Informatica PowerCenter Reviews

In the company I work for, we provide a lot of solutions. I've been working with a lot of clients. The last client I worked with was a big hotel company, and we used this solution for integration.

It's a very powerful tool you can use to load data, get data, do the drawing between the tables, and put it into the packet in a very fast way.

So for this client, we are using the MDM (Master Data Management), and the PowerCenter will be very helpful in building data and merging all the data between the different systems they have. They have a lot of systems that contain the same information and we want to put that into a single place. This is the most valuable feature of this solution which has been of great help to us.

To be honest, we didn't find big issues with this tool. All the issues we found, we were able to fix. We don't have any issues with the tool so far.

I would like to see this solution change the way it creates workflows. In Alteryx, for example, it's easier to build the workflow because of the way it was built, while PowerCenter was built in a more complex way to be able to process a large number of roles. The way PowerCenter creates the workflows is much more complex than the others, but nothing big. It's just that it's the old way. It would be good to recreate the entire interface to make it easier for users to build workflows. This is what I'd like to see in the next release.

I've been using it for 10 years.

The solution is stable. No complaints.

I believe this solution is scalable.

That's a tricky question because it's always complex. For the business logic, it's complex. They had a lot of systems and we had to do the integration between the source. I've been working with this solution for a lot of years, so to me it's straightforward. So that's a tricky question. I would say that for professionals, it's straightforward.

I evaluated Alteryx.

It's Informatica PowerCenter I work with a lot of times, but I also have knowledge on Informatica Data Quality. Now on my last project, I'll be working with MDM, but I'm not an expert on MDM, as I've mostly been working with PowerCenter.

I've been working with this solution since 2010 on a lot of projects which I don't have on top of my head right now. I live in Brazil and I've been working for the government for healthcare where I used this solution. I also worked with PowerCenter for an insurance company. I used this solution during integration where we also created a web API. This is a feature in Informatica that can deploy and make APIs available for third parties or vendors so they can do acquisitions, restore API, and get data. These are what we created in PowerCenter as well.

All the projects were deployed on-premise. I never work on the cloud, but I would love to. Deployment took six months for this project.

We have 30 to 50 people using this solution. If the project goes well, if there are more resources to implement this solution, and more features to improve the analytics of the company, then we will plan to increase usage of this solution.

I'm a PowerCenter guy, so I'm rating this solution a ten.

We use the solution for businesses that wish to analyze their raw data. The solution allows us to do data cleansing and to transform the raw data into useful, insightful information.

Informatica PowerCenter is a very strong tool which offers a host of features. We can use heterogeneous data to easily merge and derive the useful information. Also, flag files processing is very useful.

An issue which should be addressed is that the solution only allows us to do structured, as opposed to unstructured, data processing. Also, the EPA related data processing should be improved. 

Processing capabilities should be streamlined.

I prefer a third party scheduler tool to that of Informatica scheduler, since the latter is not one which is very physical. The solution is not so helpful if one wishes to perform multiple tasks simultaneously. 

We have been using Informatica PowerCenter for nearly eight years.

Scalability could be improved, as it is of an intermediate level. 

We have plans to increase usage. 

Technical support is really great.

Deployment was simple and straightforward. 

Licensing costs are excessive and pose an obstacle to someone who lacks familiarity with the solution and wishes to have a proper understanding of it. 

We have a team of around 40 to 50 people who use the solution.

I would, for sure, recommend the solution to others, since I feel it to be a really strong tool. It is very robust and has complex capabilities. It allows one to accomplish tasks with ease. We are talking about a strong ETL for those who are undertaking ETL related tasks.

One of my use cases is integrating personnel data from multiple systems.

Once you have learned Informatica, it is very easy to use.

The feedback that I have received from team members is that they found it easy to work with.

It is very difficult to learn.

The documentation could be improved. For example, if they were to create a system like SAS Books or IBM Redbooks that includes books on how to install, and how to troubleshoot problems, then it would be great.

I would like to see a centralized dashboard that can be used to access all of the Informatica products, rather than having a set of fragmented applications. A consolidated system with everything in a single platform would make it easier for technicians, as well as when it comes to purchasing it. That would be amazing.

I have been using Informatica PowerCenter for two years.

This is a stable product that has been around for a long time.

We have approximately eight people who use Informatica in the organization.

The customer service is good but they can't move you through the entire installation and troubleshooting process.

I also have experience with solutions from IBM, SAS, and other vendors.

My IT team was responsible for the deployment. Our team has approximately 12 people and they are responsible for installation and maintenance, including upgrades.

I consider this to be an expensive product.

In summary, Informatica is a good product that is very difficult to learn but once you learn it, it's very easy to use. It is a product that I can recommend using.

I would rate this solution an eight out of ten.

I like the completeness of the way I can build ETL workflows. It's not one feature that stands out. Rather, it's the way everything is working together.

On the matter of data lineage and data catalog and metadata, in particular, several new developments are embedded as options you could use or could buy. The modular structure is very helpful.

What is not that clear, is the usability in the cloud, for example. That's a little bit fuzzy.

The reputation of Informatica is that it is expensive. There are some things which could improve for the customer so that they have the perception that they get more for their money.

I would say that the transparency towards the cloud is a big area for improvement. For example, Microsoft and Oracle, make it easy since they create a cloud and then integrate all the stuff that way that you always have the possibility to work to optimize with. Informatica is a little bit different.  

