select an e forms vendor

Info-Tech Research Group ‹#›

Select the Right eForms Solution

If process is a buster, eForms will automate.


The eForms Vendor Landscape is a mix of new and established vendors

addressing a field of different scenarios. Use cases will determine best fit.

Introduction

Enterprises seeking to select a solution for Forms Automation.

Their web conferencing use case may include:

• Ad Hoc Form Automation

• Departmental Process Support

• Enterprise Mission Process Critical

• Business Process Workflow Automation

This Research Is Designed For: This Research Will Help You:

Understand what‟s new in the eForms market.

Evaluate eForms vendors and products for your enterprise needs.

Determine which products are most appropriate for particular use cases and scenarios.


Executive Summary

• The eForms market is evolving away from the paper form entirely, replacing it with a rich UI and integration with both new digital media and more advanced mobile functionality.

• Adobe LiveCycle and Acrobat, IBM Forms, and Autonomy LiquidOffice eForms are all champions within the market space.

• Once value for money is taken into consideration, Adobe Acrobat and PerfectForms become the most compelling options, though both lack the functionality for the most complex and advanced large enterprise use cases.

• Each product evaluated has a different set of features designed to cater to different needs based on process criticality and use cases. Choose your solution based on the criticality of your process, your use case, your industry, and your mobile needs.


Market Overview

• Stemmed from early electronic facsimiles of standard

business forms.

• Initially forms could be downloaded, then routed to

different steps.

• Next, they could be completed entirely online but were

still tied to the look and feel of the paper business form.

• As electronic use and access increased, forms-driven

business processes have evolved to become electronic

only and never hit paper.

• With more external stakeholders gaining electronic

access, forms could exist entirely online and no longer

be tied to a physical counterpart, i.e. the physical form

metaphor is no longer a constraint. As a result, e-forms

are employing more rich user interfaces.

• Built-in Rich UI to optimize data input/output, improve

user experience and decrease abandonment.

• The emergence of digital media, e.g. new cameras

and input methods, in personal devices is creating an

increasingly digitized world, allowing more rich content

to be built into forms.

• Cloud-only vendors are appearing and allowing form

data to be stored entirely in the cloud, without offering

an on-premise solution at all.

• Mobile form use, previously only enabling simple

workflow participation (e.g. approvals) is expanding to

more complex forms and tasks, and onto tablets for

field operations, e.g. real estate, insurance, field sales.

How it got here Where it’s going

As the market evolves, so do the features you need to evaluate. Pay close attention to rich UI, cloud

vendors, and mobile functionality, as all three improve overall usability and decrease grief.


eForms Criteria & Weighting Factors

20%

35%20%

25%Features Usability

AffordabilityArchitecture

50%

50%

0

Product

Vendor

Vendor Evaluation

Vendor is committed to the space and has a

future product and portfolio roadmap.Strategy

Vendor offers global coverage and is able to

sell and provide post-sales support. Reach

Vendor is profitable, knowledgeable, and will

be around for the long-term.Viability

Vendor channel strategy is appropriate and the

channels themselves are strong. Channel

Product Evaluation

The solution‟s dashboard and reporting tools

are intuitive and easy to use.Usability

The delivery method of the solution aligns with

what is expected within the space.Architecture

The five year TCO of the solution is

economical.Affordability

The solution provides basic

and advanced feature/functionality.Features

10%

60%

10%20%

Viability

Channel

Strategy

Reach


The Info-Tech eForms Landscape

Champions receive high scores for most

evaluation criteria and offer excellent value.

They have a strong market presence and

are usually the trend setters for the industry.

Emerging Players are newer vendors who

are starting to gain a foothold in the

marketplace. They balance product and

vendor attributes, though score lower

relative to market Champions.

Innovators have demonstrated innovative

product strengths that act as their

competitive advantage in appealing to niche

segments of the market.

Market Pillars are established players with

very strong vendor credentials, but with

more average product scores.

For a complete description of Info-Tech’s Vendor

Landscape methodology, see the Appendix.

Adobe LiveCycle

Adobe Acrobat

Autonomy Cardiff

LiquidOffice

IBM Forms

MS InfoPath Forms

Services

MS InfoPath

PerfectForms

LincDoc

Formatta


Every vendor has its strengths & weaknesses;Pick the one that works best for you

Product Vendor

Features Usability Affordability Viability Strategy Channel

MS InfoPath

Client

Autonomy Cardiff

Adobe Acrobat

IBM Lotus Forms

MS InfoPath

Form Services

PerfectForms

Adobe LiveCycle

ReachArchitecture

Formatta

LincDoc

Harvey Ball scores are indicative of absolute performance ratings but are not an exact correlation.

