TM1 (now officially called IBM Planning Analytics powered by TM1) is a

multidimensional in-memory database and planning tool used for:

 Financial planning
 Budgeting and forecasting
 Reporting and analytics

It's widely used in corporate performance management (CPM) and enterprise planning,
particularly by finance departments.

Key Features of TM1:

 OLAP engine: TM1 uses Online Analytical Processing (OLAP) to handle complex
calculations and large datasets efficiently.
 In-memory processing: Data is loaded into memory, which allows for fast
read/write access and real-time calculations.
 Multidimensional modeling: Data is organized into cubes, which are essentially
multidimensional spreadsheets (e.g., time, product, geography).
 Rules and feeders: Custom logic can be applied using TM1 rules (like formulas),
and feeders help optimize performance by indicating dependencies.
 Integration with Excel: Through TM1 Perspectives or IBM Planning Analytics for
Excel (PAx), users can work directly in Excel while leveraging TM1's power.
 Web interface: IBM Planning Analytics Workspace (PAW) provides a drag-and-
drop interface for dashboards, planning, and analysis.

Typical Use Cases:

 Finance: Budgeting, forecasting, cash flow modeling, and financial reporting.

 Sales & Operations: Sales forecasting, demand planning, and inventory optimization.
 HR & Workforce Planning: Headcount planning, compensation modeling.

TM1 (now officially called IBM Planning Analytics powered by TM1) is a

multidimensional in-memory database and planning tool used for:

 Financial planning
 Budgeting and forecasting
 Reporting and analytics

It's widely used in corporate performance management (CPM) and enterprise planning,
particularly by finance departments.

Key Features of TM1:

 OLAP engine: TM1 uses Online Analytical Processing (OLAP) to handle complex
calculations and large datasets efficiently.
 In-memory processing: Data is loaded into memory, which allows for fast
read/write access and real-time calculations.
  Multidimensional modeling: Data is organized into cubes, which are essentially
multidimensional spreadsheets (e.g., time, product, geography).
 Rules and feeders: Custom logic can be applied using TM1 rules (like formulas),
and feeders help optimize performance by indicating dependencies.
 Integration with Excel: Through TM1 Perspectives or IBM Planning Analytics for
Excel (PAx), users can work directly in Excel while leveraging TM1's power.
 Web interface: IBM Planning Analytics Workspace (PAW) provides a drag-and-
drop interface for dashboards, planning, and analysis.

Typical Use Cases:

 Finance: Budgeting, forecasting, cash flow modeling, and financial reporting.

 Sales & Operations: Sales forecasting, demand planning, and inventory optimization.
 HR & Workforce Planning: Headcount planning, compensation modeling.

Why companies use TM1:

 High performance with large datasets

 Real-time calculation engine
 Powerful customization and flexibility
 Strong Excel and web interface integration

Would you like an example of how TM1 is used in a real-world finance scenario?

Scenario: Annual Budgeting for a Global Manufacturing

Company
Goal:

Create a detailed annual budget that includes:

 Sales revenue forecasts

 Operating expenses
 Workforce costs
 Capital expenditures
 Regional consolidation

How TM1 Helps

1. Multidimensional Budget Model (Cube-based)

The company uses TM1 cubes to model different parts of the budget:
  Sales Cube: Dimensions – Product, Region, Customer, Month
 Expense Cube: Dimensions – Department, Cost Center, Account, Month
 Workforce Cube: Dimensions – Employee, Department, Role, Month

Each cube allows slicing and dicing data (e.g., Sales for Product A in Region X for Q2).

2. Input by Department Managers

Each department manager logs into Planning Analytics Workspace (PAW) or Excel:

 Enters expected headcount and salary changes

 Inputs forecasted expenses (e.g., travel, software, marketing)
 Adjusts assumptions (e.g., inflation rates, FX rates) through control cubes

Managers see real-time rollups across departments or cost centers.

3. Automated Calculations (Rules & Feeders)

TM1 uses rules to:

 Calculate gross profit = revenue – COGS

 Compute salary with tax and benefits
 Allocate shared services (e.g., IT costs) across departments

Feeders optimize which cells get calculated to maintain performance.

4. What-if Analysis / Scenario Planning

The CFO runs "what-if" scenarios:

 "What if sales drop by 10% in EMEA?"

 "What if we delay hiring in Q1?"

TM1 instantly recalculates the budget across all affected cubes.

5. Real-time Consolidation

All regional inputs are automatically consolidated:

 EMEA, APAC, Americas data rolls up to Global

 Currency conversions apply automatically using FX rate cubes
 Executives view dashboards with KPIs and variance analysis
6. Reporting & Analysis

 TM1 integrates with Excel and Power BI/Tableau for reporting

 Dashboards and financial statements are refreshed live
 Variance reports show actual vs budget at any granularity

Summary

Task Without TM1 With TM1

Data collection Manual spreadsheets Centralized, multi-user model
Real-time updates No Yes
Scenario modeling Time-consuming Instant
Accuracy High risk of error Controlled and validated

Want me to walk you through how a specific cube or rule might be set up in TM1?

