The Forrester Wave™ Data Governance Solutions Report 2025 and Why It Matters #
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The Forrester Wave Data Governance Solutions (Q3, 2025) evaluation is a rigorously researched three-part assessment of the most significant data governance platform providers, giving enterprise buyers a clear, analyst-reviewed framework for evaluating solutions and informing purchase decisions.
Why this report matters in 2025: #
- Market Authority - Provides independent evaluation methodology to help navigate complex vendor landscapes
- Strategic Investment Guidance - Offers framework for data governance investment decisions
- Competitive Intelligence - Delivers side-by-side capability analysis for informed purchasing
- Industry Trend Identification - Reveals emerging patterns shaping the market’s future direction
- Risk Mitigation - Reduces vendor selection risk through rigorous evaluation criteria
Traditional governance created gatekeepers. AI-native governance creates enablers. The Forrester Wave Data Governance Solutions 2025 evaluation captures this shift precisely. It separates platforms that merely automate compliance from those that activate intelligence at scale. As the report emphasizes:
“Data governance has outgrown its compliance roots: In today’s AI-fueled and data-saturated enterprise, it’s the control plane for trust, agility, and scale.”
This market evolution centers on what Forrester calls the “next frontier”:
“The next frontier isn’t just about managing metadata — it’s about activating it.”
Data governance market 2025: Key evolution areas #
- Agentic-AI differentiation: Top providers position agentic artificial intelligence as the defining competitive edge for next-generation data governance platforms.
- Self-driving automation: Automated classification, policy enforcement and remediation establish self-steering governance as the new market baseline.
- Metadata-activation imperative: The market demands shift from passive metadata management to active metadata that powers governed data products and AI pipelines.
- Role-based personalization & collaboration: Intuitive experiences, embedded collaboration and personalized views to drive broad adoption.
- Business-value alignment: Governance evolves from compliance defense to a strategic enabler that accelerates decision-making, monetization and data-product creation.
Access to understand the transformation 👉 Get a complimentary copy of the report.
The Forrester Wave™ Data Governance Solutions: Evaluation Overview 2025 #
Forrester evaluated 13 data governance solution providers using a rigorous three-category framework that ensures assessment across current offering, strategy, and customer feedback.
1. Current Offering Assessment #
The current offering examines each vendor’s existing capabilities across core governance functionalities like data discovery, business glossary, data catalog, semantics, lineage acquisition and visualization, data observability, AI governance, and more.
2. Strategy Evaluation #
The strategy dimension focuses on each vendor’s vision and innovation roadmap. The vendors are evaluated based on their ability to articulate a clear market vision, showcase innovation, partner ecosystem, adoption, and community.
3. Customer Feedback Analysis #
Customer feedback highlights features that users praise about the tools, such as, ease of use, flexibility, responsiveness, intuitive UI, strong capabilities, and seamless integration across the data stack.
Understand the 28 evaluation criteria that separate future-ready platforms 👉 Get complimentary copy of the report.
Atlan Named a Leader: Findings from Vendor Profile #
Atlan emerged as a Leader in the The Forrester Wave™ Data Governance Solutions, Q3 2025 evaluation. Atlan was recognized as a “Customer Favorite” in the evaluation, which, for us, reflects superior customer experience and platform effectiveness.
1. Strategy: #
Atlan’s strategy focuses on activating metadata as a dynamic layer for governance, collaboration, and AI enablement.
“The company’s roadmap mirrors its vision to set AI-native governance, proactive policy execution, and role-based personalization at the core of an intuitive and intelligent governance engine.”
Atlan’s integration-first approach enables seamless alignment with existing data environments, supporting fast deployments and embedding governance directly into daily workflows.
“Its superior adoption across customer organizations reflects its ease of use and commitment to data literacy, equipping users to better understand, trust, and translate data into insights.”
2. Capability: #
Atlan offers features that are among the best in class for policy management, stewardship, and collaborative governance. Its knowledge graph and AI-powered automation support clear data ownership, surfacing policy-relevant context and automating governance workflows.
“Built-in collaboration tools and personalized experiences drive adoption across technical and business users.”
Among Best-in-Class Capabilities:
- Policy Management - Superior implementation and flexibility
- Stewardship Workflows - Advanced collaborative tools
3. A Customer Favorite: #
Atlan earns the report’s double-halo icon, Forrester’s signal for “outstanding customer feedback” that designates a Customer Favorite. Atlan is a Customer Favorite in the 2025 evaluation. The Forrester Wave Data Governance Solutions report states that:
“Atlan is a top choice for organizations seeking a modern, AI-native governance platform that blends intelligent automation with deep integration and broad user accessibility."
We believe this combination of technical excellence and customer-centric approach positions Atlan as a trusted partner for organizations seeking to modernize their data governance capabilities.
Customer Satisfaction Highlights:
- Ease of use
- Flexibility
- Responsiveness
- Seamless integration across the data stack
- Strong lineage and smart search capabilities
Access to understand the transformation 👉 Get a complimentary copy of the report.
What This Forrester Wave Evaluation Means for Data Teams #
The Forrester Wave Data Governance Q3 2025 evaluation provides clear guidance for data teams evaluating governance platforms and planning their data strategy.
1. Infuse governance workflows with automation and AI #
Forrester calls out that the best platforms “embed AI across the stack, from classification and policy detection to rule generation and remediation.” When you assess vendors, look for agentic features that can tag data, suggest policies and auto-fix issues. The deeper the automation runs, the more time your team wins back for strategic work.
2. Empower business users and stewards with intuitive, intelligent experiences #
The report reminds us that “business users, data stewards, and domain experts need no-code access to trusted data, along with intelligent guidance to use it responsibly and effectively.” Prioritize tools that offer role-based views, built-in collaboration and smart recommendations. These touches help non-technical colleagues find answers fast, easing the load on central data teams.
3. Align governance capabilities with business value creation #
Forrester notes that “governance is evolving from a defensive posture to a strategic enabler,” where the most mature solutions “support governed data sharing, AI model readiness, and the creation of reusable and insight-ready data assets.” Tie your evaluation criteria to outcomes such as faster decisions, new revenue streams and reduced risk, and favor platforms that make those links clear.
Access the full report to see how governance leaders are preparing for the AI-native enterprise 👉 Get a complimentary copy of the report.
Our Conclusion: Navigating the Data Governance Landscape in 2025 #
The Forrester Wave Data Governance Solutions, Q3 2025, signals a major shift in the market as agentic AI and self-driving governance emerge as key differentiators. Organizations that invest in modern governance platforms today, especially those recognized as leaders such as Atlan, will be, in our opinion, best positioned to unlock data-driven opportunities while ensuring trust, agility, and scalability across the enterprise.
Forrester does not endorse any company, product, brand, or service included in its research publications and does not advise any person to select the products or services of any company or brand based on the ratings included in such publications. Information is based on the best available resources. Opinions reflect judgment at the time and are subject to change. For more information, read about Forrester’s objectivity here .