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IBM Planning Analytics

IBM Planning Analytics

Overview

What is IBM Planning Analytics?

IBM Planning Analytics, powered by IBM TM1®, is an integrated planning solution designed to promote collaboration across the organization and help keep pace with the speed of modern business. With its calculation engine, this enterprise performance management solution is designed…

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Recent Reviews
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Awards

Products that are considered exceptional by their customers based on a variety of criteria win TrustRadius awards. Learn more about the types of TrustRadius awards to make the best purchase decision. More about TrustRadius Awards

Popular Features

View all 49 features
  • Financial budgeting (92)
    9.5
    95%
  • Forecasting (92)
    9.5
    95%
  • Scenario modeling (91)
    9.5
    95%
  • Management reporting (91)
    8.8
    88%

Reviewer Pros & Cons

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Pricing

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Essentials

$825

Cloud
per month 5 users

Standard

$1,650

Cloud
per month 10 users

Entry-level set up fee?

  • Setup fee optional
    Optional
For the latest information on pricing, visithttps://www.ibm.com/products/planning…

Offerings

  • Free Trial
  • Free/Freemium Version
  • Premium Consulting/Integration Services

Starting price (does not include set up fee)

  • $825 per month 5 users
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Product Demos

Headcount and Staffing Planning with IBM Planning Analytics

mediacenter.ibm.com

Sales and Operations Planning with IBM Planning Analytics

mediacenter.ibm.com

Demand Planning with IBM Planning Analytics

mediacenter.ibm.com

Integrated Financials with IBM Planning Analytics

mediacenter.ibm.com
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Features

BI Standard Reporting

Standard reporting means pre-built or canned reports available to users without having to create them.

8.9
Avg 8.1

Ad-hoc Reporting

Ad-Hoc Reports are reports built by the user to meet highly specific requirements.

8.8
Avg 8.3

Report Output and Scheduling

Ability to schedule and manager report output.

8.3
Avg 8.2

Data Discovery and Visualization

Data Discovery and Visualization is the analysis of multiple data sources in a search for patterns and outliers and the ability to represent the data visually.

7.9
Avg 7.7

Access Control and Security

Access control means being able to determine who has access to which data.

9.1
Avg 8.7

Mobile Capabilities

Support for mobile devices like smartphones and tablets.

7.4
Avg 8.0

Budgeting, Planning, and Forecasting

These activities are designed to assist with both data-driven operational, short-term planning and strategic long term planning

9.4
Avg 8.3

Consolidation and Close

Consolidation of data from multiple entities with currency management, reporting and audit trails.

8.5
Avg 8.1

Financial Reporting and Compliance

Financial statements and regulatory filings

8.7
Avg 8.3

Analytics and Reporting

Dashboards and scorecards for KPI monitoring and benchmarking

9.1
Avg 8.0

Integration

Ability to integrate with external applications.

8.9
Avg 8.3
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Product Details

What is IBM Planning Analytics?

IBM Planning Analytics is an integrated business planning solution that blends spreadsheet flexibility with database control and governance. It helps users to deliver faster, more accurate plans, forecasts, and budgets that can pivot to address changing market demands for FP&A, Sales, Supply chain, HR, marketing, IT and Sustainability.

It includes:

  • Built-in reporting -> Supports scorecards and metrics including ad-hoc reports and compelling visualizations.
  • User Interfaces -> A web interface, with spreadsheets.

  • Predictive forecasting ->Predictive and AI capabilities for faster, more accurate forecasts

  • Simple integration -> Integrates with an existing tech stack, including spreadsheet-based planning, ERP, CRM and any APIs.

