Cognos Enterprise v.s. Cognos Express
Did you know that IBM has two offerings for organizations looking for a complete Business Intelligence and Planning solution? The first and more well-known is IBM Enterprise and the other is the lesser-known and more cost-effective IBM Express.
Like many companies emerging from the pandemic, you are probably reevaluating your organization's spending and searching for a tech stack that will give you a competitive edge while helping you cut costs… If you are looking for an integrated reporting, modeling, analysis, dashboard, storytelling, and performance management suite that can allow you to understand your organization's data in new ways, allowing you to make more effective business decisions with full-service business intelligence and AI capabilities, then IBM is the obvious choice.
"But which model is the correct one for my business – Enterprise or Express?"
Choosing the "Right Fit" - Users, Software, and Pricing
In this quick guide, we will cover the most common questions we have received regarding the differences between IBM Enterprise and IBM Express and hopefully guide you towards the 'right fit' for your business.
1. User Count:
The first, biggest, and the most common difference between Enterprise and Express is the number of users –Enterprise is built for businesses with 100+ users, and Express supports businesses with a maximum of 100 users or less.
2. Software:
The second biggest difference between Enterprise and Express is the underlying tech or is it…
• Outside of the user cap, the underlying software is – THE SAME!
• In the past Express has typically been a version behind – NOT ANYMORE!
• Express is built on a different code - IDENTICAL CODE!
Express clients will be able to download the Enterprise version of 11.2 software, but their licensing will have some restrictions (user count). You will have immediate access to the latest product enhancements, product updates, patches, and future versions of IBM Planning Analytics & IBM Cognos Analytics as soon as they are released.
3. Price:
The final and most important difference between Enterprise and Express is the price! Cognos Express is priced to make IBM Cognos and Planning Analytics more affordable for smaller companies. (Nice work IBM!)
The Bottom Line:
Our recommendation is that you evaluate your business requirements and explore how both options can meet your needs. Be sure to consider your expected growth and ensure that you will not outgrow IBM Express too quickly. Additionally, we recommend creating an upgrade plan so that when you are ready you can easily transition to Enterprise.
Both offerings provide powerful capabilities but Express offers all that power at a discounted rate if you can stay under the 100-user limit.
Contact us and we will happily assist you in answering any additional questions you may have on the differences between Express and Enterprise.
Related Reads:
• Discover Everything That's New in Cognos 11.2
• Our Top 5 Pain Points to Avoid When Upgrading your IBM Cognos and/or Planning Analytics system