Planful vs Adaptive Planning

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Our analysts compared Planful vs Adaptive Planning based on data from our 400+ point analysis of EPM Software, user reviews and our own crowdsourced data from our free software selection platform.

Product Basics

Formerly Host Analytics, Planful is a financial planning and analysis cloud platform. It accelerates end-to-end FP&A. Suitable for midsize to large-scale businesses, it helps by centralizing data and managing financial and operational processes.

It helps users plan and manage reviews, approvals and submissions and generates workflow status reports to check the performance of every department. It helps analyze asset performance by using financial budgeting and forecasting techniques with its capital planning feature. It is a scalable solution that allows companies to check the effect of projects on the overall bottom line.
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Adaptive Planning expedites planning, modeling, budgeting and prediction for enhanced decision making. It's suitable for all industries and available on the cloud. Establish benchmarks and initiate balanced boundaries.

Top modules include balance sheet cash flow, revenue, expense management, workforce modeling and capital management. It can improve precise budgeting and planning operations and assess numerous data set situations. It also facilitates company housekeeping and leaders to maximize a healthy working atmosphere.
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$1,250 Monthly
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$3,000 Monthly
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Tailored to your specific needs
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Product Insights

  • Conduct Ad hoc Analysis: Simplify complex ad hoc analysis by quickly creating financial and operational models while simultaneously checking the impact of these models on the bottom line. 
  • Close Books Faster: Decrease the time it takes to close books by automating data collection, aggregation and validation. Make data secure and compliant with standards and protocols.  
  • Improve Collaboration: Collaborate in a more efficient manner with current data and real-time insights. Get the power to make quick and accurate decisions with more confidence.  
  • Get Insights: Make well-informed decisions by gaining insights from across an organization to drive long-term value and growth. Automate manual processes to gain more time for strategic planning processes, analyzing and collaborating rather than worrying about spreadsheets.  
  • Automate Manual Processes: Save time and reduce errors by automating manual financial processes. Ensure that all financial processes are done with minimum manual effort and run more efficiently.  
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  • Implement In-Depth Analyses: Grab real-time, detailed information for better adaptation and push solid strategies instead of numbers. 
  • Expand Model Testing: Draft and evaluate models with complete analytical tools to pinpoint ideal growth trends and shift priorities when plans deviate. 
  • Execute Numerous Plan Types: Construct daily, monthly, quarterly or long-term budgets and predictions to better align with lengthy fiscal goals in one place. 
  • Conduct Effective Collaboration Methods: Initiate one centralized area to access and share information, workflows, security and more for better collaboration and keep everyone on the same page for estimates and budgets. 
  • Leverage High-Powered Adaptability: Leverage the machine learning in-memory engine to monitor and conform to plan adjustments. 
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  • Modern Tools: Combine the need for structured and dynamic planning to empower organizations to make well-informed decisions in a quick and strategic manner.  
  • Financial Consolidation: Accelerate month-end closing cycles with financial consolidation. Enhance financial planning and reporting by leveraging data from a single source of truth. Get pre-built consolidation functionality for currency conversion and reporting, currency translation adjustment calculations and posting. Implement functional, administrative and setup changes without the need for IT experts. Boost teams’ agility when reacting to changes in organization, strategy, regulation and accounting protocol. Ensure trusted and consistent global reporting by automatically mapping financial data. Keep tabs from start to end on balances, and analyze financial data across consolidation activities.  
  • Structured Planning: Save time and reduce errors by automating labor-intensive financial planning activities. Avoid costly and disruptive customization fees, save time and reduce risk of error with predefined planning and reporting templates. Automate integration from any ERP, CRM or HCM. Create a single source of financial truth by automatically collecting, aggregating and validating financial data. Ensure consistency and accuracy by creating and modifying structured financial reports and elevating financial conversations. 
  • Dynamic Planning: Analyze, plan and make confident decisions with dynamic planning. Build custom-tailored financial models. Leverage customization across processes, functions and use cases. Configure planning experiences and give users the flexibility to plan for anything. Connect data sources from separate systems in one unified, cloud-based platform. Boost financial decision making with a single source of truth. Get insights and make course corrections with real-time data refreshing. Inculcate companywide collaboration culture by providing the right data at the right level to the right person.  
  • Integration: Automate data integration to reduce manual intervention and easily transform data with over 200 pre-built connectors. Adjust to automatic data processing with a growing integration platform. Check status and activity of deployed integrations from a centralized place. Ensure data integration process flows are repeatable, automated and secure, and provide audit trails required by internal and external auditors. Understand changes in data with multiple validation points across integration workflows. 
  • Reporting: Leverage reporting formats and delivery options to meet financial, management and ad hoc needs. Ensure data accuracy and transparency with self-service reporting and automated report distribution. Automate collection and aggregation of financial and business data into a single cloud-based platform. Ensure everyone is working with current and accurate information derived from a single source of truth. Boost financial IQ with self-service reporting capabilities. Create a more agile environment with impactful financial decision making. 
  • Annual Operating Plan: Build collaborative financial plans that align with business objectives. Turn annual plans into quarterly or monthly rolling forecasts, and check models for different scenarios to determine how to realign and adjust strategies.  
  • Workforce Planning: Plan accordingly for workforces by connecting HR, finance and operational data together. Create a headcount plan that can be adjusted to changing marketing requirements. Gain insight to build winning strategies and utilize employees as strategic assets. Boost financial IQ to understand and influence impacts on the financial health of workforce costs.  
  • Cash Flow Forecasting: Assess the impact of decisions by gaining complete control and visibility over finances. Reallocate cash by identifying trends and understanding levers. Mitigate cash flow risk by adjusting investment opportunities.  
  • Scenario Analysis: Analyze every option by planning across multiple case scenarios and assessing key drivers. Bring agility by optimizing current period results. Gain the flexibility to discover deeper insights across a broad range of models. Align executives and business partners with data-driven decisions. Check the impact of plan changes from every level with immediate results. 
  • Rolling Forecasts: Adjust to sudden changes, keep forecasts current and business agile with continually rolling planning periods. Automatically keep tabs on the impact of actuals on forecasted trends. Improve risk analysis by quickly identifying opportunities and risks as business landscapes evolve. Align rolling forecasts by collaborating across different departments. Gain real-time insights to redirect resources and priorities and align them with business objectives.  
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  • Balance Sheet Cash Flow: Use flexible and straightforward self-service variance reports for business-wide utilization. Automate and streamline financial protocols to keep an eye on strategies and expansions. 
  • Expense Management: Remove information silos with driver-based expense forecasting and in-depth, incremental budgeting. Integrate this module with other back-end platforms to create a single information hub. 
  • Revenue Management: Perform drilled-down assessments to ensure strategies align with company objectives. 
  • Workforce Modeling: Execute company-wide planning and joint operations. Manage current headcount plans and associate fees to ensure plans fit budget parameters. 
  • Capital Management: Conduct expense distributions via an equipped rules engine. Plot fees efficiently. 
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Product Ranking

