ClearPoint Strategy

More than satisfied with ClearPoint Strategy

Comments: In addition to the product, I am extremely satisfied with the training we received on site, as well as the sessions we have via conference call with our account representatives. No questions are too simple or too complicated. We are not limited in the number of times we reach out and appreciate the account rep keeping in touch with us and responding promptly to our inquiries. We have also appreciated the webinars that are offered and look forward to attending the annual conference for the first time this year.

Pros:

The software is very intuitive and extremely flexible, as it caters to our needs as the customer. We appreciate the many resources that are available to support us in getting used to the product so that it is not intimidating or overwhelming. We don't feel limited in any way regarding how we will use the product as we make plans to move from our initial use (strategic management) to other possibilities (i.e., project management). We are also pleased with the layout and format options we have for our reports.

Cons:

At this point, I don't have any cons, other than wishing I had the product sooner.

ClearPoint Review

Comments: Strategic planning, strategy execution and monitoring.
We use ClearPoint to display and track key performance indicators across our enterprise.
More and more users are accessing the site and we continue to migrate more info to the site, which has improved transparency and easy of data sharing.

Pros:

Top benefits include ease of use as well as report customization. Additionally, customer support is exceptional! Highly responsive and solution oriented.

Cons:

Although almost any type of report can be generated, the visual design of these reports is mostly unchangeable.

Game Changing Strategy Management

Comments: Clearpoint support teams have been amazing to work with and the company genuinely cares about your success using the software. I appreciate their commitment to quality!

Pros:

Clearpoint Strategy has thought of everything. This system has provided our organization with a solution for managing our strategic plan in an organization that touches dozens of different industries. The setup and customization options are key for flexibility in building exactly what works for the organization.

Cons:

I would like to have better summary report functionality and export options that retain sorts and also condense spacing to reduce the number of pages in a briefing book or summary report. I would also like to have better workload and capacity management options for owners and their assigned initiatives. It’s currently a manual count line by line as needed to ensure we have appropriate workload management.

Excellent structure and support

Comments: I have found the built-in help and support to be excellent. The Clearpoint team hosts education sessions on both how to use the software and what other organizations are using it for, which helps me understand best practices. I was able to get from 'never saw this before' to 'downloading metrics files and turning them into Uploader templates' in about a week, using the Clearpoint videos and tutorials. I do come from a technical background, so your experience may vary, but it seemed very straightforward.

Pros:

Provides structure and a common language that makes it easy to explain to stakeholders.

Cons:

Switching between Departments isn't easy. That won't matter for most users.

Great overall!

Pros:

The software is pretty user-friendly and offers a number of custom layouts and fields that are really helpful for my organization. The customer support has been fantastic.

Cons:

It does take a while to set up, so there may be something to having support for setup. There are a handful of small features that are missing that would have made the software more useful to my organization--more flexible reports, more granular permission-granting, ability to add run charts.

ClearPoint Strategy Benefit to Organizations

Pros:

ClearPoint Strategy's customer service is unmatched. They are highly responsive and solutions-driven. They work hard to provide answers to users. From customizable reports to various custom layouts, organizations can benefit depending on their unique needs.

Cons:

ClearPoint Strategy can be very time consuming in terms of the setup process. The customer service team is there for guidance and they may be needed in the picture regularly.

Service at a high level!

Comments: Our experience working with ClearPoint has been exceptional. Each time we've reach out to the company for support, they've responded in a timely manner.

Pros:

The support from the representatives when I need help

Cons:

Although, shorter than expected. It's always the initial learning curve.

A Comprehensive Product

Pros:

Ease of Use, centralized place to keep track of performance measures and initiatives, inexpensive. [sensitive content hidden] has been a great help and provide awesome after service support.

Cons:

Lack of features on doing bulk admin work such as setting reporting frequencies, mass delete accounts etc.

City of Manhattan

Comments: [sensitive content hidden] are awesome to work with. They have been very helpful and go above and beyond.

Pros:

Data all in one place. Can run reports with simple clicks and do calculations. It has saved time for admin staff.

Cons:

Reports have limited customization. Have had to alter data approach a few times becuase this was new to us.

Fantastic Implementation

Pros:

ClearPoint has a great team behind them. I can't say enough good things about their implementation team and the process. Our Implementation Specialist, Marisa, made the process simple and easy. She was extremely knowledgeable and a pleasure to work with. Her dedication to a successful implementation was unmatched.

Cons:

The software isn't the easiest to navigate. I'm sure it will get better with practice, but I had to keep my training guide handy in the beginning to help me along.

Changed our Organization

Pros:

Ease of use and the ability to adapt to any plans

Cons:

Still working on some data features like time stamps that is not available for some of my KPIs

Put Your Strategy & Goals Somewhere Besides Your Head

Comments: I love it and think it's a powerful tool. I have not invested the time needed into getting everything out of it I can and need to.

Pros:

I'm able to put all of our company goals and objectives in one place so I can work towards meeting them, instead of having piles of paper or ideas in my head that never get done.

Cons:

It's a little clunky at the beginning but easy once you get the hang of it.

