Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

IBM BPM vs Pega Platform comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 6, 2024
 

Categories and Ranking

IBM BPM
Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)
8th
Ranking in Process Automation
4th
Average Rating
7.8
Number of Reviews
109
Ranking in other categories
Application Infrastructure (8th)
Pega Platform
Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)
3rd
Ranking in Process Automation
2nd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
78
Ranking in other categories
Business Rules Management (1st), Rapid Application Development Software (6th), Low-Code Development Platforms (7th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2024, in the Business Process Management (BPM) category, the mindshare of IBM BPM is 7.8%, up from 7.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Pega Platform is 5.9%, down from 7.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Business Process Management (BPM)
 

Featured Reviews

Mohammed Almalki - PeerSpot reviewer
Feb 8, 2024
Offers good case management and its integration with process design but there's a learning curve
We mainly use it for human-centric operational processes (less than 20) The case management and its integration with process design are the only pros comparable to Komunda. There is room for improvement in terms of integrations. It is one of the biggest drawbacks. My organization has been using…
Balaji  Choda - PeerSpot reviewer
May 9, 2024
Provides built-in frameworks that can be reused and reduces time and cost
The frameworks are built over the core Pega platform. All the codes are already built. A user can directly use the framework according to their needs. All the corresponding data models and processes already built in the framework can be reused with our custom layer. The tool reduces our costs. It is faster to implement. The solution has everything. It is model-driven. It generates its own code. It has a rules engine. Previously, Pega had its own UI. Now, we have Constellation DX API. It helps us have any user interface we need, like Angular or React. API helps create work objects in the workflow.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The performance is fine."
"We are receiving good assistance from the technical support."
"IBM BPM and Automation Anywhere working together automate manual tasks with a reduction in FTEs, creating about a 30% reduction in FTEs by automating processes."
"There are a lot of things that you get out-of-the-box: Timers and so on, which took a lot of effort and code before."
"Automation is the most valuable feature of IBM BPM."
"IBM BPM's most valuable features are its speed in implementing and providing any changes."
"This solution has streamlined our operation and improved the TAT of sales, operations, and underwriters."
"Enabled us to convert most of the paper-based work into an automated workflow process, and some of them were converted into straight-through processing, with no human interaction involved whatsoever."
"When our clients automate the KYC and onboarding processes, they can reduce their manual force and then deploy them in much better tasks rather than the mundane activities of selecting forms and gathering information."
"In general, we use web services to integrate this solution with our other tools. It is the main approach we use with this solution and it integrates with all tools that we need. If you want to integrate with other solutions such ThreatFire or similar, it is possible as well."
"The most valuable feature is the ease of deployment."
"The solution has very helpful technical support."
"Pega BPM's most valuable features are case management, integration, the convenience of using REST APIs, and the ease of changing things at the UI level."
"The workflow designing and integration are the most valuable features. Also, the UI design was pretty easy."
"The stability has been good. We haven't had any issues."
"It is easy to use, easy to understand, easy to implement and easy to enhance and we can do it as a Cloud. Also it is very user friendly."
 

