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IBM Engineering Lifecycle Management vs. Polarion ALM

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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    IBM Engineering Lifecycle Management

    Score7 out of 10
    N/AIBM Engineering Lifecycle Management (ELM) is an end-to-end engineering solution used to manage system requirements to design, workflow, and test management, extending the functionality of ALM tools for better complex-systems development.N/A

    Polarion ALM

    Score9.7 out of 10
    N/APolarion ALM is an application requirement management software platform now owned and supported by Siemens since the 2015 acquisition. It is available on the cloud (Polarion X) and on-premise. Polarion connect teams and projects to improve application development processes with a single, unified solution for requirements, coding, testing and release.

    $42

    per month per user

    Pricing
    IBM Engineering Lifecycle ManagementPolarion ALM
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    Polarion X Base
    $42
    per month per user
    Polarion ALM
    Contact Sales
    one or more years per user/concurrent
    Polarion Requirements
    Contact Sales
    one or more years per user/concurrent
    Polarion QA
    Contact Sales
    one or more years per user/concurrent
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    IBM Engineering Lifecycle ManagementPolarion ALM
    Free Trial
    NoYes
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoYes
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeOptional
    Additional Details——
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    IBM Engineering Lifecycle ManagementPolarion ALM
    Considered Both Products
    IBM
    No answer on this topic
    Siemens AG
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    88%
    Would buy again
    7 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Delivers good value for the price
    100%
    Delivers good value for the price
    7 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Happy with the feature set
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    8 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    100%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    5 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation went as expected
    100%
    Implementation went as expected
    6 Answers
    No answers on this topic
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    Score9.4 out of 10
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    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    IBM Engineering Lifecycle ManagementPolarion ALM
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.8
    (22 ratings)
    9.8
    (24 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    8.0
    (6 ratings)
    9.1
    (2 ratings)
    Usability
    2.1
    (4 ratings)
    7.6
    (2 ratings)
    Support Rating
    5.0
    (3 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    IBM Engineering Lifecycle ManagementPolarion ALM
    Likelihood to Recommend
    IBM
    IBM Engineering Requirements Management DOORS former IBM Rational DOORS profits very much from the mighty market position it had till today. It had been the most favored requirement engineering tools suite with the highest investments in the infrastructure concerning hardware, software, and knowledge sources. It was embedded in knowledge sources of test stands, hardware labs, and knowledge database servers. It allowed for some of the highest profit changes and made the fame with it. But the paradigms of requirements engineering change. If not were superseded by completely different approaches for the target solution worlds. The foremost position in the selling tables is unstable if changes are not solved or coped with by the strategist at IBM and their customers. Since the highly successful alternative suits are already at the market, and some are from IBM already the lifecycle for IBM Engineering Requirements Management DOORS is at the later highs. But the suite is still at the very top and very popular. There are still many problems unsolved and many wishes at the customers to make the use more comfortable and efficient at the overall level. If the time of setting up the software package is passed the adoption get more extended and complicated. There is a lot of work at the stage around and the expertise will be required for a long time from now.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Siemens AG
    The question is actually not trivial to answer in 200 words. To summarize, I can say that we have had consistently positive experiences with all customers where we have used Polarion ALM. The sector in which the customer operates only played a subordinate role. We use Polarion ALM in almost all sectors: Medical technology, pharmaceuticals, aerospace, agriculture, automotive and many others. It is also interesting to note that in the beginning we were mostly active in the development of products, systems or software. Over time, this has changed more and more for some customers and risk management or projects for lessons learned have taken up more space. This enabled us to banish a seemingly endless number of Excel lists. Who doesn't know this problem: at first there is only one Excel list on the drive. Day by day there are more. Some with a date in the file name. Others with an employee abbreviation. In the end, nobody can tell which is the current and complete list. The really good thing about Polarion ALM is that it is extremely flexible to use and the configuration determines what the project is used for in Polarion ALM. It is customizable to my situation and not rigid.
    Read full review
    Pros
    IBM
    • Easy to use with well defined template and user defined fields. New team can setup a project area easily by copying an existing template and adding customized fields for their special needs.
    • It can be used during almost the whole project cycle and give us a better view and control on the projects.
    • Lots of built-in report functions.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Siemens AG
    • Requirements Management:
    • Polarion ALM provides a centralized repository for capturing and managing requirements. Teams can define, organize, and link requirements to other artifacts like test cases and development tasks.
    • Test Management:
    • Polarion ALM facilitates end-to-end test management. Teams can create detailed test cases, manage test execution, and track test results.
    • Traceability and Impact Analysis:
    • Polarion ALM ensures traceability across all phases of the development lifecycle. Users can establish links between requirements, test cases, development tasks, and other artifacts. This traceability helps in impact analysis, allowing teams to understand how changes in one area may affect other parts of the project.
    • Customization and Adaptability:
    • Polarion ALM is highly customizable to fit the unique needs of different organizations and industries. Users can create custom workflows, define custom fields, and adapt the tool to their specific development processes.
    Read full review
    Cons
    IBM
    • Wireframes are quite basic. If you need intuitive and interactive wireframes to elaborate the requirements. you probably need to define outside the tool and then upload as image.
