# ESM+Strategy Reviews 2026. Verified Reviews, Pros & Cons | Capterra > Is ESM+Strategy the right Data Analysis solution for you? Explore 35 verified user reviews from people in industries like yours to make a confident choice. Source: https://www.capterra.com/p/126984/ESM-Strategy/reviews --- ESM+Strategy 4.7 (35) Provider data verified by our Software Research team, and reviews moderated by our Reviews Verification team. [Learn more](https://www.capterra.com/our-story/) * * * Last updated March 13th, 2026 # Reviews of ESM+Strategy Ease of use 4.8 Customer Service 4.8 ## Pros and Cons in Reviews Jackie A Sr Director of ITBiotechnology, 51 - 200 employeesUsed the software for: 1-2 years. “I was also part of the admin training sessions and those were very informative and covered the necessary features to support the tool in-house.“ October 5, 2021 ## Showing most helpful reviews Showing 1-25 of 35 Reviews Sort by: Most Helpful Rating Company Size Reviewer's Role Length of Use Frequency of Use Joshua S. Process Consultant - Planning and Strategy Insurance Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Leveraging ESM + Strategy for SMS Development" August 10, 2018 4.0 The value proposition of the tool consists of three things: 1. Transparency - Provides a holistic view of SMS work from which all stakeholders can glean insight and make decisions from. 2. Accountability - Instills discipline around the ownership and reporting of strategic objectives and initiatives. 3. Root-cause analysis - Gives leaders a lens into what forces drive the status of strategic objectives and corresponding metrics. Pros 1\. Excellent support during setup and responsiveness regarding inquiries 2. Flexible enough to accommodate the nuances of our SMS. 3. Ease of navigation and intuitive layout makes software easy to learn. Cons 1\. The Gantt chart view is not currently exportable, but I am aware that this is a function they are exploring. Review Source Juan Jose V. Managing Director Management Consulting Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Strategy Review Tool" August 10, 2018 5.0 The ESM + Strategy is helping us to deliver positive results to our clients in their strategy management efforts. The ESM functionalities make all the strategy design process to be dynamic and proactive. Pros The ESM is pefectly aligned with the XPP methdology and makes the Strategy Review Process intuitive and easy to use for clients. Throughout all the ESM you have a very friendly environment that allows the users to get used to it easily. Cons At the moment there is no dislikes with the ESM. It may improve some risk and process management features. Review Source AT Al T. Senior Strategist Used the software for: ### "New customer ESM 5.5 review" November 14, 2012 3.0 Recommend ESM to those who are resourced contrained but need and will use a web-based software to better their organizational performance effort. Pros Easy to use, functionally represent the balanced scorecard methodology well. No learning required if you understand the BSC framework. Its affordable, scalable. Cons Lacks a robust initiatives prioritization; and initiatives resource allocation, comparison and refinement process. Review Source Response from ESM Software Group August 10, 2015 Dear Al, Thanks for your review. We listened to your feedback and launched an initiative management module where you can capture criteria, weight the criteria, then rank your initiatives against each criteria, arriving at a weighted score. Initiatives can then be prioritized with resources allocated as appropriate. Thanks, ESM Team Jackie A. Sr Director of IT Biotechnology Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Great software to support strategy execution and tracking" October 5, 2021 5.0 It was great to work w/ the ESM team during the initial implementation where they were very effective at working with the executive leadership to capture and formulate specific details to build out the scorecard. Several workshops were held to get the team aligned and comfortable using ESM as the backdrop and means to review the progress on a monthly basis. I was also part of the admin training sessions and those were very informative and covered the necessary features to support the tool in-house. Pros The software has an intuitive interface and helps ease the process of setting up the initial scorecard and strategy map as well as maintaining the information going forward. There is considerable flexibility to adapt it to your organization's vocabulary and planning model. Cons The hardest part of using the software was bringing new executive leaders up to speed on it after we had our initial workshops to get it in place. Not really a software issue, but more of a training and adoption issue. The ESM team was great about helping Ultivue bridge that gap. Review Source Omar D. Reconciliations Manager Banking Used the software for: I used a free trial ### "software to increase the productivity of your team" June 27, 2021 4.0 We used it as a test to try if an incentive strategy worked with our collaborators, however we decided to use other free software that offer us the same. Pros The best thing about this software is that it allows you to create your KPIs from the same database that