Eldor Corporation ClearPoint Review

Comments: Other than a few small customization issues, ClearPoint has helped myself and the company tremendously. Aside from what the software does for us, the help we receive from the employees is unmatched. They are always there to help with any questions and even provide welcomed feedback into how we can make the process even easier or more concise.

Pros:

The impact it has made on time management for collecting and reporting KPIs has been a huge success for us. Once implemented to the other plants. It will be saving countless hours and will help in communicating key data from one plant to another.

Cons:

I wish there were more customization features in regards to graph creation and reporting.

Review by B. Schwab

Pros:

I like how simple it is to create reports, add charts and customize dashboards!

Cons:

Support overall is good but the customer service chat option over the past few months has been slow to respond. Our account has experience several issues with our milestone evaluations over the past year. At this time things seem to be working okay.

Clearpoint Strategic

Pros:

Clearpoint templates are detailed,informative and easy to use.

Cons:

There are no cons based on my needs. Future use cases may yield something

What a refreshing pleasure it is working with their staff!

Comments: ClearPoint's support team is one of the main things that really sets them apart. They are always very reachable and quick to respond to any question, whether they are asked by an account administrator or a basic user. They listen to everyone, even the little guy. Another thing that sets them apart is that when you find a glitch with a new version they work to fix it quickly and you don't have to wait a couple years until the next version comes out. In my 17 years, I have dealt with a lot of different performance management software companies and they have provided me the best customer service by far and it isn't even close. Not to mention they are all pleasant to work with and seem more like friends than business associates.

Pros:

Each version is becoming more user-friendly and it continually becomes more efficient with editing and graphing the measures. I like the way you can edit and add data to the measure from one screen. Also, the graphing software is versatile and meets your needs. I like that you can add hyperlinks into the different input categories. Like being able to input GIS maps into the analysis section of the measure.

Cons:

I Do not like that you cannot expand the columns widths in the measure data tables. I would like to size each column differently based on the need and would like to have wrap text capability so the row height can accommodate different verbiage without cutting off the words.

Excellent performance management tool and user experience

Pros:

The transition to ClearPoint from our previous excel-based scorecard, which included a significant amount of data to migrate and users to train, was simple and very well supported by the ClearPoint team. The ClearPoint team consistently provide responsive, helpful and knowledgeable support, which has enabled us to create scorecards at various levels within our organization. The alignment of the tool with the Balanced Scorecard methodology and structure, that includes elements like goals, objectives measures and initiatives, allowed us to implement a standardized framework for cascading scorecards. The tool is very intuitive and easy to use with functionalities such as, drag and drop, customizing and linking elements. As an administrator, management of scorecards and users is very easy. Also, the regular webinars, annual summit and periodic regional customer meetings are great ways in which ClearPoint enables and promotes the sharing of knowledge and learnings among its clients.

Cons:

None, any new requirements we have or new functionality we need (e.g. customized charts, etc.) is very willingly supported by the ClearPoint team.

Align and dashboard your results with this powerful easy to use tool

Comments: Clearpoint enables us to continually monitor our progress toward our strategies and goals, track progress on projects and ensure that we are applying our resources to achieve the right results.

Pros:

Clearpoint allows you to easily build your balanced scorecard and align your measures to appropriate goals and initiatives. Set appropriate threshholds for your measures and automatically set a visual status of progress which can be rolled up to track overall progress toward goals. All this can be easily done by automatically loading your data from a variety of sources whether excel files or a SQL compliant ODBC data source. Informative dashboards and reports that can illustrate the alignment of Intitiatives, measures and goals while giving a clear visual indication of progress in charts and graphs. The support team is one of the best with which I have ever dealt, very knowledgeable and responsive.

Cons:

None, I've used Clearpoint for a number of years and it does exactly what it is supposed to and they continually improve the product.

Easy to use, customize, and well supported

Comments: Overall our experience has been exceptional. We feel that ClearPoint is a partner for our success. They have helped us problem solve and develop new measures in the system. Their customer support service is truly outstanding. They really listen to customer feedback and incorporate it into making new features!

Pros:

ClearPoint Strategy is super customizable and easy to use. You can tailor the software to match the look and needs of your organization. It's easy to collaborate on ideas with a group and make updates in real time. The look and feel of the software is very polished. You can customize your measures and data visualization and then reuse that work repeatedly which cuts down on rework or micromanaging the software. It allows for benchmarking with other ClearPoint users and you can use the measure library to spark your own ideas. The software is well supported with webinars, seamless updates, and excellent customer support.

Cons:

There are so many options it can be a little daunting to get started. Luckily, ClearPoint was a great partner in helping us build out our system and providing advice from other customer's experiences.

Review of ClearPoint Strategy Software

Comments: My overall experience with ClearPoint Strategy has been exceptional. I have never experienced such adept customer service. The willingness of the team to assist, the offered trainings, yearly conferences and follow-up is admirable.

Pros:

What I have found most beneficial about the ClearPoint software is the ability to customize reports and layouts. It allows for conveying the "big picture" in an easy and understandable format. Being able to produce a report that contains graphics and verbiage appeals to different types of learning styles.

