IBM Planning Analytics with Watson

Trustworthy as TM1

Comments: Predictive insights uncovered automatically with just a few clicks

Pros:

It's powered by TM1 another great solution of IBM. Eliminate manual tasks derived from the constant and tedious use of spreadsheets. It provides dynamic planning and analytics workspace to model real-time scenarios. Once I export it to Excel as a formula driven file, all I have to do is edit the cell that it is pulling from and the result will vary depending of the desired result.

Cons:

Must wait some time while files are processed. Also penalize heavily errors. But once is set the results are great.

Great CPM enterprise software

Comments: We had great experience using IBM Planning analytics implementing the workforce planning, and marketplace planning. It is stable and robust, supporting enterprise level planning and forecasting.
The integration with cognos analytics make the reporting side easier.

Pros:

1. Good performance especially the enhanced processing engine in the recent versions; 2. Robust reporting capability and integration with other IBM software such as IBM Cognos Analytics and Microsoft office; 3. Capability of integration with Watson and SPSS.

Cons:

1. Although feeds and rules are the cores of IBM Planning Analytics, it makes the developer really hard to design and troubleshooting, wondering if the complexity can be encapsulated with a more business driven approach; 2.Comparing to other software, IBM Planning Analytics lack of new features in the recent couple of years.

IBM Planning Analytics for Planning and Reporting in Finance Depts

Comments: I have built complex models in TM1 for both Management and Statutory Accounts. I have built planning models in areas such as property valuations, ship building project costing, airline route profitability, currency conversion, activity based costing, public finance initiative scenario comparison, etc

Pros:

TM1 aka Planning Analytics will consolidate data in real-time. As soon as a budget figure is changed at the bottom of the hierarchy you can see the impact of that change on all higher level numbers, and on any related values for which calculations can be defined in its rules language. It can easily cope with Currency Conversion, Rate based Planning, Allocations, Activity Based Costing, etc. The multi-cube architecture means that if you change a value in eg the Price cube you can see the impact on other related cubes, such as Sales and Profit and Loss. It has real time links to Excel making it easy to build Excel sheets that can be used as input templates for budgeting, where entering a number instantly updates the underlying TM1 cube and which can also be used for sophisticated reporting. The Excel workbooks can be easily published to TM1 Web where are then accessible to anyone with a web browser. Data can be both entered and reported on, in the web.

Cons:

The Planning Analytics Workbench PAW is not as capable as Power BI for Dashboarding. However, the modelling and planning capabilities of TM1 are superior to those of Power BI.

IBM Cognos TM-1

Pros:

This product allows our Finance team to forecast. Being able to tie the data to our data warehouse allows our users to slice and dice the data they way that they need.

Cons:

This product is hard to maintain at times. Being a place that doesn't have trained individuals on how to use this, we have to turn to outside vendors to help us out quite a bit. Doesn't seem to intuitive and is hard to finds information on the internet.

Excellent budget planning tool

Comments: We have a good experience using it to do budget planning, analysis and forecasting.

Pros:

The Excel integration helps us make budget planning and reports. The automated data processing tool is very useful and flexible.

Cons:

The learning curve is a little bit high due to lack of documentation. At first, we found this tool difficult to use.