    • ER (define data dictionaries) modeling is not there.
    • Use case modeling is quite basic. You can visualize the use case and actors relation but the tool does not enforce the rules.
    • Does not support offline work.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Siemens AG
    • More robust engine as far as the actual took is concerned. There are navigation components in trace to reporting which we feel can be improved especially when dealing with cross global accessing of the tool. It slows us down a bit so it's backend driven optimization as well as some front end "clunkiness" that can be improved.
    • Improve some filtering capabilities especially in creating custom reports and generally all around the ALM components of the tool.
    • As of the version we have, the ability to enhance replationship types in traceability is limited.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    IBM
    At the moment we are required by contract to continue to use the IBM DOORS software for our current client. Given that it can be expensive, if we were to use it after our current client's needs were met, we would have to secure other projects in order to justify the continued use of the software.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Siemens AG
    There is too much at stake to go into a new system. But with everything else being promised as far as newer more innovative products, the justification to not renew is a huge risk so that is not a concern
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Usability
    IBM
    The UI is terrible and not intuitive. Users need training in order to complete tasks. Much like SAP, it's not the clearest tool. The tracing feature is especially complicated because you must write the scripts yourself. There is a learning curve. Also, even the setup, installation, and logging in each time takes a considerable amount of time.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Siemens AG
    Polarion ALM can be used individually and what I do with Polarion ALM is decided by my configuration. Lesson-learned, operational risk management, product, system or software development or customer management .... doesn't matter at all. I decide with my configuration what I will do with Polarion ALM. Of course, you can also use Polarion ALM out-of-the-box for your development because it comes with a large set of project templates.For this reason, I would also recommend not to just get started. A suitable consultant will show you the right templates and customize them according to your needs. Having Polarion ALM is like having a car. You know exactly how to operate the car. You've done it a thousand times before. The details are in the configuration: did I have a navigation system installed or not? Do I have a lane departure warning system or not? Do I have cruise control or not? Unlike when buying a vehicle, almost all functions are already available and can be used, usually at no extra cost. However, if something is missing, it can be obtained via the manufacturer's extension portal. Individual extensions are subject to a charge. Polarion ALM - easy to deploy and easy to use.
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    Reliability and Availability
    IBM
    No answers on this topic
    Siemens AG
    update, reindex takes to long
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    IBM
    It does a basic job and has the potential to complete some robust reporting tasks, however, it really is a clunky piece of software with a terrible user interface that makes using it routinely quite unpleasant. Many of our legacy and maintenance projects still use DOORS but our department and company use many alternatives and are looking for better tools.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Siemens AG
    Support for customers using the full range of Polarion could be better.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    In-Person Training
    IBM
    No answers on this topic
    Siemens AG
    competent trainer, good training project
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Online Training
    IBM
    No answers on this topic
    Siemens AG
    easy to follow, efficent
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    IBM
    No problems
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Siemens AG
    Automated install and backup procedure ist missing
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    IBM
    It was easier to do all the change management-related activities, even configurations were handled very effectively. New process definitions and initiatives made it easier for better project deliverables. Effective resource allocations and better reporting and defect management. The overall cost of the tool is great too and well within budget.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Siemens AG
    Polarion ALM has the best usability, extensibility and reactiv product management. The support is also very good compared to other companies. Or in other words it is closer to the customer. Codebeamer is for sure also a good ALM tool with a great feature set, but existing customers are often neglected. We will see, what PTC as the new owner of codebeamer will change at this point.
    Read full review
    Contract Terms and Pricing Model
    IBM
    No answers on this topic
    Siemens AG
    should be more flexible
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    IBM
    • If you can setup DOORS to your project, you will experience lower costs.
    • Also, less rework in the project, which means lower times to achieve your milestones.
    • Finally, the cost of setting up a related project is considerably lower, and the estimates obtained in the process are much more precise.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Siemens AG
    • Many of our customers have achieved things that they could not have done without Polarion
    • Possibility to make engineering enjoyable and not so documentation oriented (especially in regulated industries)
    • Automatic and all the time up-to-date reporting gives savings in time
    • Information reuse is typically giving benefits in resource use and time-to-market. Up to 40% reduction in time-to-market seen.
    • 10-20% reduction in R&D cost is typically achievable
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    Polarion ALM Screenshots

    Screenshot of Requirements Management - This feature is used to gather, author, approve and manage requirements across the full project lifecycles.Screenshot of Test & Quality Management - From this interface, users can manage all testing activities from a central platform.Screenshot of Issue & Risk Management - This interface is used to track all possible and reported failures, or plan and assign tasks to mitigate them.Screenshot of Connectors & Extensibility - Out of the box integrations with popular tools. Free, open APIs can be used to build apps and extensionsScreenshot of Agile / Hybrid Project Management - Modern agile techniques can be adopted at once or incrementally with out of the box project templates that can be adjusted to meet any needs.Screenshot of Core Functionality - Collaboration, Traceability and Workflow - 3 core principles built into the software