Exceptional performance receives a full ball, poor performance an empty one, with a range in between.


What is a Value Score?

Adobe Acrobat and PerfectForms provide the best bang-for-your-buck, but may not have all the features you need

The Value Score indexes each vendor‟s product

offering and business strength relative to their

price point. It does not indicate vendor ranking.

Vendors that score high offer more bang-for-the-

buck (e.g. features, usability, stability, etc.) than

the average vendor, while the inverse is true for

those that score lower.

Price-conscious enterprises may wish to give the

Value Score more consideration than those who

are more focused on specific vendor/product

attributes.

On a relative basis, Adobe Acrobat

maintained the highest Info-Tech Value

Score of the vendor group. Vendors

were indexed against Acrobat‟s

performance to provide a

complete, relative view of their product

offerings.

Sources:

1. To calculate the Value Score for each vendor, the affordability raw score was backed out, the product

scoring reweighted, and the affordability score multiplied by the product of the Vendor and Product scores.


Every vendor in the game has the basic table stakes, but who goes above and beyond in the areas that matter to you?

If Table Stakes are all you need from your eForms solution, the only true differentiator for the organization

is price. Otherwise, dig deeper to find the best price to value for your needs.

The products assessed in this Vendor

LandscapeTM meet, at the very least, the

requirements outlined as Table Stakes.

Many of the vendors go above and beyond the

outlined Table Stakes, some even do so in

multiple categories. This section aims to highlight

the products capabilities in excess of the criteria

listed here.

The Table Stakes What Does This Mean?

eForms can be pre-populated and integrate

with data sources.

Data Integration &

Pre-Population

Product provides a client for eForms users to

fill out forms.Form Fill

Product allows users to create and design their

own eForms. Form Design

Product supports its own signature system, a

pubic certificate standard, or both.Digital Signatures


Table Stakes aside, vendors were evaluated on their individual advanced feature offering

ArchivingArchive form submissions to PDF/A. Partial:

Archive to an image archive format (e.g. TIFF)

Sample FormsProvide sample business process forms to be

customized.

State TransformationImage capture through OCR/ICR, barcode

generation. Partial: Through third party tool.

SharePoint IntegrationFormal library services integration with MS

SharePoint.

Dynamic AssemblyCreate forms on the fly based on existing form

components.

Rich UIeForms themselves can be designed with a

rich UI for enhanced user experience.

Industry Standard

Support

Supports industry standards, e.g.

ACORD, MISMO.

WorkflowOffers a rules and routing engine for eForms

workflow.

What We Looked For

Self-Serve Design &

Collect

eForms design and collection can be done

with a rich UI and doesn‟t require IT.

Features

Info-Tech scored each vendor‟s features

offering as a summation of their individual

scores across the listed advanced features.

Vendors were given 1 point for each feature

the product inherently provided. Some

categories were scored on a more granular

scale with vendors receiving half points (see

Partial functionality criteria).

Advanced features scoring methodology:

Data Analysis &

Survey Function

Can capture survey data and multiple data

sets may be output for analysis.

MobileiOS, BlackBerry, and Android or Windows

Phone 7. Partial: Any mobile client.


Info-Tech Recommends:

If you need a comprehensive and dynamic enterprise eForms solution for mission-critical form-based

workflows, then Adobe LiveCycle is Info-Tech‟s highest recommendation.

Product:

Employees:

Headquarters:

Website:

Founded:

Presence:

LiveCycle

8,660

San Jose, CA

Adobe.com/LiveCycle

1982

NASDAQ: ADBE

FY09 Revenue: $2.95B

Adobe LiveCycle is a best-of-breed product, but with a price point firmly outside entry level eForm needs

Champion• Adobe‟s enterprise eForms and business process automation

solution; a different product than Acrobat Forms.

• Contrary to popular belief, LiveCycle offers full XML and

HTML, not just PDF forms.

Overview

• Comprehensive eForms management solution with data

integration at every level.

• Dynamic assembly lets you use form parts to build new forms

on the fly and capture, OCR and 1D/2D bar code support.

• Security & DigiSig available in LiveCycle portfolio as add-on.

• Supports industry standards, e.g. ACORD, MISMO, PISCES

Strengths

• Adobe and partners are building out a library of vertical

solutions, continuation of which will be critical to continue to

compete with vertical ERP and ECM vendor forms solutions.