  • Real time insights with TM1 -> Built on TM1 technology to give users faster, flexible analysis with the high-performance at scale

  • Flexible Deployment Options ->On-premise, cloud-based, or as a Service on AWS



IBM Planning Analytics Features

Budgeting, Planning, and Forecasting Features

  • Supported: Long-term financial planning
  • Supported: Financial budgeting
  • Supported: Forecasting
  • Supported: Scenario modeling
  • Supported: Management reporting

Consolidation and Close Features

  • Supported: Financial data consolidation
  • Supported: Journal entries and reports
  • Supported: Multi-currency management
  • Supported: Intercompany Eliminations
  • Supported: Minority Ownership
  • Supported: Local and consolidated reporting
  • Supported: Detailed Audit Trails

Financial Reporting and Compliance Features

  • Supported: Financial Statement Reporting
  • Supported: Management Reporting
  • Supported: Excel-based Reporting
  • Supported: Automated board and financial reporting
  • Supported: XBRL support for regulatory filing

Analytics and Reporting Features

  • Supported: Personalized dashboards
  • Supported: Color-coded scorecards
  • Supported: KPIs
  • Supported: Cost and profitability analysis
  • Supported: Key Performance Indicator setting
  • Supported: Benchmarking with external data

Integration Features

  • Supported: Flat file integration
  • Supported: Excel data integration
  • Supported: Direct links to 3rd-party data sources

BI Standard Reporting Features

  • Supported: Pixel Perfect reports
  • Supported: Customizable dashboards
  • Supported: Report Formatting Templates

Ad-hoc Reporting Features

  • Supported: Drill-down analysis
  • Supported: Formatting capabilities
  • Supported: Predictive modeling
  • Supported: Integration with R or other statistical packages
  • Supported: Report sharing and collaboration

Report Output and Scheduling Features

  • Supported: Publish to Web
  • Supported: Publish to PDF
  • Supported: Report Versioning
  • Supported: Report Delivery Scheduling

Data Discovery and Visualization Features

  • Supported: Pre-built visualization formats (heatmaps, scatter plots etc.)
  • Supported: Location Analytics / Geographic Visualization
  • Supported: Predictive Analytics
  • Supported: Support for Machine Learning models
  • Supported: Pattern Recognition and Data Mining
  • Supported: Integration with R or other statistical packages

Access Control and Security Features

  • Supported: Multi-User Support (named login)
  • Supported: Role-Based Security Model
  • Supported: Multiple Access Permission Levels (Create, Read, Delete)
  • Supported: Report-Level Access Control
  • Supported: Table-Level Access Control (BI-layer)
  • Supported: Field-Level Access Control (BI-layer)
  • Supported: Single Sign-On (SSO)

Mobile Capabilities Features

  • Supported: Responsive Design for Web Access
  • Supported: Mobile Application
  • Supported: Dashboard / Report / Visualization Interactivity on Mobile

Additional Features

  • Supported: AI forecasting

IBM Planning Analytics Screenshots

Screenshot of Workflow managementScreenshot of Income statementScreenshot of Margin analysisScreenshot of Metrics managementScreenshot of Income statementScreenshot of Expense analysis

IBM Planning Analytics Videos

IBM Planning Analytics Technical Details

Deployment TypesOn-premise, Software as a Service (SaaS), Cloud, or Web-Based
Operating SystemsWindows, Linux, Mac
Mobile ApplicationApple iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Mobile Web

IBM Planning Analytics Downloadables

Frequently Asked Questions

IBM Planning Analytics, powered by IBM TM1®, is an integrated planning solution designed to promote collaboration across the organization and help keep pace with the speed of modern business. With its calculation engine, this enterprise performance management solution is designed to help users move beyond the limits of spreadsheets, automating the planning process to drive faster, more accurate results. Use it to unify data sources into one single repository, enabling users to build sophisticated, multidimensional models that drive forecasts.

IBM Planning Analytics starts at $825.

Anaplan, SAP Analytics Cloud, and Workday Adaptive Planning are common alternatives for IBM Planning Analytics.

Reviewers rate Multi-User Support (named login) and Role-Based Security Model and Multiple Access Permission Levels (Create, Read, Delete) highest, with a score of 9.6.

