IBM B2B Cloud Services vs. Lytho Workflow vs. Planview ChangePoint

We have just started to use IBM B2B Cloud Services within our department. We were looking for a cloud-based solution to manage all of our partner's B2B processes within a single interface. We did not want to have to go through the hassle of managing any sort of solution ourselves; thus, we came to the conclusion that a cloud-based solution would work best for our department. So far, we have found that the product has been reliable, and not having to worry about maintenance and patch cycles is always a good thing.

Incentivized

It's a flexible program that can be molded to fit most businesses. It's geared towards agencies but we've been able to use it successfully as an in-house solution. It's pretty intuitive for the most part and is easy for new hires or clients to get up and running pretty quickly.

Incentivized

Changepoint is basic and would, therefore, work for businesses with uncomplicated requests, pretty straightforward workflows and willingness to work with an unsightly solution. It is basic, from the UI to the search option and the way the information is captured, which can be frustrating and counter-intuitive at times. It is relatively robust (i.e. I have been using it for almost 2 years and have not seen it crash once) but it does log me out when the system has been inactive for about 30 minutes - and I am only notified about being logged out upon clicking the Submit button, meaning many a line of text have been typed more than once!

Incentivized

• Document process management
• Transition services, including planning, design, project management and testing
• Translation, community and visibility service
• Trading partner community support

Incentivized

• Requests - Request forms are set up so that certain fields are required and there's a minimum turnaround time. This prevents others from submitting an incomplete request or requesting things last minute.
• Proofing - Chasing after people to approve a proof is always a pain, but the simplicity of Lytho Workflow makes it less of a pain. I can quickly remind people in the route to review the proof by clicking a button.
• Templates - I use templates so that a list of tasks is created for me when I accept a job. It also creates a timeline for when each task needs to be done.

Incentivized

• Changepoint has significant reporting capabilities, though of course, the data that comes out is only as good as the data that goes in. I enjoy being able to use the standard reports to understand exactly how much a project has cost us and to compare it to how much we are charging. This allows us to more accurately set our prices. Though we have not used the report designer capability, I understand that custom reports can be designed with relative ease.
• Changepoint has a versioning capability for changes made to user profiles in the system manager, which I find particularly helpful. As a non-power user, it is valuable to be able to see what changes I have made to various profiles so that I can troubleshoot a problem down the line.
• Changepoint has significant functionality well beyond the features that we are currently using, and for this reason, I think it is affordable and a good deal. Particularly if your organization is interested in dedicating the time and resources into using all of the features around project planning, resource allocation, etc., the price is well worth the value.

• Can't rely on huge data sets
• Organizations is huge, it's tough to handle
• Limited feature sets

Incentivized

• Not being able to permanently delete inactive/old users (i.e. employees that are no longer with the company).
• Search filtering features are lacking.
• Not being notified when someone replies to my comment without @ mentioning me.

Incentivized

• We use Changepoint to manage the IS organization. I would like to see more advancement in order to do benefits management.
• I would like to see a capability where a project manager can build a very detailed work breakdown structure, but only require project resources to charge time and provide a task status at a higher level.

Sometimes the decision to renew boils down to an old adage "if it isn't broken don't fix it". Previous to moving to Changepoint, it was obvious that we needed a better project management tool. Projects we completed on time but the time zone difference between the teams and several iterations of back and forth caused a number of communication issues with projects. The difference is night and day.

It could be more intuitive and user friendly.

IBM B2B Cloud Services stands out among the competition with its solid performance, wealth of features, and multiple platform compatibility. While it can be more expensive than competitive services, its core components are powerful enough to work with multiple levels of marketing campaigns and outreach efforts. The service works well among different levels of clients and can be utilized better across different viewing devices

Incentivized

By consolidating the requests, project management, and proofing without features we didn't need like invoicing it was an easy fit for us. We were able to quickly develop a comprehensive workflow and the gains to efficiency were immediate. Pricing was competitive (at least at the time) and the implementation was very good as well.

Incentivized

Planview Changepoint helps us to understand our key customers enabling us to capitalize on every financial opportunity and helps us to forecast demand against the capacities required for new opportunities, and also it automates and monitors contractual terms and conditions. It gives us visibility into our employees' skills and helps to optimize resource allocation.

Incentivized

• We feel that IBM B2B Cloud Services will drive down our maintenance costs because my group is no longer responsible for patching and maintaining infrastructure.
• High availability of IBM B2B Cloud Services will allow us to have a greater up time with less downtime.
• Having a single platform where all B2B integrations are shown and presented in a single interface will allow us to quickly and effectively manage those integrations and see which ones are really needed. A single view will provide instant visibility into any sort of problems that may arise as well.

Incentivized

• I wasn't working for the company when they first started using Lytho Workflow workflow, so I can't say what impact it has had. However, I do see the product as a necessity in the fast-paced environment that is retail marketing. The introduction of the new "change request" feature has saved countless hours of miscommunication and confusion when project objectives change.

Incentivized

• Employee efficiency has decreased significantly within our Project MAnagement team. The main causes are lack of logical steps/not user-friendly and the slowness of the entire program.
• Changepoint PSA has greatly improved being able to track budgets for all projects. Before this software, budgets were done manually by hand and cross-referenced with Accounting. Now, we can pull a report out of the system, as long as all parties entered their time and data correctly.