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Adaptive Insights to the rescue
Updated August 02, 2022

Adaptive Insights to the rescue

Anonymous | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User

Overall Satisfaction with Workday Adaptive Planning

We have multiple units that need to be budgeted on an annual basis. Each of these entities is responsible for their own budgets using some assumptions driven by corporate. At the end of the process, it all has to be pulled together. Previously, using Excel, this was at least a full day process, with similar turnaround times every time something was changed at the base level. Now that process takes minutes.
  • It is one database, so there is no pulling together or consolidating of data
  • It allows for structural changes to be made such that if a corporate decision is made that impacts everyone, or even a segment of the units, the change can easily be made in minutes
  • At the end of the process, often times we will want to dig into the numbers, and possibly change some, based on how they all roll up. Previously, this was an Excel nightmare. Now it is instant and seamless.
  • Discovery provides an "at your fingertips" display of every KPI that you can dream up, as well as trends, breakdowns, and projections that are driving or being driven by those indicators.
  • I would like to see the ability to completely turn off all calculations for a budget version, such that it is locked down, and would require an act of Congress to change a number. We have had a few cases where something was inadvertently changed AFTER the budget was finalized.
  • The ability to back-up an entire budget would be helpful (see the comment above).
  • Budgeting timeline has been reduced significantly. We have achieved this through the ability to more efficiently update the model, as well as the instantaneous ability to roll the various units together during and after reviews.
  • Month end reporting has been streamlines, such that we can now push out reports and graphs instantly, rather than having to run them individually, and then re-create graphs and charts
For a standard user, the product is very easy to follow. From an implementation or administrative perspective, due to the products flexibility, it is, or at least can be, very complicated to set up. Thankfully, the support staff that is available to assist (or to actually do the work) is top shelf.
My previous experience was with Hyperion Essbase , a number of years ago. Comparing the products at the time I used them, I would probably rate Essbase slightly higher in terms or how powerful it was. Having said that, the upfront cost was likely tenfold for Essbase. Even if the prices were closer, I would have to say that there is very little that Essbase could do that Adaptive cannot.
Anyplace where Excel is used as a primary budgeting tool, and there are multiple inputs/locations to that process, Adaptive will be able to make the process smoother. This is particularly the case when the units are spread out, and not on the same internal network. We have saved a ridiculous amount of time by using Adaptive.

Workday Adaptive Planning Feature Ratings

8.6
Long-term financial planning
8
Financial budgeting
10
Forecasting
8
Scenario modeling
8
Management reporting
9
9.3
Financial data consolidation
10
Intercompany Eliminations
10
Local and consolidated reporting
10
Detailed Audit Trails
7
9.8
Financial Statement Reporting
9
Management Reporting
10
Excel-based Reporting
10
Automated board and financial reporting
10
9.2
Personalized dashboards
10
Color-coded scorecards
9
KPIs
10
Cost and profitability analysis
9
Key Performance Indicator setting
8
Benchmarking with external data
9
8.3
Flat file integration
9
Excel data integration
9
Direct links to 3rd-party data sources
7
BI Standard Reporting ()
Not Rated
Ad-hoc Reporting ()
Not Rated
Report Output and Scheduling ()
Not Rated
Data Discovery and Visualization ()
Not Rated
Access Control and Security ()
Not Rated
Mobile Capabilities ()
Not Rated

Workday Adaptive Planning Implementation

Our implementation literally occurred during the opening months of the Covid pandemic, so they were really handicapped. Personally, I felt they were a little heavy on the oversight, but the personnel involved were top notch.
  • Third-party professional services
Active Cyber
Change management was a minor issue with the implementation - We attempted to implement many of the advanced features that Adaptive brought to the table, and to capitalize on that functionality. The issue we ran into was that while the capabilities were increased, users were reluctant to use it, and preferred to do things "the old way". We ultimately compromised and brought in many of the new functionality, but recreating the look and feel of what they were used to. In my opinion, we sacrificed some flexibility tp achieve that, but are working toward re-cooping that functionality little by little.
  • Explaining the logic of how our model worked to the external Implementation Team
  • Keeping the internal side of the Implementation Team available, since they all had other duties
  • With out implementation occurring in the immediate aftermath of Covid, getting everyone into a remote workplace frame of mind