The most common users of IBM Planning Analytics are from Enterprises (1,001+ employees).
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Comparisons

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Reviews and Ratings

(237)

Attribute Ratings

Reviews

(1-5 of 5)
Companies can't remove reviews or game the system. Here's why
Aria Smith | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
IBM Planning Analytics helps my entire department with its artificial intelligence, allowing good analysis, planning, forecasting, decision making, and reporting. We have large processing capacities that cannot be achieved with a manual system. It is a robust system that provides confidence, is scalable, has robust cognitive processing features, and robust NLP functions. In addition, it greatly increases the efficiency in the department with the integration of Excel and with a good processing speed and instant calculations. IBM Planning Analytics adapts to the capabilities of the company with respect to the volume of processing. We are constantly growing and we always have IBM.
  • Robust NLP and cognitive processing capabilities
  • It is capable of processing a high volume of information without affecting performance
  • It is scalable and robust thanks to its artificial intelligence functions allowing good analysis, planning, forecasting, decision making, and reports
  • By evaluating the capabilities of IBM Planning Analytics, we have determined that it is an ideal software for all industries with a wide variety of tools such as cognitive processing and NLP functions
  • Implementation is complex in almost every stage, from start to finish
  • The technical support is not the most attentive, and the solutions they offer us to improve the implementation are not the fastest
  • The usability of IBM Planning Analytics is not the best; we must have experience to be able to run the functions without help
IBM Planning Analytics is a robust and scalable tool with a very good track record, my experience is three years and I consider it appropriate for this complex and changing industrial world, it must be considered that with IBM Planning Analytics it will take a long time to be able to see the fruits of your labor. If you are looking for a quick solution, I don't think IBM Planning Analytics is the most appropriate, but if you are willing to go through the difficult and slow implementation process, I think you are in the right place.
Budgeting, Planning, and Forecasting (5)
86%
8.6
Long-term financial planning
100%
10.0
Financial budgeting
80%
8.0
Forecasting
80%
8.0
Scenario modeling
70%
7.0
Management reporting
100%
10.0
Consolidation and Close (7)
41.42857142857143%
4.1
Financial data consolidation
80%
8.0
Journal entries and reports
80%
8.0
Multi-currency management
N/A
N/A
Intercompany Eliminations
N/A
N/A
Minority Ownership
N/A
N/A
Local and consolidated reporting
60%
6.0
Detailed Audit Trails
70%
7.0
Financial Reporting and Compliance (5)
88%
8.8
Financial Statement Reporting
80%
8.0
Management Reporting
90%
9.0
Excel-based Reporting
100%
10.0
Automated board and financial reporting
90%
9.0
XBRL support for regulatory filing
80%
8.0
Analytics and Reporting (6)
63.33333333333333%
6.3
Personalized dashboards
70%
7.0
Color-coded scorecards
N/A
N/A
KPIs
80%
8.0
Cost and profitability analysis
80%
8.0
Key Performance Indicator setting
80%
8.0
Benchmarking with external data
70%
7.0
Integration (3)
93.33333333333334%
9.3
Flat file integration
80%
8.0
Excel data integration
100%
10.0
Direct links to 3rd-party data sources
100%
10.0
BI Standard Reporting (3)
80%
8.0
Pixel Perfect reports
80%
8.0
Customizable dashboards
80%
8.0
Report Formatting Templates
80%
8.0
Ad-hoc Reporting (4)
95%
9.5
Drill-down analysis
90%
9.0
Formatting capabilities
90%
9.0
Integration with R or other statistical packages
100%
10.0
Report sharing and collaboration
100%
10.0
Report Output and Scheduling (4)
65%
6.5
Publish to Web
80%
8.0
Publish to PDF
N/A
N/A
Report Versioning
90%
9.0
Report Delivery Scheduling
90%
9.0
Data Discovery and Visualization (3)
63.33333333333333%
6.3
Pre-built visualization formats (heatmaps, scatter plots etc.)
90%
9.0
Location Analytics / Geographic Visualization
N/A
N/A
Predictive Analytics
100%
10.0
Access Control and Security (4)
90%
9.0
Multi-User Support (named login)
100%
10.0
Role-Based Security Model
100%
10.0
Multiple Access Permission Levels (Create, Read, Delete)
80%
8.0
Single Sign-On (SSO)
80%
8.0
Mobile Capabilities (3)
63.33333333333333%
6.3
Responsive Design for Web Access
90%
9.0
Mobile Application
N/A
N/A
Dashboard / Report / Visualization Interactivity on Mobile
100%
10.0
  • The ROI is promising after the first year, in principle; everything is lost because it is not very easy to use or implement
  • We can collaborate at any time with other users to improve planning
  • You can increase the volume of information without affecting the performance of IBM Planning Analytics
Of great importance to our expectations of constant and scalable growth, IBM Planning Analytics is the long-term solution to improve planning and optimization in different scenarios throughout the year. We can establish planning design parameters based on specific metrics in each department and optimize them with the collaboration of all team members.
They are not the fastest or the most attentive team, and the response time to requests is slow (they can take days). Also, I remember the long and difficult months of learning and implementation with little or no help from IBM technical support. This is a problem that I have experienced with other IBM products. They really do not have adequate customer service to be able to satisfy all our requirements.
IBM Planning Analytics is difficult to use if you don't have enough experience. It took me more than a year to say that I can use this IBM software. IBM Planning Analytics is the best in terms of planning, cognitive processing and NLP, forecasting, decision making, and reporting, but usability is an issue that only gets fixed after a year.
25
12
  • Data collection.
  • Data analysis.
  • Planning and automation of processes.
  • Improved automated processes and consolidated manual data analysis.
  • Automated data processes and data analytics are a source of productivity that can be achieved with IBM Planning Analytics with Watson.
February 03, 2016

