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IBM Planning Analytics vs SAP Analytics Cloud comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary
 

Categories and Ranking

IBM Planning Analytics
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
23
Ranking in other categories
Business Performance Management (4th)
SAP Analytics Cloud
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
69
Ranking in other categories
BI (Business Intelligence) Tools (4th), Predictive Analytics (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

While both are Business Intelligence solutions, they serve different purposes. IBM Planning Analytics is designed for Business Performance Management and holds a mindshare of 9.5%, up 8.4% compared to last year.
SAP Analytics Cloud, on the other hand, focuses on BI (Business Intelligence) Tools, holds 5.1% mindshare, down 5.9% since last year.
Business Performance Management
BI (Business Intelligence) Tools
 

Featured Reviews

Gnanavel-Chakkarapani - PeerSpot reviewer
Can easily create dashboards and helps businesses improve forecasting accuracy
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.
RamasamyTelungupalayam - PeerSpot reviewer
Seamless integration, collaborative features, and enhances data exploration
There are several areas for improvement in SAP Analytics Cloud. Firstly, features available in SAP Lumira are missing in SAP Analytics Cloud. Secondly, the predictive analytics functions, although promising, are currently only suitable for Proof of Concepts (POCs) and not for industrial-scale use. Lastly, the pricing model for the planning functionality is quite high and presents an entry barrier.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Planning Analytics' best features include automatic updates and slicing."
"The tool is flexible."
"The flexibility of IBM Planning Analytics is a great feature of this solution. The design flexibility with data rules and defining calculations The ability to combine online and offline calculations are a benefit. Additionally, the forecasting features and predictive analytics is very good."
"The most valuable feature is that it is able to slice and dice the data."
"The product's stability is good."
"IBM Planning Analytics is easy to use and deploy. It is quick to develop. The calculation machine is also very fast."
"A lot of the platform is in-memory, so Planning Analytics can run calculations quite fast. It also offers several user interfaces. And in the newest version of Planning Analytics, there is a new one called the Planning Analytics Workspace. Maybe it could be useful for the business side."
"Navigating through the data to make analysis is really quick."
"The most valuable feature of the tool is machine learning."
"One of the most outstanding features is being able to use the dashboard with a touch screen."
"There is a seamless integration with SAP S4HANA which is really valuable to our organization and its functions. Since the data is stored in the same ecosystem, it creates a simple process of building dashboards, without making the process cumbersome The Analytics Cloud provides standardized templates and storage options, making it easy to plug into existing structures. We're utilizing custom stories that have already been developed, streamlining the development process. It serves as a convenient starting point and contributes to the overall ease of development. Another advantage is that it doesn't provide the same level of calculation power as Power BI and Tableau. SAP Analytics Cloud emphasizes pushing analytics back into the database, recommending data manipulation and preparation outside of the platform. This approach is seen as an advantage, as it allows for more robust data handling."
"The Smart Predict, Smart Insights, and Smart Discovery predictive analysis features are quite good."
"Real-time data makes for a single version of the truth."
"Offers both business intelligence as well as inbuilt AI and machine learning capabilities."
"It is a comprehensive BI solution that provides reporting, planning, and predictive analytics in one solution. You don't have to buy three different products. It is very flexible. It can be implemented very quickly. It has a lot of out-of-the-box scenarios that you can use for quick deployment."
"SAP Analytics Cloud allows you to quickly perform various tasks in terms of virtualization. CyberArk itself requires some enhancements to better connect with other technologies. While it's easy to connect with SAP, using analytics tools may sometimes necessitate sourcing information from different platforms. You might need data from SAP or other technologies/platforms to access specific information not available within SAP. SAP is effective for managing storage and enhancing virtualization capabilities."
 

Cons

"The local authentication part is difficult to manage in the product, making it an area where improvements are required."
"The dashboard is very poor and needs a lot of improvement."
"Planning Analytics could be improved by adding automation features."
"The tool should include features for prediction. It can also improve the scalability."
"The workspace API should be improved and documented so we know better which objects are used."
"It would have been better if the solution was not just a tool kit."
"It is a bit expensive, but it does the job."
"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."
"Statistical analysis should be a bit more profound than it is."
"It is very expensive."
"SAC, which is the cloud version, lost some good features from the previous planning product, like BPC or BPS."
"There should be more features for the time series charts."
"Sometimes we have difficulty connecting to a SharePoint list."
"It's lacking a bit in maturity and we find we can't run our business off it until it's improved."
"There is no direct connector from SAP to Redshift, so we are required to use a third-party product that was recommended by SAP."
"SAP could add more templates to the platform."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is a bit expensive, but you get what you are paying for."
"IBM Planning Analytics is not the cheapest solution, but it's priced per the market standard for this type of solution. I rate the price at seven out of ten."
"The license of this solution is paid annually. Most of my customers choose a license that includes support."
"I would rate the tool's pricing a nine out of ten since it's expensive."
"Compared with the other tools in the market, IBM Planning Analytics is a bit expensive."
"Our licensing cost is approximately $50,000.00 per year."
"IBM Planning Analytics is priced well, and licensing costs are yearly."
"The pricing of this product is reasonable."
"This solution offers value for money and you get what you pay for."
"The price is competitive. There is a power user license and normal user license, but the normal user license is reasonable."
"Its price is slightly on the higher side."
"SAP pricing tends to be premium, so it is slightly higher."
"I don't have the exact price for SAP Analytics Cloud, but it could be improved and made cheaper, especially when compared to Power BI."
"The product is expensive."
"Its pricing is okay as compared to its competitors."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
48%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Computer Software Company
7%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Educational Organization
25%
Manufacturing Company
13%
Computer Software Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM Planning Analytics?
The most valuable features of IBM Planning Analytics for streamlining planning processes include a unified database where all data are centralized.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Planning Analytics?
The cost of IBM Planning Analytics is not cheap, considering the amount of money involved. However, it offers good ROI for customers.
What needs improvement with IBM Planning Analytics?
The workspace API should be improved and documented so we know better which objects and tier-one objects are used.
Which would you choose - Tableau or SAP Analytics Cloud?
Tableau is easy to set up and maintain. In about a day it is possible for the entire platform to be deployed for use. This relatively short amount of time can make all the difference for companies ...
What do you like most about SAP Analytics Cloud?
In the data warehouse, you're free to make changes. You can make everything text, meaning it's always a string. Even numbers appear as text, giving you the flexibility to work with all columns.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SAP Analytics Cloud?
The pricing model for SAP Analytics Cloud is quite competitive, but the cost for the planning functionality is high and can be a barrier to entry. The overall cost can be managed with better billin...
 

Also Known As

Cognos TM1, IBM Cognos TM1
SAP BusinessObjects Cloud
 

Learn More

 

Overview

 

Sample 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
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