• While its product offering is far above the standard offering in

the landscape, so is its price point; LiveCycle is definitely not

priced for enterprises with light eForms needs.

Challenges

Priced between $100,000 and $250,000



For those not looking for server-based workflow and dynamic assembly capabilities, Adobe Acrobat is

an otherwise robust and hugely affordable eForms solution backed by a strong vendor.

Product:

Employees:

Headquarters:

Website:

Founded:

Presence:

Acrobat X Pro

9,117

San Jose, CA

Acrobat.com

1982

NASDAQ: ADBE

FY10 Revenue: $3.8B

Adobe Acrobat makes up for average features and desktop architecture with strong usability and unbeatable value

Champion• Adobe‟s comprehensive Windows and Mac desktop PDF

client and small/mid-market eForms product offering.

Overview

• At US$449, its significantly cheaper than Adobe LiveCycle, but

still offers strong features for light needs.

• Form fill through a free, omnipresent Adobe Reader.

• Comes with robust form designer.

• Native SharePoint integration supports library services.

Strengths

• No dynamic form assembly as with server products.

• Self-signing e-approval, but can‟t centrally manage signature

files. Does support PKIs though.

• Most users unaware of rich form UIs through Adobe Flash.

Challenges

Priced under $1,000



Despite being a vendor underdog compared to the big market players, great usability, features and

architecture make PerfectForms a cloud eForms innovator and a product worth evaluating.

Product:

Employees:

Headquarters:

Website:

Founded:

Presence:

PerfectForms

50

Carlsbad, CA

PerfectForms.com

2001

Private

With an impressive and robust product, PerfectForms is the innovator in the eForms landscape

Innovator• Born as a survey and data analysis tool before adding more

standard eForms, reporting capabilities, and workflow

modules.

Overview

• Very strong data analysis and survey functionality.

• Can deploy through cloud, on-premise, or hybrid with the

same codebase – rich browser-based UI.

• Dynamic assembly for on-the-fly forms creation.

• Cloud origin enables rapid growth of ecosystem of other cloud

partners for value-added services like e-approvals.

Strengths

• Cannot import forms, but can start with a form image.

• Sales reach and support are not as strong as some of the

bigger vendors in the landscape.

Challenges

Priced under $1,000



For those in need of a robust solution and are okay with forms remaining entirely in IBM‟s XML

technology, IBM Forms is a very strong eForms product backed by a committed and strong vendor.

Product:

Employees:

Headquarters:

Website:

Founded:

Presence:

IBM Forms

426,751

Armonk, NY

IBM.com/Lotus/Forms

1911

NYSE: IBM


IBM Forms is a giant step forward in IBM’s portfolio, though affordability remains focused on enterprise-level users

Champion• IBM‟s best-of-breed strategic eForm solution, originally

acquired from PureEdge.

• Wizard-driven interface.

• Multi-million dollar product roadmap.

Overview

• Very strong support for industry standards, e.g.

ACORD, MISMO.

• Rich UI, can add documents, images, video, maps.

• Strong XML, BPM, Process Server, and FileNet integration

• iPad support.

• Offers OCR/ICR capture capabilities.

Strengths

• No standalone form instance outside IBM‟s XML technology.

• Integration is primarily with other IBM products.

• While positioning of IBM Forms vs. IBM FileNet Forms has

improved in the last two years, the IBM portfolio still contains

overlaps between Forms, FileNet, Lotus Notes/Domino, and

Websphere, which can confuse eForm buyers.

Challenges




For more advanced dynamic assembly and capture needs, LiquidOffice eForms is a great choice. It

can also handle more basic scenarios, but won‟t provide the best value there.

Product:

Employees:

Headquarters:

Website:

Founded:

Presence:

Cardiff LiquidOffice

1,200 (Autonomy)

Cambridge, UK

Cardiff.com/LiquidOffice

1996

LSE: AU

FY09 Revenue: $740M

Autonomy Cardiff LiquidOffice eForms is a leader in the eForms space targeted squarely to enterprise customers

Champion• Cardiff has historically focused on intelligent document

products, baking rules and routing into content. Their eForm

roots began with TeleForms, a paper form capture leader

almost 2 decades ago, before acquisition by Autonomy.

Overview

• Strong dynamic assembly, workflow, and BPM capabilities.

• Supports capture through OCR, IRC,1D and 2D barcodes.

• Part of a family of leading content-oriented products from a

strong vendor in the information management

market, Autonomy.