Cognos Express

Barry Morris | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
ResellerIncentivized
We implemented the product in less than six weeks. IBM Cognos Express is used across the organization. The main usage is with the sales and marketing teams. The sales team sees what has been delivered to where and when. Most importantly it sends messages when deliveries are late allowing the marketing team to contact recipients that the delivery may be late. It also assists in managing the sales team to see if they are meeting sales targets and generating new leads. It’s also used for ad hoc reporting.
  • Active reports using Rave technology, allows users to use amazing graphics and analytic's with off line reports
  • Having Wright back, in multidimensional cubes, allowing teams to build complex budget’s
  • Integrated Scorecards, the new scorecard tool is easy to implement manage and display in the Cognos dashboards / Reports
  • Integrated maps - the current map functionality is limited, however there are tools that allow amazing add-ons, however it adds to the basic cost.
Cognos Express is limited to 100 users per module, if you have more then 100 users its recommended that you choose IBM Cognos Enterprise. If you are not planning on using a single server, then it is also recommended to use IBM Cognos Enterprise.

Cognos Express is a full BI solution. The security level is what a business expects. All reports are based on the same infrastructure - a single version of the truth. It can be used totally on line with no download. As your organization grows you simply upgrade to Cognos Enterprise.

Out of 50 IT personnel almost 40 use Cognos. The majority are consumers that use reports for the daily tasks and some analysts that also create new reports when needed. The sales manager is also a main contributor of reports.
Budgeting, Planning, and Forecasting
N/A
N/A
Consolidation and Close
N/A
N/A
Financial Reporting and Compliance
N/A
N/A
Analytics and Reporting
N/A
N/A
Integration
N/A
N/A
BI Standard Reporting (3)
96.66666666666666%
9.7
Pixel Perfect reports
100%
10.0
Customizable dashboards
90%
9.0
Report Formatting Templates
100%
10.0
Ad-hoc Reporting (4)
100%
10.0
Drill-down analysis
100%
10.0
Formatting capabilities
100%
10.0
Integration with R or other statistical packages
100%
10.0
Report sharing and collaboration
100%
10.0
Report Output and Scheduling (4)
100%
10.0
Publish to Web
100%
10.0
Publish to PDF
100%
10.0
Report Versioning
100%
10.0
Report Delivery Scheduling
100%
10.0
Data Discovery and Visualization (2)
85%
8.5
Pre-built visualization formats (heatmaps, scatter plots etc.)
100%
10.0
Location Analytics / Geographic Visualization
70%
7.0
Access Control and Security (3)
100%
10.0
Multi-User Support (named login)
100%
10.0
Role-Based Security Model
100%
10.0
Multiple Access Permission Levels (Create, Read, Delete)
100%
10.0
Mobile Capabilities (3)
93.33333333333334%
9.3
Responsive Design for Web Access
90%
9.0
Mobile Application
100%
10.0
Dashboard / Report / Visualization Interactivity on Mobile
90%
9.0
I have not encountered standard data sources I could not use or find a work around to access.
I do not have much to add, as Cognos submits its self to standard solutions it’s easy to manage the security. Allow team leaders to manage their team's folders. It’s basically up to the administer to decide who can see what and where and if he/ she decides to delegate this power.
December 31, 2014

