professional and has scheduled an Inquiry session to discuss a product strategy for which he is collaborating with a third-party vendor. John would like to invite Sally (Licensed User) from the third-party vendor to participate in the Inquiry session. This is an unacceptable use of Inquiry sessions, because Inquiry sessions are strategic conversations limited to the Gartner research advisor(s) and the Licensed User(s) from the single client company only. Licensed User(s) from other companies may not participate.

Acceptable Use

George (Licensed User) is assigned to a project team and schedules an Inquiry session with Gartner for additional insight on a subject. George may take notes during the Inquiry session and share those notes internally with his colleagues on the project team. Sharing notes from an Inquiry session internally with colleagues on a project team is an acceptable use so long as (i) it is not done on a systematic or routine basis; (ii) distribution is limited to an internal audience only (e.g., project teams of no more than 15 people; if it is more than that please consult usageguidance@gartner.com for additional guidance); and (iii) it is not done with the intent or effect of avoiding the purchase of additional User licenses.

Dawn (Licensed User) has read a Gartner Research document for her upcoming vendor selection process. Dawn noticed that Gartner has not published any research for 3 years on the vendor that she is considering. Since Dawn has a Gartner for IT Leaders Advisor license that entitles her to Inquiry, she schedules an Inquiry session with the Gartner research advisor to determine how that vendor is faring in the marketplace. The Gartner research advisor may provide Dawn with up-to-date data and insights to help her in the selection process. Also note: the Gartner research advisor may not recommend that specific vendor to the client for selection.

John (Licensed User) is the CIO for a small company in a smaller geography. He is responsible for implementing an ERP system and has read an interesting Gartner Research document, but he is uncertain as to whether the advice provided in the Gartner Research document applies to his company. Since John subscribes to the Gartner for IT Executives CIO product, he schedules an Inquiry session to ask for additional guidance beyond what is published in the Gartner Research document. The Gartner research advisor may provide John with recommendations and information to consider so that John has greater insight to make an informed ERP selection.

Unacceptable Use

Dawn (Licensed User) is responsible for numerous cost-cutting initiatives in her company's IT department and would like to work with a Gartner research advisor to set up an Inquiry session to discuss her company's detailed cost-cutting strategy and conduct an in-depth discussion to establish priorities and estimated time frames. Since this request requires additional research and/or the development of supporting material by the research advisor, it cannot be fulfilled in a 30-minute Inquiry session. Alternatively, Dawn may purchase from her Account Representative a Strategic Advisory Services (SAS) Internal Advisory Session.

John (Licensed User) contacts Gartner to schedule an Inquiry session about Camera Depot and the latest developments in digital SRL cameras, a vendor and topic that Gartner does not cover in its Research. In this case, John must look elsewhere for guidance on this particular vendor and topic.

Unacceptable Use

Frank (Licensed User) schedules an Inquiry session to discuss a Gartner Research document on "Green IT Strategies." Frank wants to record the Inquiry session so that he can share the information he learns with a key group of managers within his company. This is an unacceptable use because Gartner does not permit clients to record Inquiry sessions. While Frank may share personal notes he takes during the Inquiry session, a verbatim recording of the Inquiry session is not permitted.

Acceptable Use

George (Licensed User) subscribes to an Executive Programs Leadership Team License and is concerned because the terms in his Service Description for that product are different from the baseline License described in the Gartner Usage Policy. In instances, where a specific Gartner product offering includes entitlements that are different from the baseline license in the Gartner Usage Policy; the terms of that product offering will apply for the duration of George's Service Agreement.

Acceptable Use

Dawn (Licensed User) subscribes to a Gartner license with Inquiry privileges. Instead of scheduling an Inquiry session, she has requested and received permission from Gartner for the research advisor to provide a Written Response to her question. Dawn would like to share the research advisor’s Written Response with her CIO. A Licensed User may excerpt from or summarize in their own words a research advisor’s Written Response and share that excerpt or summary internally within their company only, so long as (i) the excerpting or summarizing is not done on a systematic or routine basis (e.g., by preparing and distributing a periodic excerpt or summary of Gartner Research); (ii) distribution is limited to an internal audience only of no more than 15 people; and (iii) it is not done with the intent or effect of avoiding the purchase of additional User licenses.

Unacceptable Use

Frank (Licensed User) subscribes to a Gartner license with Inquiry privileges. As part of a vendor selection process he is working on, he requests the Gartner research advisor to provide a Written Response regarding the pros and cons of doing business with a particular vendor. Frank decides to share the research advisor’s Written Response with that vendor. This is an unacceptable use of research advisor Written Responses, which are confidential and intended solely for use by the Licensed User. Any external sharing of a research advisor’s Written Response is in violation of Gartner policy.