#9

among all
EPM Software

#20

among all
EPM Software

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Analyst Rating Summary

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Reports and Dashboards
Sales Planning
Capital Expenditure Planning
Cash Management
Project Planning
Integration and Extensibility
Profitability Modelling and Analysis
Reports and Dashboards
Revenue Planning
Platform Capabilities

Analyst Ratings for Functional Requirements Customize This Data Customize This Data

Planful
Adaptive Planning
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Capital Expenditure Planning Cash Management Financial Consolidation And Reconciliation Planning, Budgeting,and Forecasting Platform Capabilities Profitability Modelling And Analysis Project Planning Reports And Dashboards Revenue Planning Sales Planning Workforce Planning 96 96 85 80 72 94 95 100 94 100 86 98 98 84 84 99 100 98 100 100 86 98 0 25 50 75 100
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Analyst Ratings for Technical Requirements Customize This Data Customize This Data

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User Sentiment Summary

Great User Sentiment 82 reviews
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86%
of users recommend this product

Planful has a 'great' User Satisfaction Rating of 86% when considering 82 user reviews from 2 recognized software review sites.

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4.29 (41)
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4.3 (41)
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Awards

SelectHub research analysts have evaluated Planful and concluded it earns best-in-class honors for Sales Planning.

Sales Planning Award

SelectHub research analysts have evaluated Adaptive Planning and concluded it earns best-in-class honors for Integration and Extensibility.

