IBM Cognos Analytics vs Workday Adaptive Planning

• What IBM Cognos does really well is provide precise data that may otherwise be hard to retrieve from your primary accounting software. While doing so, it organizes this data such that it becomes much more meaningful to analyze.
• IBM Cognos also does a fantastic job through the Query Studio module to give certain users the ability to create simple reports and modify existing reports, this allows the flexibility a user needs in getting the intended data.
• IBM Cognos also provides the ability to utilize a BI tool for complicated reporting requirements or in cases when there are many data dependencies that exist. This BI tool enables Cognos to tackle many organizational and data challenges that companies face in the industry.

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• Version Management. Adaptive lets us manage many versions/scenarios all in one platform with the robust ability to compare them to each other.
• Processing Performance. With the Elastic Hypercube technology that was implemented a few years back, we can watch changes flow through a complex web of formulas and arrive at an answer within seconds.
• Audit Trail. Our administrators love the ability to see and report on who made what changes when, which leads to real accountability within the organization.

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• With the upgrade from Cognos 10 to Cognos 11, there were a lot of features, like run schedule once, weren't brought over to the newest version of Report Studio.
• I felt like they were trying to chase Tableau and Qlik with dashboarding rather than focusing on their bread and butter of Report Studio or which other Business Intelligence tools don't do very well.

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• It would be beneficial to me, as a user, if there was a library of documentation for every type of feature. This could be something regarding formula building, understanding how attributes work, with examples, or a location for basic and advance documentation on Sheet/Model/Cubes.
• I would like to have the ability to directly assign some dimensions to accounts easier. A drag and drop feature for that would be interesting. This has been a challenge for me when new dimensions are built and I am unable to assign them to new accounts.
• I would also like to see some more formulas or an easier way to do some basic tasks. For example a simple YTD function instead of running a simple, yet long string of texts for the formulas. Or the option for selecting YTD features, removing the need of the formula all together.

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• (+) increased efficiency: Less time trying to figure out how to do something w/ another BI tool that may seem impossible -- Cognos will be able to do it 99% of the time
• (-) increased training required: Training for Cognos had to be longer and more intensive than other BI tools. For example, my team members go through a week long 8-hour/day class and it was just enough to scratch the surface. A good base if required, but real world experience is the only way to become a Cognos pro.
• (-) more end-user training: We do mostly canned reports with Cognos, so out end-users must be trainied. It is much harder to train them with Cognos than other BI tools. This is why I only turn to Cognos if I cannot accomplish my goal in another tool.

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• We are seeing more and more how Adaptive can go beyond financial metrics and cross into operational metrics. As we work with other departments in the business, we are working hard to make Adaptive the system of record when it comes to KPI reporting and measuring.

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