Strengths

• Mobile client is for BlackBerry products only.

• For smaller SMBs, Cardiff LiquidOffice may be prohibitively

expensive.

Challenges



Product:

Employees:

Headquarters:

Website:

Founded:

Presence:

SharePoint 2010 Server Enterprise Ed.

89,000

Redmond, WA

Microsoft.com/Office/InfoPath

1975

MSFT



For SharePoint Server Enterprise Ed. users, SharePoint forms services offers strong integration and

a robust architecture. Uncertain product strategy and price of InfoPath limit the value though.

MS InfoPath Form Services is stronger than InfoPath alone, but no free form-fill client is a problem

Emerging Player• Microsoft‟s comprehensive server-based eForms and process

automation solution that works with InfoPath client.

• Part of the SharePoint Enterprise Edition, NOT Standard.

• Works with other enterprise systems, not just InfoPath.

Overview

• Only fully SharePoint integrated forms solution.

• Functionality & architecture is stronger than with Microsoft

Info-Path only.

• SharePoint-enabled workflow and dynamic form assembly.

• It is fully integrated with Microsoft SharePoint library services.

• Employs InfoPath‟s strong XML-based format.

Strengths

• Form-fill client, InfoPath, isn‟t free, limiting the scope of forms-

based solutions, preventing it from seriously challenging

Adobe LiveCycle.

• Some advanced features are only available through

partners, e.g. state transformation, support for industry

standards.

• Future roadmap and eForms commitment is uncertain.

Challenges




While easy to use and great features, InfoPath remains an eForms gadfly without a free form-filler

client.

Product:

Employees:

Headquarters:

Website:

Founded:

Presence:

InfoPath

89,000

Redmond, WA

Microsoft.com/Office/InfoPath

1975

MSFT


Microsoft InfoPath’s value proposition remains hampered by lack of a free form-filler

Emerging Player• Microsoft InfoPath is Microsoft‟s desktop (client) eForms

solution, without the server-based component of InfoPath

Forms Services.

• XML-based solution.

Overview

• Very strong form design and authoring.

• Member of MS Office family, meaning look & feel will be

familiar to Office users.

• Strong support for XML standards and arbitrary XML schemas.

• Provides data analysis and survey capabilities.

Strengths

• Microsoft‟s continued refusal to create a free InfoPath filler has

evolved from being costly to being downright annoying to

customers. This prevents it from seriously challenging Adobe

Acrobat for desktop eForms.

• Future roadmap and Microsoft commitment to eForms is

uncertain.

Challenges




Formatta lacks the functionality and architecture to be a leader in the eForms space. That said, their

parent company, Access is worth watching and offers impressive niche eForms solutions.

Product:

Employees:

Headquarters:

Website:

Founded:

Presence:

Formatta

50

Sulphur Springs, TX

Formatta.com

1997

Private

Formatta is worth a look for public sector, though likely lacks the functionality to make the grade for most others

Emerging Player• Owned by Access, which holds a portfolio of enterprise forms

management products.

Overview

• Strong digital signature features, including X.509, remote

signing, and LDAP.

• Integration via XML, HTTP, SMTP, SQL and SOA.

• Strong industry support, especially in education and public

sector.

• Web client for Apple iPad

Strengths

• No dynamic assembly or state transformation.

• No survey functionality and Formatta states that they are not a

survey company.

Challenges

Priced information not available.



When it comes to forward thinking functionality like mobile support and cloud ecosystems, LincDoc is

a winner. However, clunky form creation and weak workflow hold it back.

Product:

Employees:

Headquarters:

Website:

Founded:

Presence:

LincDoc

<50

East Rochester, NY

Lincware.com

2007

Private

LincDoc is an emerging player to watch, though usability and features depend highly on what you’re looking for.

Emerging Player• Optional integration, digital signatures, components include

data lookups and credit card processing.

• More a multi-tenant architecture (cloud and on-premise) in

progress right now than a fully-baked eForm solution.

Overview

• LincDoc is LincWare‟s first and only product to date.

• Very strong tablet support (iPad and Android).

• Forward thinking management team/company.

• Competitive price point.

• A vendor to watch.

Strengths

• MS Word/Adobe Acrobat-based form design and creation

process is more difficult and unrefined than most form

designers evaluated.

• Workflow and case management, while available, is fairly light

and not suitable for more enterprises with more robust needs.

• Potential acquisition target.

Challenges



When it comes to eForms, price is directly linked to functionality for

advanced use cases. If you don’t need it, don’t pay for it.