On-premise should not be eradicated.

I've used the solution for 20 years. 

The solution is expensive.

I'm a developer and architect. I'm not reselling the product.

I'd rate the product eight out of ten.

We use this solution for ETL and data transformation and we are customers of Informatica. 

This is an old and reliable product. I like the visual tool for data mapping and the workflow manager.

I think the UI could be improved, it's a little outdated. Configuration is  complicated and could be simplified; it requires experience, and not many people have that. 

I've been using this solution for one month. 

Our data engineers are dealing with big data and large files which Informatica is capable of dealing with.

I know that support is available but I've never contacted Informatica. I go to the documentation supply tool to solve any issues.

The initial setup is dependent on the requirements of an organization. Sometimes it's more complicated. It requires and administrator who does everything, and eventually testers are brought in for specific workflows. Each environment requires a different deployment. Maintenance is carried out in-house. 

PowerCenter requires some discipline in terms of the implementation process, and because it is dealing with databases, there are several layers of protection and authorization. 

Informatica PowerCenter is outdated and would benefit from modernization. They should have a very good migration strategy from Informatica PowerCenter to AACF. Informatica PowerCenter there is no point in using it, you have to use a cloud version.

I have been using Informatica PowerCenter for approximately 17 years.

The technical support for Informatica PowerCenter is good.

I rate the support from Informatica PowerCenter a four out of five.

I would not recommend anyone use this solution.

I rate Informatica PowerCenter a one out of ten.

PowerCenter is the market leader, so more organizations use it than other tools. It's a feature-rich solution, so that's why it's at the top of the market.

PowerCenter has three clients. I wish they would consolidate everything into one GUI, not three. Also, we had a persistent issue with the Informatica Developer tool but it was solved when we migrated to the newest one. 

We've been using PowerCenter for about three years.

I think PowerCenter is stable. Organizations that try Informatica stick with it for a long time. No one uses Informatica and quickly switches to something else. It has been the leader in the market for many years.

Any feature that PowerCenter doesn't provide can be found in IDQ. IDQ covers any missing options, so I think it's PowerCenter's scalability is fine.

There were a few times when Informatica support took a while to solve the issues, but they always fixed the problem in the end. There was only one ticket that took a long time to solve. I rate their support eight out of 10. 

I rate PowerCenter eight out of 10 for ease of deployment. 

I rate Informatica PowerCenter eight out of 10. It provides everything I need. Nothing is missing. PowerCenter is a good tool for on-premise databases. If you're going to implement PowerCenter, you need to think about your requirements to determine what tools to use.

For example, I need the repository to auto-refresh. When I make changes to a project, workflow, mapping, or session, I want everything to refresh automatically. Otherwise, you must disconnect from the repository and reconnect for the changes you made to be reflected in your project.

Our primary use cases of PowerCenter are database regulatory reporting cases. Both sides are suitable for us to net trace metadata and it's easy to develop or hedge, after production as well. It's also easy to understand the steps or ETL. 

I'm working with the latest update, and it's deployed on-prem. 

One of the most valuable features for us is the metadata repository because it can easily understand the lineage of first target mapping. My company and I also find Informatica really easy to use—when a consultant joins our company, in just a few days to a few weeks, they can understand how to use it—so we prefer to use this ETL tool. 

PowerCenter could be improved by having more big data components. Normally, we prefer Informatica as a relational database, but nowadays, companies are trying to understand and use big data components. I think it would be useful if we had more chances to create a hub ecosystem because customers try to use some data integration tasks by SQL, Spark and Spark codes, and Scala, but at the end of the day, the company will understand that we need to trace all the steps. An ETL tool is a must for that company, if we're talking about the regulated industries like finance, telcos, etc. If Informatica's biggest ecosystems feature were okay, I would prefer to use it. 

I have been working with PowerCenter for more than seven years. 

The stability and performance of PowerCenter are good. 

The scalability is fair enough. 

PowerCenter is suitable for large companies. The pricing could be an issue for some companies who want to implement and develop with PowerCenter.

I haven't been in touch with technical support in the last few years, but before that, I contacted them many times. I remember that when we were using PDW, the previous version of Microsoft APS, we contacted Informatica support teams a few times to handle connection problems with the driver of PDW, and they solved it. I was satisfied with the support. 

The initial setup of PowerCenter is a simple process. The first development took just a week—a few days is enough. 

We provide implementation services to customers. We are a consultant company, so we use it for our customers on the customer's side, but we don't have a business relationship with Informatica. 

Compared to other tools, I think PowerCenter is a bit expensive. When I compare it to Oracle, if you want to use Oracle databases, you can easily get an ODI tool, so it's easier to handle. Informatica is a standalone tool—it's an independent company—and there are no databases around them, so it's quite expensive to use. 

Generally, large companies use PowerCenter because of the price. If companies want to expand their usage areas, they try to consider if it's easy to implement and easy to understand the pricing. I think the pricing is a barrier for Informatica. 

I rate PowerCenter a nine out of ten. To those looking into implementing PowerCenter, I would advise evaluating whether they have a large company. If their first criteria is not pricing, I totally recommend Informatica as their first ETL tool, but if there are pricing, performance and support, etc. requirements, maybe they can evaluate ODI and Informatica together. If you have an Oracle ecosystem, I think you can get Oracle or ODI cheaper than Informatica, but if you don't, I think Informatica could be a leading option. It depends on what the customer has.