BQE Core vs IBM Planning Analytics

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Our analysts compared BQE Core vs IBM Planning Analytics based on data from our 400+ point analysis of Accounting Software, user reviews and our own crowdsourced data from our free software selection platform.

BQE Core Software Tool
IBM Planning Analytics Software Tool

Product Basics

BQE Core streamlines accounting processes for mid-sized businesses, simplifying tasks like bookkeeping, invoicing, and financial reporting. Its intuitive interface and automation features cater to users with varying accounting expertise, making it suitable for both in-house accountants and bookkeeping teams. The software boasts strong general ledger functionality, multi-currency support, and real-time financial insights, enabling better decision-making. Popular features include bank reconciliation tools, inventory management, and project accounting capabilities. Users appreciate BQE Core's scalability and customizability, allowing it to adapt to specific business needs. While subscription pricing varies based on company size and required modules, it generally falls within the mid-range compared to similar accounting software. BQE Core prioritizes ease of use and automation, making it a solid choice for businesses seeking to streamline their accounting operations and gain valuable financial insights.

Pros
  • Intuitive interface
  • Time-saving automation
  • Comprehensive features
  • Flexible customization
  • Scalability for growth
Cons
  • Limited mobile app
  • Occasional bugs reported
  • Steeper learning curve
  • Customization requires effort
  • Pricing can be complex
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IBM Planning Analytics is a multidimensional in-memory database for analytics and planning. Part of the IBM Analytics Suite and powered by TM1, it provides forecasting, budgeting and reporting at an enterprise scale through data compression. With all data connected to a central hub, it enables collaborative planning with workflow approvals and review protocols in place. Enterprises perform OLAP analysis faster through in-memory technology.

Integrating with Microsoft Excel, it gives businesses the ease and familiarity of working with spreadsheets with the power of an enterprise database. With automated time-series modeling, it enables self-service predictive analysis. The vendor offers a 30-day free trial.
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$19.95/User, Monthly
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Tailored to your specific needs
$825 Monthly
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Tailored to your specific needs
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Product Assistance

