Everything you need to know about…
THE UPGRADE TO IBM PLANNING ANALYTICS
In September 2019, IBM Cognos TM1 V10.2.2 reaches its End of Support (EoS) product lifecycle. This doesn’t mean it will suddenly stop working on 1st October but it does mean IBM will only offer a Q&A support function along with access to pre-EoS product updates. There will be no new code updates. The upgraded version, IBM Planning Analytics, will now be IBM’s primary R&D focus. Here’s our guide to what this upgrade means and how you can make it work for your business…
What is IBM Planning Analytics?
Think of it as the new face of TM1. Browser-based, the platform supports reporting, analysis, and write-back with a viewer that makes it easy to navigate multi-dimensional cubes and share results with others. It includes more than 25 different charts, maps, scorecards, images, and videos, letting you create compelling visualisations with ease. Modelling functionality is also being migrated to Planning Analytics, letting you create and update objects from a web environment.
What about Excel and Cognos?
Planning Analytics for Excel gives you access to your IBM TM1 database with superior performance over wide-area networks. This add-in lets you retain functionality and formatting when moving data between TM1 and Excel. It also integrates smoothly with Planning Analytics, sharing a common UX, Cube Viewer, and Set Editor. Meanwhile, if you use Cognos Analytics, upgrading to the new platform will enhance your user experience and streamline report development.
What else is new?
Loads – and it’s all extremely useful. The single biggest change is the introduction of ‘Planning Analytics Workspace’, giving users an enhanced graphical user interface to TM1. New hierarchies capability lets you perform more in-depth and granular analysis, exploring data by attributes like a customer, product, sales programme, financial instrument and more. You can also model more accurately and see the intersections of several hierarchies within the same dimension to drill down and find data points never before possible. The platform even includes a new TM1 TurboIntegrator Debugger with programmer-quality breakpoints and variable analysis, along with full object localisation and encrypted data at rest.
How does the upgrade process work?
The good news is all your existing TM1 models and processes can be upgraded to run on Planning Analytics, including Architect, Performance Modeler, TM1 Web and Perspectives. The natural upgrade path for most users will be to Planning Analytics Local. However, you may prefer to upgrade to Planning Analytics Cloud, available as a SaaS offering through Sempre. Moving to SaaS can bring you all the benefits of the new platform while eliminating the need for on-premise server hardware.
What next?
Whatever your plans for the upgrade, Sempre can help. Contact us at info@sempreanalytics.com to discuss how we can best support you and ensure your move to Planning Analytics is as speedy and seamless as possible. You can also give the new platform a try with our free trial, available here
For more information
Check out this handy IBM Infographic here for a snapshot of what the Planning Analytics upgrade is about. Or for more detailed information, read IBM’s WhitePaper
Join the discussion at one of our FutureForums
The ever-popular Sempre FutureForum is a great way to interact with IBM Planning & Analytics specialists and engage with your peers in a relaxed, informal setting. The engaging schedule of presentations, deep dive sessions, and 121 consultancy slots aim to maximise your use and understanding of existing IBM solutions, as well as how to leverage wider data sets for greater insight.