Ask ChatGPT

You said:

yes
ChatGPT said:

Great! Let's walk through how a Sales Planning Cube and a basic TM1 rule might be set up
for a real-world sales budgeting use case.

Example: Sales Planning Cube Setup

Goal:

Model and forecast monthly sales revenue by product, region, and customer.

Cube Name: Sales_Forecast

Dimensions:
Dimension Description
Product List of SKUs or product lines
Region Sales territories (e.g., NA, EMEA, APAC)
Customer Key customers or customer groups
Time Monthly periods (e.g., Jan 2025, Feb 2025...)
Version Actual, Budget, Forecast, Scenario1, etc.
Measure Sales Units, Unit Price, Revenue, Discounts, etc.

Example Data Intersection:

yaml
CopyEdit
Product: iPhone 15
Region: North America
Customer: Best Buy
Time: Jan 2025
Version: Forecast
Measure: Revenue

This might hold a value like: $12,500,000

TM1 Rule Example: Calculating Revenue

Goal:

Automatically calculate Revenue = Units × Unit Price

Step 1: Create input measures:

 Sales Units
 Unit Price

Step 2: Create calculated measure:

 Revenue

TM1 Rule (in Sales_Forecast cube):

plaintext
CopyEdit
['Revenue'] = N: ['Sales Units'] * ['Unit Price'];
This tells TM1 to multiply Sales Units and Unit Price at every data intersection (where both
are "N-level" – meaning not consolidated/aggregated).

Optional: Feeders

To ensure TM1 calculates only relevant cells (and improves performance), you’d also add a
feeder rule:

plaintext
CopyEdit
['Sales Units'] => ['Revenue'];
['Unit Price'] => ['Revenue'];

This tells TM1: "If Sales Units or Unit Price exists, calculate Revenue."

Example Input:
Product Region Customer Time Units Unit Price Revenue
iPhone EMEA Vodafone Jan 25 1,000 $900 $900,000 (calculated)

Would you like a similar example for workforce planning, or want to dive into how input
templates or dashboards work in TM1?

You said:

yes
ChatGPT said:

Great — let’s look at Workforce Planning in TM1, which is a common and powerful use
case.

Use Case: Workforce Planning in TM1

Goal:

Plan employee-related costs like salaries, benefits, bonuses, and headcount over time by
department, role, or region.
 Example: Workforce Planning Cube
Cube Name: Workforce_Plan

Dimensions:

Dimension Description
Employee List of employees (or roles if planning by role)
Department Department or cost center (e.g., Sales, IT)
Time Monthly or quarterly periods
Version Budget, Forecast, Scenario 1
Measure Base Salary, Bonus %, Benefits %, Total Cost

Rules to Automate Salary Calculations

Goal:

Calculate Total Compensation = Base Salary + Bonus + Benefits

Step 1: Input Measures (entered by HR or planners)

 Base Salary
 Bonus %
 Benefits %

Step 2: Rule Measures (calculated automatically)

 Bonus Amount
 Benefits Amount
 Total Compensation

TM1 Rules Example:

plaintext
CopyEdit
['Bonus Amount'] = N: ['Base Salary'] * ['Bonus %'];
['Benefits Amount'] = N: ['Base Salary'] * ['Benefits %'];
['Total Compensation'] = N: ['Base Salary'] + ['Bonus Amount'] + ['Benefits
Amount'];
 Feeders Example:
plaintext
CopyEdit
['Base Salary'] => ['Bonus Amount'];
['Base Salary'] => ['Benefits Amount'];
['Bonus Amount'] => ['Total Compensation'];
['Benefits Amount'] => ['Total Compensation'];

Feeders ensure that TM1 knows which cells to calculate to keep things fast and accurate.

Planning Input Template (Excel or PAW)

Planners can get a friendly interface like this (in Excel or web):

Employee Dept Month Base Salary Bonus % Benefits % Total Comp

John Doe Sales Jan $7,000 0.10 0.15 $9,100
Jane Roe Marketing Jan $6,500 0.08 0.12 $8,008

They just enter salary and % — TM1 calculates the rest automatically.

Workforce Dashboards
You can visualize:

 Headcount by department
 Total compensation over time
 Comparison of budget vs actual
 Salary cost drivers by region

These dashboards can be built in:

 IBM Planning Analytics Workspace (PAW)

 Power BI
 Tableau

Want to Go Further?
I can show you:

 How to build a dynamic salary driver model (e.g. raise % by role)

 How to handle new hires and terminations in the model
  How to link workforce costs into the P&L model

Which direction would you like to go next?