Select your product based on your use case; they aren’t interchangeable

Use Case

Process Criticality

Industry

1

2

3

Affordable Form Fill

Workflow

Data Analysis & Survey Function

State Transformation (Paper to/from Electronic)

Mobile 4

Form ServicesLiveCycle

Acrobat

(Both)

(Both)


Different enterprise problems are solved by different levels of form

automation. Some solutions cater to lower levels, others to higher levels.

Select a product appropriate to the role forms play in your organization; there is no one size fits all

Use Case

Process Criticality

Industry

1

2

3

Ad Hoc Process Forms

Departmental Process Support

Mission Critical Process Support

Mobile 4 LiveCycle

Acrobat

Forms Turbo

Forms

(Both)


If your industry requires adherence to particular standards, then standards

support or industry-tailored solutions will be the backbone of your decision.

Some products cater to particular sensitive industries. Select accordingly.

Use Case

Process Criticality

Industry

1

2

3

Financial Services/Insurance

Education

Healthcare

Government

Mobile 4

LiveCycle

LiveCycle

LiveCycle


Mobile is the future of eForms. While most vendors are expanding

compatibility with each release, determine what your people need now.

If eForms will be utilized by a mobile workforce, select a product that supports your standard platform.

Use Case

Process Criticality

Industry

1

2

3

Mobile 4

Apple iOS

BlackBerry

Windows Phone 7

Android

LiveCycle

LiveCycle

LiveCycle

LiveCycle

Form Services

Form Services

Form Services

Form Services


Appendix


Methodology – Vendor Landscape & Harvey Balls

Info-Tech Research Group‟s Vendor Landscape market evaluations are a part of a larger product selection solution set, referred to as a „Select

Set.‟

From the domain experience of our analysts, a vendor/product shortlist is established. Product briefings are requested from each of these

vendors, asking for information on the company, products, technology, customers, partners, sales models and pricing.

Our analysts then score each vendor and product across a variety of categories, on a scale of 0-20 points. The raw scores for each vendor are

then normalized to the other vendors‟ scores to provide a sufficient degree of separation for a meaningful comparison. These scores are then

weighted according to weighting factors that our analysts believe represent the weight that an average client should apply to each criteria. The

weighted scores are then averaged for each of two high level categories: vendor score and product score. A plot of these two resulting scores

is generated to place vendors in one of four categories: Champion, Innovator, Market Pillar, and Emerging Player.

For a more granular category by category comparison, analysts take the individual scores for each vendor/product in each evaluation category

before they are normalized with the other vendor scores and convert those to a scale of zero to four whereby exceptional performance

receives a score of four and poor performance receives a score of zero. These scores are represented with “Harvey Balls”, ranging from an

open circle for a score of zero to a filled in circle for a score of four. Harvey Ball scores are indicative of absolute performance by category but

are not an exact correlation to overall performance.

Individual scorecards are then sent to the vendors for factual review, and to ensure no information is under embargo. We will make corrections

where factual errors exist (e.g. pricing, features, technical specifications). We will consider suggestions concerning benefits, functional quality,

value, etc; however, these suggestions must be validated by feedback from our customers. We do not accept changes that are not

corroborated by actual client experience or wording changes that are purely part of a vendor‟s market messaging or positioning. Any

resulting changes to final scores are then made as needed, before publishing the results to Info-Tech clients.

Vendor Landscapes are refreshed every 12 to 24 months, depending upon the dynamics of each individual market.


Methodology – Value Index

Info-Tech Research Group‟s Vendor Landscape market evaluations are a part of a larger product selection solution set, referred to as a „Select

Set.‟

The Value Index is an indexed ranking of value per dollar as determined by the raw scores given to each vendor by analysts. To perform the

calculation, Affordability is removed from the Product score and the entire Product category is reweighted to represent the same proportions.

The Product and Vendor scores are then summed, and multiplied by the Affordability raw score to come up with Value Score. Vendors are

then indexed to the highest performing vendor by dividing their score into that of the highest scorer, resulting in an indexed ranking with a top

score of 100 assigned to the leading vendor.

The Value Index calculation is then repeated on the raw score of each category against Affordability, creating a series of indexes for Features,

Usability, Viability, Strategy and Support, with each being indexed against the highest score in that category. The results for each vendor are

displayed in tandem with the average score in each category to provide an idea of over and under performance.

The Value Index, where applicable, is refreshed every 12 to 24 months, depending upon the dynamics of each individual market.

select an e forms vendor

Technology