Adaptive Planning Revolutionizes Market with Free, Instant Access Budgeting Software

New Web-Based Application Makes it Easier Than Ever for Companies to Move Beyond Excel-Based Budgeting
 

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA—April 03, 2007—Adaptive Planning, the leading provider of collaborative business performance management (BPM) solutions, today announced the availability of Adaptive Planning Express Edition On-Demand, a free entry-level addition to its suite of budgeting, forecasting, and reporting solutions. Designed to revolutionize the BPM market, Express Edition On-Demand removes the obstacles that have previously prevented small and midsized companies from adopting enterprise-class performance management solutions. With the addition of this new product to its suite, Adaptive Planning has changed the rules of the game, redefining how easy it can be for mid-market companies to move beyond Excel-based budgeting and dramatically improve their business results.

For decades, managing budgeting, forecasting and reporting has simply been too hard for too many companies. Most businesses use manual spreadsheets, which takes too much time, creates too many errors, and results in poorly informed decision making. A subset of companies has moved beyond spreadsheets and adopted BPM or business intelligence (BI) alternatives for automating these financial processes. However, these enterprise solutions create a new set of difficulties—they are costly to acquire, time consuming to implement, and complex to use. Given the problems with BPM and BI applications, over 80% of companies have elected to endure the pain of spreadsheets.

Now, Adaptive Planning Express Edition On-Demand provides a breakthrough new alternative to both Excel spreadsheets and enterprise BPM and BI tools. Adaptive Planning Express Edition On-Demand is a powerful, enterprise-class solution that is available for free and that can be instantaneously accessed around the world with only a web browser. With no software to install, no fees, no restrictions on the duration of use, and access for up to 50 users per company, Adaptive Planning has finally removed the key barriers that have historically prevented small and midsized businesses from moving beyond spreadsheets to automated BPM and BI software.

Companies worldwide can now visit www.adaptiveplanning.com, register for Adaptive Planning Express Edition On-Demand, and get instant access to the application. By using Express Edition On-Demand, companies can immediately begin to cut months of time from their budget process, improve the accuracy of their plans, and enable more informed business decisions—all of which drive increased competitiveness.

Designed for small and midsized companies and teams, Adaptive Planning Express Edition features include an intuitive, spreadsheet-like user interface; standard sheets for planning expenses and revenues across multiple dimensions; a specialized personnel planning sheet; formula-based modeling; and management of organizational hierarchies and user access rights. The product also includes a Get Started Wizard to help new users set up their company plans.

“For years, companies of all sizes, and especially small and midsized companies, have settled for second best by managing their budgeting, forecasting, and reporting processes using spreadsheets. Many companies simply do not have the resources—personnel, time, or capital—to implement an enterprise BPM solution,” said Craig Schiff, chief executive officer, BPM Partners. “With the introduction of a free on-demand budgeting solution, Adaptive Planning is providing small and midsized companies with an attractive alternative that reduces or even eliminates personnel, time, and capital resource requirements. By removing these barriers, Adaptive Planning is making it easier for companies to try out, and use, enterprise performance management applications.”

Budgeting, Forecasting, and Reporting Made Easy
In addition to Express Edition On-Demand, Adaptive Planning’s suite includes an on-site version of Express Edition, as well as two commercial versions, Corporate Edition and Enterprise Edition, which are available on-demand and on-site and provide enhanced features, expanded support, and indemnification. By adding Express Edition On-Demand to its suite, Adaptive Planning solidifies its position as the easiest solution for budgeting, forecasting, and reporting:

• Easy to “Test Drive.” It takes less than 30 seconds to sign up for and access the on-demand application, or you can take advantage of the “1-click” download and install process for on-site software. Alternatively, you can evaluate an online demo or talk with a product expert at your convenience.
• Easy to Get Started. Free versions of entry-level software are available, and full-featured commercial versions start under $500 per user. No new hardware or software is required, and fixed bid services contracts mean there is zero implementation risk.
• Easy to Customize. You can begin immediately, using the Get Started Wizard to create your company-specific plan in hours. Client services are also available, with implementations that take only 2-4 weeks on average. Source code is available for even deeper customization.
• Easy to Use. Power user training takes only 2 hours on average, and business user training takes under 30 minutes. Both can be completed using self-service video training. The software eliminates manual spreadsheet consolidations and errors due to broken macros. Graphical dashboards and charts can be created on the fly by business users, who appreciate the familiar spreadsheet-like interface.
• Easy to Collaborate. Unlike spreadsheets, Adaptive Planning delivers one version of the truth for all employees in a company. Because it supports 1,000’s of simultaneous users across every department, you can harness the collective intelligence of employees throughout your company.

“The introduction of Adaptive Planning Express Edition On-Demand marks an important milestone for the industry—and more importantly, for customers,” said William A. Soward, chief executive officer, Adaptive Planning. “Never before have companies had access to a free enterprise software alternative to Excel-based budgeting. By introducing Express Edition On-Demand, Adaptive Planning is delivering on our mission to dramatically expand the market by providing the easiest, most accessible, highest-value BPM solutions to companies worldwide.”

Availability and Pricing
Adaptive Planning Express Edition On-Demand is available now by registering at www.adaptiveplanning.com. Registrants receive instant access to the software and can begin automating their budgeting, forecasting, and reporting immediately. The software is free for companies with fewer than 50 users.

About Adaptive Planning
Adaptive Planning is the leading provider of collaborative business performance management (BPM) solutions. Adaptive Planning makes it easy for midsize companies and departments of larger corporations to move beyond spreadsheets and improve decisions by automating their budgeting, forecasting, reporting and analysis. Adaptive Planning provides extraordinary flexibility and value, with on-demand and on-site solutions, open source and commercial licensing terms, and pricing—including a free version of the product—that delivers a total cost of ownership that is a fraction of the cost of traditional BPM and business intelligence software. Adaptive Planning is headquartered in Mountain View, Calif. and can be reached at 650-528-7500 or www.adaptiveplanning.com.