Cons:

My least favorite feature about the ClearPoint software is the inability to edit the header, cell and table styles within the report. If you are unfamiliar with where to find the feature in the admin options settings, it becomes very frustrating.

Accountability and accessibility

Comments: We have been using Clearpoint for years for strategy accountability, and being able to go back 5 years and see the progress of our strategic endeavors helps the organization staff with trusting new projects. Our investors and partners always ask us how do we track our strategic plans, we always have it so accesible that you get to show them as they ask. The impression it causes has definitely increased our capacity for impact. Clearpoint helps us with the level of transparency we want to demonstrate.

Pros:

We find it very reliable and the capacity to go back years on previous strategies are a plus for documenting learnings. The navigation is very user friendly. All resources available are very good and help in providing workshops. The Customer service is great, we sometimes struggle with creating some formulas and the team responds quickly.

Cons:

The biggest challenge for our organization in maximizing Clearpoint is our technology capacity in terms of programming. Some features Look great but we can’t use them properly.

Easy to use performance reporting!

Comments: The customer service is out of this world! I cannot stress this enough. The account representatives go above and beyond to ensure ease of use and a positive experience with their software. To me, their customer service makes the difference.

Pros:

ClearPoint is easy to use - my role within my organization requires me to train new employees on the use of ClearPoint. It is always easily picked up by new users.

Cons:

Occasionally the software does not allow us to customize the way we want - however, ClearPoint can always find us a work-around that meets our needs.

ClearPoint provides significant, user-friendly functionality for performance measurement

Comments: After releasing our Community Dashboard in 2013 we realized that Excel was not the best solution for storing and reporting on hundreds of metrics. We started working with ClearPoint at the end of that year which began with them loading over 400 metrics into their software for us. Our goal was to be able to publish these measures to the web so they could be linked to the budget requests in our biennial budgeting process. ClearPoint was able to incorporate some of our business needs in their semi-annual software upgrade which allowed us to successfully achieve our goal. Their level of customer service and responsiveness is amazing; this applies to everyone we have worked with at ClearPoint. We contracted with ClearPoint primarily to use the software as a performance measurement data repository. However, we are now using other functionality in the system to load strategic objectives and link measures to them. This will allow us to create Strategy Maps that will provide Red/Yellow/Green performance of our strategic objectives to our citizenry. We will also start using their Initiative and Action Item tracking functionality, which can be linked to measures and strategic objectives. There is a lot of functionality offered by ClearPoint which can add to the learning curve of the system, but you will find it is very user friendly software that is easy to navigate. Our partners at ClearPoint are very committed to continuous improvement and are open to suggestions from their clients on how to improve the software. These suggestions are evaluated across their entire customer base and those that are approved are worked into their software upgrade road map. These future changes make the product even better and will take its reporting functionality to the next level. I cannot say enough about how pleased we are with our decision to partner with ClearPoint. We look forward to working with them in the future as we continue to improve our systematic, enterprise-wide approach to performance measurement and strategic planning; and making it transparent to the citizens of Fort Collins.

ClearPoint allows us to create a strategic plan that drives collaboration and high-level strategy.

Comments: ClearPoint Strategy provided the platform we needed to take our strategic plan from a departmental, tactical driven to-do list to an idea-mapped, living document that drives collaboration, high-level strategy, and accountability.

Pros:

The capabilities and output of the software. There is nothing we have asked for that ClearPoint Strategy wasn't able to provide. The custom report capabilities was the solution to one of our biggest challenges with our Strategic Plan.

Cons:

Although the online help library is a tremendous source of information, as a new user of the software, most of the tutorials are written for someone that is already familiar with the software. When I first started mapping our strategic plan into the software, I needed resources with basic information on getting it set up. I found most of the tutorials were written with the assumption that the user already knew when and why to use an option, and the cause and effect of using it. Now that I have a much better understanding of how options work together, the tutorials are much more useful.

Excellent decision support tool

Comments: Clearpoint has been an excellent addition for our organization. A lot of the talk in the business world today revolves around data. For a many years, we assumed that the answer to all our questions was to collect greater and greater volumes of information. The key, however, is not infinite data, it's using the data that you have well and Clearpoint is an excellent tool to do that. It's strength lies not it its complexity, but in its simplicity. It provides a structure that requires our organization to make some basic decisions about the information we have. What is good? What is bad? How are these things connected? Are our initiatives having the impact that we want. Answering these questions has been crucial to providing sound strategic direction.
Our organization also found that the pricing structure for the product also fits well with our budget and need. Having cost structured around administrators allowed us to begin our use with a low-cost pilot program before deciding to make a large investment. Once satisfied that this was the product for us, it was easy to scale up and begin to use Clearpoint across our entire organization. Even now, with minimal to no cost for browsers, it's easy to get information in the hands of people who will perform analysis and people who will make decisions.
In addition to a great product, the Ascendant team is great to work with. They are incredibly responsive to questions and requests, working with us until we get the answer that we need. And they are constantly updating a large library of FAQs, job aids and instructional videos that are very useful for administrators and average users alike.