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Product Insights

  • Beefed-Up Security: The software runs on the cloud, so users can rest assured that they can access data from any location with a Wi-Fi signal. Their information also has an extra layer of security. 
  • Artificial Intelligence: Users can stay in the know about their company's financial data, daily agenda and more to make informed business decisions with the AI-powered Core Intelligence tool. Core Intelligence becomes smarter and offers enhanced results when users ask more questions.  
  • Automatic Data Conversion: Currency, numbers and dates are always formatted to company preferences. A user's current location has no impact on the company's currency, numeric values or dates. 
  • Monitor Human Resources: Users can oversee their HR department information including salary, incidents, benefits, forms, sick and vacation time, retirement packages and more. 
  • Manage Employees' Responsibilities: BQE Core allows users to allocate ideal tasks and responsibilities to the right employees. Users can also restrict permissions on recording tasks and expenses to diminish errors. 
  • Compile Bill Schedules: Users can generate bills for a project's entire lifecycle or the preliminary stages. Users can set time for other tasks when they set up recurring billing for projects.  
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  • Maximize ROI: Save time for analysis of trends, business performance and results by creating project plans faster. Reallocate budget and resources by leveraging deep insights into business performance and market trends. Collaborate with others on a single, unified platform with total transparency and visibility into business data, available for all plans. 
  • Boost Sales: Win more business opportunities – boost annual sales quotas and deal sizes through end-to-end sales workflows. Grow revenue and reduce time to insight with robust sales analytics. Track campaigns for performance monitoring in real time and deep dive into data for buying behavior and customer churn analysis. 
  • Financial Planning and Analysis: Optimize the business’ performance through valuable financial insights. Ensure the business is on track by creating and managing plans, budgets and forecasts. Simplifies the budgeting process through real-time calculations with automatic application of business rules. 
  • Optimize Supply Chain: Create more accurate demand forecasts, get a clearer view of the resources and budget required to fulfill projected demand and update production plans accordingly. View historical data and drill down into summaries for deep-dive analysis and add visuals to spot key KPI trends. 
  • Workforce Planning: Increase the workforce’s efficiency by acquiring and retaining skilled employees at the right time. Effectively manage staff schedules, task assignment and performance tracking through workforce analytics and HR planning tools. 
  • Deploy Anywhere: Access the same data from everywhere with the flexibility to deploy on-premise, in the cloud or as a combination of both. 
  • Scalable: Build and change plans flexibly in real time to match business requirements. Scales with increasing data volumes, number of users and planning models, without impacting existing workflows and performance. 
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  • Vigilant Dashboard: The dashboard module enables users to pick and choose which key performance indicators (KPIs) are displayed. Users also receive immediate data updates so they can act quickly if problems arise. 
  • Develop and Edit Several Dashboards: Users can create several dashboards to fit the needs of their business. They can also modify pie charts, bar graphs and interactive lists in each dashboard. 
  • Work with Various Currencies: Users can attach receipts and document expenses in multiple currencies for any oversea transactions. 
  • Record and Manage Time: Simple timers and timesheets allow users to record their time quickly and more efficiently. Users can easily alternate between various timers. This module is mobile-friendly, so users can track and record time on any device. 
  • Supervise and Forecast Projects: Users can oversee the financial progress of projects and prioritize the most valuable projects with the project management tool. Users receive prompt answers to the essential project and performance-related questions.  
  • Several Billing Methods: The billing module permits users to choose different forms of billing such as hourly, fixed, retainer and more. Users can also process bills in batches or immediately on a pre-set schedule.  
  • Detailed Reports: Users receive elaborate insights on the financial and operational statuses of their company with the report accessory. Users can design and share reports as PDFs, Word documents or Excel files with the automatic sharing component. 
  • Instant Bank Feeds: The accounting tool authorizes users to develop financial reports such as balance sheets and profit and loss reports based on class or individual projects for intricate insights.  
  • Monitor Employee Performance: Users can utilize Core HR's employee journal to evaluate employees by documenting overall performance, outstanding achievements, conversations and more. 
  • Diverse Integrations: BQE Core integrates with other software like Google Drive, MYOB AccountRight, QuickBooks, Amazon and more.  
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  • Architecture: Leverage a three-tier client-server architecture that includes a database, application server and front end, with data stored centrally in the OLAP server. 
    • TM1: Employs an efficient data compression algorithm to enable faster planning and analytics. Create business models by combining multiple data sources with manual input for effective decision-making. 
  • Workspace: Create and access all plans and forecasts through its web-based interface. Grant role-based access to team members down to cell-level granularity. Collaborate on plans through chats and cell comments in the workspace. 
    • Data Visualizations: Choose from a rich library of visualizations to apply that includes bullet charts, waterfall charts, treemaps, word clouds and more. Input data intuitively to specific slots through drag-and-drop actions, and customize fonts and styles for personalized branding. 
    • Books and Views: Access related data in the form of web sheets, scorecards, videos and embedded web pages from a single interface. Leverage defined selections of a data cube — views — for analysis and data exploration, and export as an Excel worksheet. 
  • Performance Tracking: Compare targets with actual results, and with actual performance over time. Quickly find the desired metrics and create visually compelling scorecards such as impact diagrams, strategy maps and custom diagrams. Add existing scorecards to books and analyze data over different periods, metrics and dimensions. 
  • Data Modeling: Autonomously build a financial model by converting business requirements into cubes, dimensions, hierarchies and calculations. Transform and load data easily into a financial model, without the need to code. 
  • Sandbox Environments: Work in a sandbox to manipulate data as needed in real time without impacting actual data. Compare different scenarios and test assumptions to see the impact of potential decisions. 
  • Microsoft Excel Integration: Go beyond what spreadsheets can do – perform multi-dimensional analysis and big data exploration within the Excel interface, retaining its full functionality and formatting. Find answers to business questions by creating reports from Cognos TM1 through interactive drag-and-drop actions. 
  • AI-Based Automation: Speed up planning cycles and get more reliable results. Create plans, forecasts and budgets through automated model creation, natural language processing and cognitive analytics. 
  • On-Demand Module: Generate dynamic dashboards from existing Excel spreadsheets through autonomous data exploration. Move from annual planning to rolling forecasts based on real-time information by identifying variances in plans caused by external data. 
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Product Ranking

#158

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Accounting Software

#335

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Accounting Software

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Analyst Rating Summary

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97
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Analyst Ratings for Functional Requirements Customize This Data Customize This Data

BQE Core
IBM Planning Analytics
+ Add Product + Add Product
Accounts Payable Accounts Receivable Banking And Cash Management Budget And Expense Management Financial Statements And Revenue Management General Ledger And Chart Of Accounts Integration And Extensibility Inventory Management Journal Entries Mobile Support Multi-company Accounting And Asset Management Platform Capabilities Project Accounting Reporting And Analytics Tax Management 97 95 100 93 100 100 58 50 67 80 80 78 100 93 96 0 25 50 75 100
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User Sentiment Summary

Great User Sentiment 354 reviews
we're gathering data
86%
of users recommend this product

BQE Core has a 'great' User Satisfaction Rating of 86% when considering 354 user reviews from 4 recognized software review sites.

