Make faster, more confident decisions with integrated planning, analysis, and reporting in Excel
Real‑time insights, right inside Excel
IBM Planning Analytics for Excel (PAfE) gives teams a governed, single source of truth for planning, forecasting, and analysis—right inside Excel. By eliminating manual consolidation and reducing risk, PAfE helps decision makers deliver faster, more confident insights.
Powered by IBM Planning Analytics with TM1 technology, it blends the flexibility of spreadsheets with a high‑performance, multidimensional engine so teams can move beyond disconnected files and limited visibility without changing how they work.
See it in action
- Create a report once and reuse it every month. Reduce spreadsheet rebuilds so you can focus on insights and outcomes.
- Quickly create dynamic, real‑time reports and dashboards using trusted data.
- Work from a single source of truth so teams can plan, analyze, and align securely from anywhere.
Benefits
Direct access to centralized data ensures teams always work with the latest numbers, improving accuracy in reporting, forecasting, and decision-making.
Streamline budgeting, forecasting, and scenario analysis so your team can respond faster to changing business conditions.
Analyze performance across time, business units, and product lines to uncover key drivers and spot risks and opportunities earlier.
Ensure consistency and auditability with built‑in validation, controlled data access, and standardized processes.
Features
Safeguard sensitive financial and operational data with role-based access and centralized controls. Ensure users only see what they are authorized to access, helping maintain compliance, reduce risk, and build trust in your data.
Move from high-level summaries to detailed line items in seconds. Report on variances, understand key drivers and support more accurate forecasting and analysis.
Interactive demo
Excel alone vs. Excel elevated
When accuracy, scale, and collaboration matter, Excel alone isn’t enough. This comparison outlines how PAfE strengthens Excel for complex financial and operational workflows.
Capability | Microsoft Excel (Standalone) | Microsoft Excel with IBM Planning Analytics for Excel |
Version control and auditability | Multiple file versions with manual tracking, increasing risk of errors and lack of transparency | Centralized version control with a full audit trail to support accountability and support compliance across teams |
Collaboration across teams | Limited real-time collaboration, leading to delays and misalignment | Allow for collaboration with people who don’t have MS Excel, by providing secured access through converted web sheets |
Handling large datasets | Performance limitations with large or complex models | Powered by the high-performance TM1 engine, PAfE enables fast, efficient access to large, complex enterprise data directly within Excel |
Security and data control | Basic file-level security that can be difficult to manage at scale | Enterprise-grade security with role-based access, data control and auditability to protect sensitive financial and operational data |
Multidimensional enterprise data analysis | Limited analysis capabilities requiring manual workarounds or add-ons | Built-in multidimensional analysis across time, entities, products and more for deeper financial and operational insights |
Data consolidation and aggregation | Manual, formula-based consolidation that is time-consuming and error-prone | TM1 handles aggregation at the source, ensuring consistent data for all users. Reports refresh with the latest numbers, keeping analysis accurate and up to date. |
Data validation and accuracy | Limited validation controls, increasing risk of errors in financial models | Built-in validation and error checking to improve data integrity and reporting confidence |
Hear from our clients
Hays Germany
Hear how Hays Germany transformed a slow, spreadsheet‑heavy planning process into fast, monthly forecasting with IBM Planning Analytics. Lucas shares how the team now handles 25–35K projects with ease and empowers sales leaders to own their forecasts.