Integration and Extensibility Award

Synopsis of User Ratings and Reviews

Streamlined Financial Close: Planful helps automate routine tasks like data consolidation and report generation, which can significantly reduce the time it takes to close the books each month. This efficiency is often praised by users in fast-paced environments.
Improved Forecasting Accuracy: The platform's forecasting tools leverage historical data and predictive analytics to generate more accurate forecasts. Users appreciate this feature as it allows for better-informed decision-making and resource allocation.
Enhanced Collaboration: Planful provides a centralized platform for finance teams to collaborate on budgeting, forecasting, and reporting. This feature improves communication and transparency within the department, leading to more cohesive financial strategies.
Customizable Reporting: Users frequently highlight the ability to create custom reports tailored to their specific needs. This flexibility allows finance teams to analyze data from multiple angles and gain deeper insights into their financial performance.
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Ease of Use: Adaptive Planning receives consistent praise for its user-friendly interface and intuitive design. Users with varying levels of technical expertise find it easy to navigate and operate, reducing the learning curve typically associated with complex ERP software. The drag-and-drop functionality and clear data visualizations contribute to a smooth and efficient user experience.
Cloud-Based Flexibility: As a cloud-based solution, Adaptive Planning offers the advantage of accessibility from anywhere with an internet connection. This eliminates the need for on-premises hardware and software installations, providing businesses with greater flexibility and scalability. Users appreciate the ability to access critical financial data and collaborate with team members remotely, enhancing productivity and responsiveness.
Robust Reporting and Analytics: Adaptive Planning's reporting and analytics capabilities empower users to gain valuable insights from their financial data. The software offers a wide range of pre-built reports and dashboards, along with the ability to create custom reports tailored to specific business needs. Users can easily analyze trends, identify patterns, and make data-driven decisions to optimize financial performance.
Integration Capabilities: Adaptive Planning integrates seamlessly with various other business systems, such as CRM, HR, and payroll applications. This integration eliminates data silos and ensures data consistency across different departments. Users value the ability to connect their financial data with other operational data, providing a holistic view of the business and facilitating more informed decision-making.
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Steep Learning Curve: Many users find Planful's interface to be complex and unintuitive, requiring significant time investment to learn the system's intricacies. The abundance of features can be overwhelming for new users, leading to frustration and a slow adoption rate within organizations.
Customization Challenges: While Planful offers customization options, implementing them often requires advanced technical skills or reliance on the vendor's professional services, which can be costly. This limitation can hinder organizations with unique workflows or reporting needs from fully tailoring the software to their specific requirements.
Reporting Limitations: Some users report that generating specific or ad-hoc reports can be cumbersome in Planful. The system's pre-built reports may not always cater to every organization's needs, and creating custom reports may require technical expertise or additional support.
Performance Issues: A segment of users has mentioned experiencing slow loading times and occasional system lags, particularly when working with large datasets or complex reports. This can impact productivity and user satisfaction, especially for organizations with high data volumes or demanding reporting requirements.
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Limited Functionality: Adaptive Insights, while proficient in financial planning, may lack the comprehensive features required for all-encompassing enterprise resource planning (ERP) needs. For instance, it may not offer robust functionalities for managing human resources, supply chains, or customer relationships, potentially necessitating additional software solutions.
Customization Challenges: Adaptive Insights' customization options can be somewhat rigid, making it difficult for users to tailor the software to their specific workflows and unique business requirements. This inflexibility can lead to inefficiencies and frustration for users accustomed to more adaptable ERP systems.
Integration Complexities: Integrating Adaptive Insights with existing software infrastructure can pose challenges due to compatibility issues or intricate data mapping processes. These integration hurdles can impede seamless data flow and hinder the efficiency of business operations.
Cost Considerations: The subscription-based pricing model of Adaptive Insights can be a significant financial commitment for some organizations, particularly smaller businesses with limited budgets. The cost factor, coupled with potential additional expenses for implementation and support, may deter cost-conscious users.
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Planful has garnered a reputation for its robust financial reporting and analysis capabilities, particularly excelling in budgeting, forecasting, and consolidation. Users appreciate the software's ability to handle complex financial models and its flexibility in generating custom reports. The platform's intuitive interface and user-friendly design have also been praised, making it accessible to both finance professionals and non-financial users. However, some users have noted that the initial setup and implementation process can be time-consuming and may require significant support from Planful's team. Additionally, while Planful offers a wide range of features, some users have expressed a desire for more advanced functionality in areas such as workforce planning and project accounting. Compared to competitors like Adaptive Insights and Vena Solutions, Planful stands out for its comprehensive financial consolidation capabilities and its ability to handle large volumes of data. Its reporting and analytics tools are also considered to be more user-friendly and customizable. However, Adaptive Insights may be a better choice for organizations seeking a more cloud-based solution with stronger integrations with other business applications. Vena Solutions, on the other hand, may be more suitable for companies with complex financial modeling needs due to its Excel-based interface. Overall, Planful is best suited for mid-sized to large enterprises with complex financial reporting and analysis requirements. Its strengths lie in its budgeting, forecasting, consolidation, and reporting capabilities, making it an ideal choice for organizations looking to streamline their financial processes and gain deeper insights into their financial performance. However, companies with limited IT resources or those seeking a more cloud-based solution may want to consider alternative options.

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Adaptive Planning has garnered a reputation for its user-friendly interface and robust reporting capabilities. Users frequently praise its intuitive design, making it easy for finance teams to navigate and generate reports without extensive training. The drag-and-drop functionality and customizable dashboards are particularly popular, allowing users to tailor the system to their specific needs. Compared to other ERP software options, Adaptive Planning excels in its ability to handle complex financial modeling and forecasting. Its scenario planning tools enable users to create multiple "what-if" scenarios and analyze the potential impact of different business decisions. This feature is especially valuable for organizations operating in dynamic markets or facing uncertain economic conditions. However, some users have noted that Adaptive Planning's implementation process can be time-consuming and require significant IT resources. Additionally, while the software offers a wide range of features, some users find that certain functionalities, such as expense management, are not as comprehensive as those offered by competing products like Oracle NetSuite or SAP. These limitations may necessitate the use of additional software solutions, potentially increasing overall costs and complexity. Despite these drawbacks, Adaptive Planning's strengths in financial planning and analysis make it a compelling choice for mid-sized to large businesses with complex financial needs. Its ease of use and powerful reporting capabilities empower finance teams to gain deeper insights into their data and make more informed decisions, ultimately driving business growth and profitability.

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