Cons

"Also, we would like to see integration with artificial intelligence, machine learning-type of technical capabilities. Right now, there are a lot Watson libraries out there. Building those integrations more, out-of-the-box, from IBM would be a good direction."
"The configuration is not that easy, and the initial deployment took three months."
"Could increase vulnerability and security patches to make it more robust."
"We had hoped that the product would provide us with plug-ins like Salesforce. Its development environment needs to improve. We expect to see elastic features like containerization. We don't just need an on-prem virtual machine."
"The engine itself tends to accumulate a lot of data that needs to be cleaned up, and that's the kind of thing that keeps it from, in some scenarios, scaling as much as it needs to. And then, when you're building solutions, if you're not careful to keep the screens from being associated with too much data, if you're going to just do things the way that a lot of people would just assume that they can do, without having experience of having made those mistakes before, it will accumulate a lot of data, and that will cause it to perform very badly."
"Process Server is no more available than new products out there, but in general IBM has a high cost and complex setup."
"We would appreciate more user-friendly definitions of processes with a more user-friendly interface for documenting processes."
"I suggest establishing a developer forum for better communication and issue resolution. Also, the administration panel could be improved for task management."
"The previous versions had good training documents but the updated versions need to improve the documentation."
"PEGA claims that they provide a LOW-CODE-PLATFORM which is easy to use - even for "citizen developers" (i.e. business employees). If you really want to use all the features out of this platform, you definitely need a lot of experience and a lot of training."
"The solution's pricing model or licensing model could be a little better."
"The local development approach is good in Pega, however, cost-wise, it's getting expensive. That needs to be addressed."
"Pega should work on redefining their model and creating a demand for their skills."
"The main problem with Pega is that it is quite complex, so it is very difficult for the developer to learn."
"This is an expensive solution."
"Sometimes when we are patching some data from the database, we are getting added as a timeout."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It gives us a good return on investment."
"It's expensive. All software is always extremely high. The manufacturing cost that we have compared to the selling cost, it's not like you're building a house or building a car. But putting that aside, considering that it's expensive, it's a lot of money. If you compare it with some of the other alternatives in the market, it's a similar price. For instance, if you compare it with Pegasystems, it's a similar price."
"The solution might be expensive, but I can't give you a precise number. In the market here, I've seen two main products for BPM: IBM BPM and Camunda. Camunda is very popular and open-source, so there's no direct comparison."
"The pricing is very high."
"Price wise, IBM BPM is cheaper than other similar solutions and has excellent pricing."
"Our customers do see ROI. They'll identify some particularly painful or uncoordinated processes to start with, then build out from there, picking off low hanging fruit."
"Its price is on the higher side, and it can be improved. Its licensing is on a yearly basis. There are no additional costs."
"It should provide more flexibility to connect with external systems, and there should be in-built services that can be used to integrate with other systems quickly."
"The pricing is pretty good, compared to other similar products."
"The licensing fees are based on the number of users."
"Pega BPM is expensive because it's a leading product, but it also delivers a good return on investment (ROI)."
"PegaRULES is a good product, but its pricing is a bit on the premium side, especially for professionals."
"The licensing is on a yearly basis. Because of our special relationship, all the training certifications are free of cost. All our employees can do Pega certifications at zero cost. It is all on Pega."
"I am not aware of the cost. But, considering the licenses, user licenses, and infrastructure, I'd guess around a million USD."
"The price of PegaRULES is more expensive than other solutions on the market."
"I rate Pega BPM a seven out of ten."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Business Process Management (BPM) solutions are best for your needs.
813,161 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
31%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Government
5%
Financial Services Firm
27%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

Which is better, IBM BPM or IBM Business Automation Workflow?
We researched both IBM solutions and in the end, we chose Business Automation Workflow. IBM BPM has a good user interface and the BPM coach is a helpful tool. The API is very useful in providing en...
Is Pega BPM easy to work with and can beginners utilize this software?
You do need some preparation to be able to use all functions of Pega BPM. However, all users of this platform are in luck as it comes with good documentation and you can learn pretty much everythin...
Have you encountered any issues while using Pega BPM and were you assisted by the company?
My company has been using this tool for years and the only issue we have had, if you can call it that, was while setting it up. When we were setting it up initially, we had some drawbacks and could...
When you consider the features and benefits of Pega BPM, would you say this product is fairly priced?
Pega BPM can be considered overpriced for some; it all depends on the size of your company and the requirements of your customers. Sure, there are products out there that do the things that Pega B...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

WebSphere Lombardi Edition, IBM Business Process Manager, IBM WebSphere Process Server
Pega BPM, Pegasystems, SmartBPM, PegaRULES
 

Learn More

Video not available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Barclays, EmeriCon, Banca Popolare di Milano, CST Consulting, KeyBank, KPMG, Prolifics, Sandhata Technologies Ltd., State of Alaska, Humana S.A., Saperion, esciris, Banco Espirito Santo
The State of Maine, ANZ, Coca-Cola, Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA), ME, New South Wales, OptumRx, Texas Department of Transportation, UnitedHealthcare Medicare & Retirement
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM BPM vs. Pega Platform and other solutions. Updated: October 2024.
813,161 professionals have used our research since 2012.