Perfect

Score 7 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
I used it for government. We used it to make a report of projection. We combine it with some method made by another company that were food at making the projection. The hardest challenge we had was data modelling. The system is too complicated. Then we had to make our own data warehouse so that all data can be stored to Cognos data warehouse.
  • Report designer is easy to use
  • Its compatibility with Excel files make work easier
  • Banking
  • Government
Not that I know yet
Cognos express is like one perfect bundle: a combination of TM1 and business intelligence. The price is also cheaper. That's why I chose IBM Cognos Express.
Departmental
Pretty wide and flexible..
Ease of sharing data across teams.
Need to provide some more templates...
November 21, 2013

IBM Cognos Express review

Score 7 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
  • Its an integrated tool with all IBM Cognos components together. E.g. Report Studio, Reporter (Query Studio, Analysis Studio), Xcelerator, Planner (What If analysis) etc.
  • Very easy installation compared to other IBM Cognos BI suite versions.
  • Very easy configuration of data sources to build reports or dashboards.
  • Can easily connect Excel files or Mdb access database to IBM Cognos Express to build customized reports.
  • IBM Cognos Express does not have mobile capabilities (called Go! Mobile) or Go! Search options.
  • Cannot be installed in a distributed environment. Single host only.
  • There is a limitation on number of users. I guess it's around 100.
  • Limited security features compared to IBM Cognos 8/10 versions.
  • Compared to Cognos TM1, the IBM Cognos Express Planner has limited functionality.
  • IBM Cognos Express can be installed on the Windows platform only.
  • Suitable for a small scale business or medium size data warehouse environment.
I would recommend to my colleague based on needs of the business. For easy user-friendly usage, with medium data warehouse environment, easy user training, limited users and with all great capabilities, I would recommend IBM Cognos Express. For more advanced features like mobile capabilities, added security, offline dashboarding etc. I would recommend IBM Cognos 10.x.
Since IBM Cognos Express is suitable only for medium data warehouse environment, we are not sure if this tool solves the long term need as the business keeps growing rapidly. So its a 50/50 ratio to renew Express license. But having said that, the components of IBM Cognos Express are also available in other Cognos BI suites like Cognos 10.x version. So we will probably upgrade our environment to IBM Cognos 10.x which comes with more new features.
  • Since its an integrated tool with reporter & planner, it was very user friendly for our customers to do dashboarding and what-if analysis on a single platform.
  • Easy end user training.
  • Our users productivity increased by 50%.
David Chen | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
  • Performance is amazing because of it's in-memory OLAP engine.
  • With a little experience, it's a great rapid deployment platform that can model just about any business process.
  • It is actually quite scalable considering the amount of RAM that can be installed on servers nowadays.
  • Easy to setup and migrate to a new environment.
  • It lacks a pretty user interface.
  • Learning curve can be high for non-technical person.
  • Getting data out of the system could be easier.
Software may not be cheap but a cheaper version (IBM Cognos Express) is out there if you don't have that many users.
  • With the right mix of consultants, contractors, and internal W2 employees, ROI can be as high as 160 hours saved per month for a $100K project.
This is a planning developer's dream. You feel like you're given a blank canvas with all the right tools to make it an artwork. It is the future of business application development.
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