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4.2 (30)
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4.3 (209)
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4.8 (17)
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4.25 (98)
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Synopsis of User Ratings and Reviews

Intuitive Interface: Easy to learn and navigate, even for non-accountants.
Automation Powerhouse: Saves time and reduces errors with automated tasks like bank reconciliation and invoice generation.
Scalability and Flexibility: Adapts to growing businesses and diverse accounting needs with customizable modules and features.
Actionable Insights: Real-time dashboards and reports provide clear financial visibility for informed decision-making.
Collaboration Booster: Shared workspaces, task assignments, and approval workflows streamline team accounting processes.
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Flexible Modeling: Users praise the software's ability to handle complex planning scenarios with ease, such as building detailed driver-based models for budgeting and forecasting.
Improved Collaboration: The platform facilitates better communication and data sharing among teams, streamlining the budgeting and forecasting process.
Powerful Reporting and Analytics: Users appreciate the robust reporting features, allowing them to generate insightful reports and dashboards for data visualization and analysis.
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Limited Mobile App: Functionality lags behind desktop version, hindering on-the-go access.
Occasional Bugs: Users report occasional bugs and glitches, impacting workflow.
Steeper Learning Curve: Interface can be less intuitive compared to some competitors, requiring more training.
Customization Effort: In-depth customization can be complex and require technical expertise.
Pricing Complexity: Tiered pricing structure and optional modules can make cost calculations intricate.
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Steep Learning Curve: Users have reported that IBM Planning Analytics can be difficult to learn, especially for those without prior experience with similar tools. Its interface and terminology can feel overwhelming initially.
Limited Reporting Capabilities: Some users have expressed frustration with the reporting functionality within Planning Analytics, finding it less intuitive and flexible compared to dedicated reporting tools. They desire more advanced formatting and customization options for presenting financial data.
Performance Issues: Users have occasionally encountered performance issues, particularly when dealing with large datasets or complex calculations. This can slow down budgeting and forecasting processes, impacting overall productivity.
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BQE Core users praise its intuitiveness and automation features, saving them time and reducing errors. It's lauded for its scalability and flexibility, adapting to growing businesses and diverse needs, which some users find lacking in simpler rivals. Real-time insights and seamless collaboration features are also appreciated, empowering informed decision-making and team efficiency. However, a limited mobile app and occasional bugs can disrupt workflow, drawing comparisons to competitors with more robust mobile experiences. While BQE Core's extensive customization options are admired, some find it steeper to learn and configure compared to user-friendly alternatives. Pricing can also be complex, requiring careful consideration of modules and user licenses, unlike competitors with clearer upfront costs. Ultimately, BQE Core shines for its ease of use, automation, and scalability, but users must weigh occasional technical hiccups and intricate pricing against its strengths. Those seeking a mobile-first or simplified experience might explore other options, while BQE Core excels for businesses prioritizing customization and growth potential.

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User reviews from the past year suggest IBM Planning Analytics is a powerful tool for businesses seeking to streamline their financial planning and analysis processes. Users praise its robust features, particularly its budgeting, forecasting, and reporting capabilities. One standout feature is its ability to handle complex "what-if" scenarios, allowing businesses to model different outcomes based on various factors, which is crucial for making informed decisions in a volatile market. However, users also point out some drawbacks. The learning curve can be steep, especially for those unfamiliar with similar software. Some users find the interface less intuitive than competitors like Anaplan or Cube, and the pricing can be a significant investment for smaller businesses. Despite these weaknesses, users generally agree that IBM Planning Analytics offers a comprehensive solution for businesses needing advanced planning and analysis capabilities. Its ability to integrate with other IBM products and handle large datasets makes it particularly well-suited for larger enterprises with complex financial operations.

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