can enhance decision-making in your business. It can even be filled in real time to be able to make adjustments with your team of the strategy they are carrying out. additionally they can also see their progress so it becomes challenging and inventive Cons Having a systems team that can do the filling work in real time can make your job easier. in case you cannot have this, the tool becomes little useful because the information. shown will not be found on live Review Source MP Matthews P. Head of Strategy Human Resources Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Used software for over 10 years" December 19, 2019 5.0 The ESM Team is fantastic to work with and the software continues to support our focused strategic planning and performance excellence culture. Pros ESM supports HRDC with our strategic planning and review. We have Balanced Scorecards that we manage with leadership through ESM. We are able to drive our goal for a high performance culture in the organization. It is very sophisticated but also easy for us to use. Cons We are very happy with the software so I'm thinking back about any issues we've have over the past 11 years of using ESM. We asked for better dashboards in 2018 and the ESM team launched new dashboard capabilities in 2019 and we love the new flexibility. Review Source Afzul S. Director Management Consulting Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Integrated Solution" November 22, 2018 5.0 The software lives up to its claim of bringing strategy to life by making it accessible throughout the organisation. Pros The interface is sufficiently user friendly and is therefore easily learned. The reports are comprehensive and enable effective analysis of the data which makes for more meaningful strategy and performance review. Cons Really nothing to dislike. Enhanced functionality is being explored. Review Source Sean C. CEO Financial Services Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Aligned my Board of Directors and Employees" January 23, 2020 5.0 Aligned the Board of Directors, brought the strategic plan to life, and engaged employees with how they support the strategy. Pros User friendly, shows employees how they impact the strategy, helps set the agenda for Board Meetings, staff planning sessions and facilitates decision making and budget choices. Cons Challenged the status quo and forced us to rethink how we run the business. Very effective with exposing gaps in our strategy. Reason for choosing ESM+Strategy Presentation ready with strategy maps and scorecards. Simple and easy to use. Review Source VR Verified Reviewer Principal Real Estate Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Top Tier Firm and Excellent Product" January 24, 2019 5.0 Empowered our team to take hold of our strategy and get the job done. Offers us the insight to make smart decisions around our investments. We were able to use the tool and methodology to avoid unnecessary expenses for projects that weren't aligned to our strategy Pros deep permission capabilities around user access, rapid scorecard design, great communication tool, rooted in Kaplan Norton best practices, great customer service team Cons Doesn't do P&L financial planning (but didn't really buy it for that purpose), Want to be able to display multiple strategy maps at the same time in the same scorecard (right now you have to select from a drop down list as to which gets displayed) Review Source Gerald L. North American General Manager and Vice President of Sales Food Production Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Balanced Scorecard" December 9, 2018 5.0 It allowed us to turn our five year business strategy into sustainable actions! Pros The software was easy to use and allowed us to turn strategy into actions. Cons Overall it was very intuitive - not much not to like. Review Source LS Leo S. Consultant Education Management Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "ESM+Strategy Review" November 23, 2018 5.0 Pros Its ease of user and reporting capabilities are what make it a great software. Cons BSC methodology knowledge is sometimes needed as a precursor to using the software. Review Source KW Kate W. Consultant Non-Profit Organization Management Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "ESM Strategy" December 2, 2018 5.0 Pros The software looks extensive and would will help us achieve our company's goals. Cons The price is a little high for our situation. Review Source DW David W. Managing partner Management Consulting Used the software for: 2+ years ### "ESM" November 22, 2018 5.0 Its a excellent tool all-in-all. I dont understand how companies can do without this types of data and be able to run their strategy. Pros Its easy for everyone to instantly work with! It drives you execution! Cons It is sometimes hard to go back to power points ones you tried to work with ESM you are stuck. It is that good. Review Source IB Ian B. Manager of Strategy and BSC Used the software for: ### "ESM Version 6 Early Adopter" September 4, 2014 5.0 I work for an organization that has been using the scorecard for over a year and we were one of the first adopters of the latest version of Executive Strategy Manager. I've implemented the Balanced Scorecard at several companies and each