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IBM Engineering Workflow Management vs IBM Rational Synergy [EOL] comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

IBM Engineering Workflow Ma...
Average Rating
6.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.2
Number of Reviews
18
Ranking in other categories
Software Configuration Management (4th), Enterprise Agile Planning Tools (7th)
IBM Rational Synergy [EOL]
Average Rating
3.0
Number of Reviews
1
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Featured Reviews

JB
Sr. Project Scheduler at a government with 10,001+ employees
Good reporting for team alignment although connectivity require updates
I would rate the IBM Engineering Workflow Management a seven or an eight. I am leaning closer to seven based on a couple of items I mentioned that I would like to see or know more about, such as improved reporting. I rate the overall solution a seven out of ten.
OA
Software Methodology Engineer at a transportation company with 10,001+ employees
Users must go through a lot of steps to properly manipulate this solution, which can interrupt workflows and cause unnecessary downtime
We are required to use this tool by DO-178 guidance. We have to use a configuration management tool and this is the one we have been using. People see this tool more like a constraint than a benefit. Users really have to know how to use this tool and how to set the baseline functionalities for their case. The user must go through a lot of steps to properly manipulate this solution, which can interrupt workflows and cause unnecessary downtime. Synergy requires user training and development. It's not user-friendly. You have to perform a lot of manipulations; it's a bit archaic. Some people are reluctant to use this tool because they are familiar with and proficient in using Windows Explorer to navigate through directories and use WinZip to archive data. It is not a very good tool for document management. I would rate this solution a three out of ten because it's an old tool. It was a good tool 15 years ago. To get a ten out of ten I would need to see a more integrated user-friendly tool and it should be competitively priced as it is it's too expensive. I don't recommend using it because it's obsolete.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"It’s not cheap, but it is worth the price."
"Backlog management is a valuable feature."
"Rational Team Concert is the part of CLM solution and can be easily integrated with the requirement module, Rational DOORS, and the quality module, Rational Quality Manager, which allows organizations to automate the whole SDLC under the same umbrella with seamless integration."
"RTC allows us to customize different processes to fit the best projects requirements."
"Traceability reporting is inbuilt and includes all your requirements."
"We can track the status of test cases (passed or saved) in a single view. Based on releases and other attributes, we generate various reports and extract metrics from the data."
"Easy collaboration between several development teams such as design, development, and testing, and it's also simple to get an overview of a project's status."
"The most valuable features of the solution are highly customizable reports and visibility for all the higher management."
"Managing source code, tracking modifications, and being able to analyze evolutions of source code are the most valuable features."
 

Cons

"Unfortunately, the solution is very heavily vendor dependent."
"We have encountered issues with stability. We have seen where the entire system kind of goes for a toss when certain people use certain types of queries, which are very costly. Then the system kind of slows down a bit, and we have to monitor it."
"If you have multiple projects on one server, the tool becomes very slow, and some reports take longer to load."
"Look for guidelines and YouTube videos before starting to use RTC (too complex for new users)."
"I would rate the IBM Engineering Workflow Management a seven or an eight. I am leaning closer to seven based on a couple of items I mentioned that I would like to see or know more about, such as improved reporting."
"The scalability is not great, a lot of our reports just do not run because there's too much data."
"Upgrades, even minor versions, seem too labour intensive, especially with the enhanced objects, which is why the Jazz platform should be so good."
"It has improved our organization up to an extent, but it certainly has a lot of areas for improvement related to resource management."
"I don't recommend using it because it's obsolete."
"I'd like to see more integration with respect to requirement management, though this is not possible with this Synergy solution. I know that PTC enables this feature as well as Polarion. We need to have full trustworthiness and accountability in knowing that the tool will track every modification from specification through to the source code, with Synergy this isn't possible. The solution requires additional tools like rectify, desktop system solutions, to enable trustability between requirements, from one specification to another."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is not a free tool. We use a token-based licensing model, which is specific to IBM. The cost per token is around $115-$120."
"It's an expensive investment to make, so the decision should be driven on individual requirements."
"Licensing: The solution cost is high and should be brought down to increase competition."
"I've heard IBM Engineering Workflow Management is more expensive than other tools."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
14%
Government
11%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Comms Service Provider
9%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise9
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with IBM Engineering Workflow Management?
IBM Engineering Workflow Management can be improved by enhancing its pricing structure, specifically the cost and licensing of this solution.
What is your primary use case for IBM Engineering Workflow Management?
The typical use case for IBM Engineering Workflow Management is to streamline project management and ensure efficient workflow.
What advice do you have for others considering IBM Engineering Workflow Management?
My name is Sofia from PeerSpot regarding my experience with IBM Engineering Workflow Management. It is a leading review site. The solution is very easy to trace. My company name is MicroGenesis Tec...
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Also Known As

IBM Rational Team Concert (IBM ALM), IBM RTC
IBM Synergy, Rational Synergy
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Telstra Corporation, Visteon, Atos SE, Panasonic Automotive Systems, IBM Global Technology Services, CareCore National, JTEKT Corp., ItaÒ BBA, Avea, CACEIS, Danske Bank Group, APIS IT
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