IBM Planning Analytics Reviews

Vendor: IBM

4.2 out of 5

24 reviews
89% willing to recommend

4,876 followers

What is IBM Planning Analytics?

IBM Planning Analytics is an integrated planning solution that uses AI to automate planning, budgeting, and forecasting and drive more intelligent workflows.

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IBM Planning Analytics is the #3 ranked solution in top Business Performance Management solutions. PeerSpot users give IBM Planning Analytics an average rating of 8.4 out of 10. IBM Planning Analytics is most commonly compared to Anaplan: IBM Planning Analytics vs Anaplan. IBM Planning Analytics is popular among the midsize enterprise segment, accounting for 55% of users researching this solution on PeerSpot. The top industry researching this solution are professionals from a educational organization, accounting for 48% of all views.

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IBM Planning Analytics

February 2025

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Featured IBM Planning Analytics reviews

Gnanavel-Chakkarapani

Junior Consultant at CMA CGM

The product has improved our company's forecasting accuracy since it serves as a very useful tool for our sales and controller teams as they easily get to enter the inputs using views in TM1, which gets loaded into our main database. If there are sales team members in different parts of the world, like in Hong Kong and Singapore, they may prefer to use IBM Planning Analytics, which is easy to use when compared to the Excel tool. Speaking about planning analytics and data analysis, I would say that our company used to use IBM Cognos Analytics for reporting, where we used to use Cognos Dynamic Cubes so that users can easily use its drag and drop features while getting to see the data for which the users had to wait for two to three minutes prior to its use. In our company, tons of data are loaded into the memory, and users can use Cognos Dynamic Cubes to analyze data and understand it. The AI capabilities of IBM have benefited our planning strategy as they are very useful for business. The tool allows the easy creation of dashboard reports using AI capabilities. No technical knowledge is required for business use cases. It is possible to integrate the product in scenarios where some new integrations are available. I remember that my company used Azure Data Factory to connect Azure, Oracle, and IBM WebSphere Application Server. When it comes to IBM Planning Analytics, it is complex to integrate it with LDAP and or any other authentication tool offered by Microsoft. In our company, some users like to integrate IBM Planning Analytics with the common LDAP or Microsoft AD, which we currently use for all our applications. The authentication part is difficult to configure with IBM Planning Analytics. The maintenance of the product is easy. My company has scheduled maintenance on the product every week, especially during forecast times, so that memories automatically lapse and users can freely access their servers. The use of the tool has had an impact on collaboration within our company's planning team since everyone knows how to easily access the data and publish the results. I recommend the product to those who plan to use it. I rate the tool a nine out of ten.

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Dirk Boeckmann

Executive Partner at Beat2Lead GmbH

The new frontend Planning Analytics Workspace is not very good, it could be improved. I like the Planning Analytics functionality but it would be helpful if it could be more customizable. You can create a prediction and receive information but you cannot do feature engineering regarding the predictive models. If this was added it would be helpful. The new frontends could improve, the older ones were better. They come with a lot of weight; IBM Cognos Analytics is inbuilt, has a lot to install and maintain. A flexible, lightweight frontend, with high adaptability, is more important than a large heavy solution. In these heavy solutions, you have to maintain the installation, do a lot of configuration, and have to pay a lot of attention to the size of the installation.

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Milan Orendac

Senior Business Executive at Sophia

IBM Planning Analytics is used for cross-departmental planning and forecasting by our customers. Different versions of the planning can be used, such as budgets and projections based on monthly results. The system keeps all historical data and tracks the development from projected numbers. IBM Planning Analytics supports compliance and risk management within financial operations. It enables the calculation of impacts, such as increased interest rates, across various business areas. The effectiveness of risk management depends on the system setup and how risks are defined by the company. In financial planning, IBM Planning Analytics aligns with current trends, including the use of AI and leveraging unstructured data. It is capable of handling large amounts of diverse data types. While it is unclear if IBM fully incorporates AI, it likely follows the trend as many companies do. Before using Planning Analytics by IBM, consider your planning process and how it can be simplified. Understand that the system won't solve all issues on its own. Overall, I would rate IBM Planning Analytics as a nine out of ten.

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IBM Planning Analytics mindshare

As of March 2025, the mindshare of IBM Planning Analytics in the Business Performance Management category stands at 9.0%, down from 9.1% compared to the previous year, according to calculations based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Business Performance Management

PeerAnalyst reports based on IBM Planning Analytics reviews

Type	Title	Date
Category	Business Performance Management	Mar 4, 2025	Download
Product	Reviews, tips, and advice from real users	Mar 4, 2025	Download
Comparison	IBM Planning Analytics vs Anaplan	Mar 4, 2025	Download
Comparison	IBM Planning Analytics vs Oracle Hyperion	Mar 4, 2025	Download
Comparison	IBM Planning Analytics vs Oracle Planning and Budgeting Cloud	Mar 4, 2025	Download

Title	Rating	Mindshare	Recommending
Anaplan	4.0	13.4%	96%	27 interviews Add to research
Oracle Hyperion	3.9	11.8%	86%	55 interviews Add to research

Valuable Features

IBM Planning Analytics excels with its design flexibility and ease of use, catering to complex requirements. It supports real-time calculations, budgeting, forecasting, and data modeling. Users appreciate its compatibility with Excel, fast calculations, data slicing, centralized data storage, and sandboxing. The platform integrates with multiple data sources, offering mobile capabilities and collaboration features. Its interface, Planning Analytics Workspace, enhances functionality for business needs. Predictive analytics and quick deployment add significant value.