Acceptable Use

Frank (Licensed User) subscribes to a Gartner Service with Inquiry privileges including Proposal reviews. He would like to request the Gartner research advisor to conduct a Proposal review of his upcoming vendor renewal. Frank is concerned that he may be violating the confidentiality provision in his existing vendor contract. Frank should follow the guidance of his legal team in determining whether the terms of his existing contract permit him to share the document with professional advisors who are bound to confidentiality agreements with their clients.

Acceptable Use

Frank (Licensed User) is gearing up for his strategic marketing plan presentation to his senior management. He has prepared a 15 page presentation that he would like for the Gartner research advisor to review. If Frank subscribes to a license with the appropriate Inquiry entitlements, he may leverage an Inquiry session for a Document review. As a general rule, Gartner research advisors will conduct Document reviews specific to Requests for Proposal (RFP), marketing or business plans, and other business-related documents. The document size may not: (i) exceed 20 pages, or (ii) include any attachments because it is not practical for Gartner or useful to Frank for the research advisor to try to analyze and discuss more than 20 pages during an Inquiry session.  Further, it is not a legal service and Gartner will not provide any written responses, redline markups or line-by-line pricing analysis.

Acceptable Use 

Dawn (Licensed User) is preparing her strategy for an upcoming IT outsourcing negotiation and would like to determine if there is an opportunity to improve the business terms of the proposal. If Dawn subscribes to a license with the appropriate Inquiry entitlements, she may leverage an Inquiry session for a Proposal review. As a general rule, Gartner research advisors will conduct reviews specific to unsigned pricing proposals; business terms and conditions; and negotiation strategies. However, the proposal size may not: (i) exceed 20 pages, or (ii) include any attachments because it is not practical for Gartner or useful to Dawn for the research advisor to try to analyze and discuss more than 20 pages during a discrete Inquiry session. Further, it is not a legal service and Gartner will not provide any written responses, redline markups or line-by-line pricing analysis.

Unacceptable Use 

George (Licensed User) is in the early stages of preparing to negotiate a software renewal  which is a 100 page proposal and includes several attachments. He would like to leverage his Inquiry entitlement and schedule a Gartner research advisor to review and discuss the proposal in its entirety; however, given the 20-page restriction, he intends to schedule a series of Inquiry sessions with the same or different Gartner research advisor(s) to review and discuss 20 pages at a time. This is an unacceptable use of Inquiry because Proposal reviews are limited up to 20 pages max per document including its attachments. It is not practical for Gartner or useful to George for the research advisor to try to analyze and discuss more than 20 pages during a discrete Inquiry session. Further, if George were to break up the review amongst multiple research advisors it would lack consistency or continuity a one-time discreet review would deliver. Lastly, it is not a legal service and Gartner will not provide any written responses, redline markups or line-by-line pricing analysis.  Should the proposal and its attachments exceed 20 pages, contact your Account Representative regarding Gartner Consulting’s Contract Optimization Service or the purchase of a Strategic Advisory Services (“SAS”) engagement.

Unacceptable Use 

John (Licensed User), the CMO of his company, is developing sales collateral and messaging before taking his new product to market.  He would like to schedule an Inquiry session to ensure the value proposition is messaged correctly for his company’s target markets.  Even though the sales collateral and messaging is under the 20-page limit, John would also like to include additional reference materials for the Gartner research advisor to review. This is an unacceptable use of Inquiry because Document reviews are limited to the document itself (up to 20 pages) and no additional reference materials will be reviewed. It is not practical for Gartner or useful to John for the research advisor to try to analyze and discuss more than 20 pages during a discrete Inquiry session. Further, it is not a legal service and Gartner will not provide any written responses, redline markups or line-by-line pricing analysis. Should the document you wish to be reviewed include any additional reference materials, you may contact your Account Representative to purchase a Strategic Advisory Services (“SAS”) engagement.

Unacceptable Use 

Dawn (Licensed User) would like for Gartner to review an important hardware proposal for an upcoming renewal. She would like the Gartner research advisor to review the proposal in its entirety however it exceeds 20 pages. To get around the 20 page limitation, Dawn is considering to significantly modify the formatting of the contract. This is an unacceptable use of Inquiry because Proposal reviews are limited up to 20 pages max per document including its attachments. It is not practical for Gartner or useful to Dawn for the research advisor to try to analyze and discuss more than 20 pages during a discrete Inquiry session. Further, it is not a legal service and Gartner will not provide any written responses, redline markups or line-by-line pricing analysis.  Should the proposal you wish to be reviewed exceed 20 pages and or include any additional reference materials, you may contact your Account Representative regarding Gartner Consulting’s Contract Optimization Service or the purchase of a Strategic Advisory Services (“SAS”) engagement.