"Its stability helps controllers win time in their planning processes."
"This level of stability is crucial for a product like Cognos TM1, as using an unstable platform would result in loss of time."
"The scenario modeling capabilities are frequently used to create different scenarios, compare them, and see which action leads to which result."

Room for Improvement

IBM Planning Analytics requires enhancements in integration across Cognos suite components, simplification of pricing, and improvement of its interface design. Automation features for feeders could aid productivity. Users desire better data visualization, customizable predictive models, and more user-friendly development tools. The functionality and flexibility of roles such as Planning Analytics Workspace and CAFE need advancements. Predefined templates, improved dashboard capabilities, and better documentation for the API are valuable areas for progress.

"Scalability is quite hard to implement in TM1, largely since the on-premise installation chosen back in 2014. On a scale, I'd rate scalability at four, out of ten. It's difficult."
"If we talk only about the TM1 engine, it's quite rich and possibly too rich, making it complex to perform simple tasks."
"The workspace API should be improved and documented so we know better which objects are used."

Pricing

IBM Planning Analytics pricing involves various factors, including setup costs mainly from consulting fees around 130,000 euros for a six-month project. Licensing, typically renewed annually, varies based on user numbers and specific needs. Costs are not the cheapest but aligned with market standards. Clients with fewer than 50 users might consider IBM Cognos Express PM licenses. High user demand may benefit from IBM Cognos PM or an unlimited user licensing model based on server PVUs.

"Compared with the other tools in the market, IBM Planning Analytics is a bit expensive."
"IBM Planning Analytics is priced well, and licensing costs are yearly."
"I would rate the tool's pricing a nine out of ten since it's expensive."

Popular Use Cases

IBM Planning Analytics is primarily deployed for budgeting, financial planning, and reporting. Users across various sectors leverage it for sales planning, cash forecasting, and scenario management. Predominantly used on-premise, it serves companies of all sizes, including large enterprises for complex tasks. Financial departments extensively use TM1 for building budgets, linking it with tools like Excel for dashboard creations, and ensuring strategic planning demands are met, providing a versatile toolset for multiple users' unique requirements.

Service and Support

IBM Planning Analytics users experience generally satisfactory support, with ratings often around seven or eight out of ten. They praise the good remote assistance and accessible resources online, but note a need for faster issue resolution. Some opt for third-party agreements to enhance response times. Users occasionally require escalations, similar to other platforms like SAP BPC or Oracle Hyperion. Technical staff value comprehensive release notes but sometimes feel solutions could address less obvious problems more efficiently.

Deployment

Many describe IBM Planning Analytics initial setup as straightforward with varying deployment times. While some find it easy with ratings of nine out of ten, others experience complexity requiring skilled teams. Setup duration may vary from one month to a year, influenced by client needs and infrastructure choices. Issues like authentication configuration and integration can arise, necessitating technical expertise. Development continues post-installation, especially for complex, customer-specific implementations.

Scalability

TM1's adaptability and real-time calculation capacity are noted, with minimal scalability problems, usually related to database design. Users report no significant issues, praising its scalability. Planning Analytics is favored for both small and large businesses of up to thousands of users. Hardware, especially RAM, impacts performance. Despite some installation challenges affecting scalability ratings, its ability to grow with data and user demands is highlighted, though it may not fit every company's size or requirements.

Stability

IBM Planning Analytics is stable and robust, with many users reporting no major stability issues. Some encounter challenges with configurations and technical requirements that affect stability. Vendor support can sometimes be slow to address these difficulties. Despite these concerns, it receives high stability ratings, essential for tasks like budgeting and forecasting. Users appreciate its dependability, although server shutdowns without warning can be problematic. Scalability is highly rated, further enhancing its utility in various sectors.

These insights are based on the in-depth reviews provided by peers to help you make a better buying decision.

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Review data by company size

By reviewers

By visitors reading reviews

Top industries

By visitors reading reviews

Educational Organization

48%

Financial Services Firm

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

Government

Insurance Company

Retailer

Healthcare Company

Energy/Utilities Company

University

Real Estate/Law Firm

Wholesaler/Distributor

Pharma/Biotech Company

Construction Company

Legal Firm

Consumer Goods Company

Non Profit

Media Company

Comms Service Provider

Transportation Company

Performing Arts

Hospitality Company

Outsourcing Company

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Learn more about IBM Planning Analytics

Built on TM1, IBM’s powerful calculation engine, this enterprise performance management tool allows you to transcend the limits of manual planning and become the Analytics Hero your business needs. Quickly and easily drive faster, more accurate plans for FP&A, sales, supply chain and beyond.

IBM Planning Analytics was previously known as Cognos TM1, IBM Cognos TM1.

IBM Planning Analytics customers

ManpowerGroup, Convergys, AIG, Orchard Brands, Citibank, InterGen, Northwestern University, EF Education First, Ironside, Bazan Group, CSOB Insurance, Macquarie Group, Charles Stanley, SATO, Government of Sint Maarten, BMW Financial Services