leadership team has slight variations on their scorecard approach. ESM 6 is flexible enough to enable these unique approaches while staying true to the core concepts of Kaplan and Norton's Balanced Scorecard methodology. ESM's alignment with the strategy map/scorecard approach, paired with dynamic reporting tools and meeting management functionality make strategy execution much easier for our company. I'd really like to see a governance calendar integrated into the application, which would go a long way toward automating some of the preparation and reporting administration. The action item section could also be expanded to better support recording minutes and activities identified during strategy review meetings. I've tried to manage the scorecard offline or through shared project pages and it multiplies the effort involved enormously. I use ESM every day and I'd recommend it to any Balanced Scorecard organization looking for a web-based application to manage their strategy execution effort. Review Source Response from ESM Software Group August 10, 2015 Ian, Thanks for your review. Great news, we listened to your request for a governance calendar and now have a fully integrated calendar that tracks all meetings, due dates for key activities, actions, milestones and tasks. We appreciate the feedback. Regards, ESM Team DM David M. Director, Office of Strategy Management International Trade and Development Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Accessible Solution for Organizing Management by Objective" August 10, 2018 5.0 Typically I use ESM to keep strategy execution efforts organized particularly when there is more than one Balanced Scorecard being used within the organization. Pros ESM provides a easy-to-deploy software solution structured to support enterprise-wide Balanced Scorecard use (but could be used to support any management-by-objective framework). I like the fact that I can use the software to get a client supported with their strategy management journey quickly. (I also really appreciate that their pricing model is by scorecard and not by user, which supports organizations that understand the criticality of driving employee engagement with strategy.) Cons I wish the more complex reporting features rendered perfectly-formatted exported reports. Review Source ML Michael L. President Management Consulting Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "ESM + Strategy software Ties it All Together Seamlessly" August 10, 2018 5.0 Going from just having a strategic plan binder with our 3-5 year plan in writing sitting on my desk to having an actual "living management tool" to use in moving our business forward with realistic ongoing business insight was ground breaking!! I had no idea how much more effective we all could be across our management team and through every level of employee touching our business processes. It was quickly obvious how powerful this software could be! Pros The software is designed to bring all aspects of strategic plan execution, whether it is from the financial perspective, the customer perspective, the process perspective or the staff resources perspective. It ties them all together with an ongoing view of progress across initiatives that helps all management levels on our scheduled quarterly revivews. I am actually expecting this to be powerful enough to change company culture to one of tight accountability and high productivity! Cons It forced us to really hone in on developing realistic goals that tie to key performance indicators that we can actually measure although we do have some manual data capture that we have to enter but that is because we need to automate some data mining in our shop. But the software allows for this manual input! Review Source TC Timothy C. President Hospital & Health Care Used the software for: 2+ years ### "ESM Review" August 9, 2018 5.0 I am a strategic consultant and I bring ESM software to all of my clients. I do not recommend any other BSC software. Pros The software is robust and user friendly. Cons There are no cons. It is a complete system. Review Source MB Mario B. Managing Director Management Consulting Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Managing Director" August 9, 2018 5.0 Allowed multi user interface for data collection and communication components allows participation and transparency of strategy performance Pros 1\. Ease of use 2. Features that relate clearly to strategic planning and execution 3. Flexibility to adjust to external client data bases 4. Ability to edit terms/data fields names to correspond with client terminolgy Cons All features were used and found to be useful and easy to understand and use. Review Source Diego D. Gestor de Pessoas Accounting Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Surpreendente " September 26, 2022 5.0 Pros Nossa que bom esse software. Ele surpreende com seus dados . Ele traz uma clareza pra tomada de decisões que nem sempre acredito. Fico aqui pensando em como posso usar ele mais e mais. Muito bom Cons Noa constam preços e são flutuantes. Poderiam usar o real. Review Source AN Ann N. VP Management Consulting Used the software for: 2+ years ### "ESM+Strategy a great investment" August 11, 2018 5.0 As a smaller company, we didn't want to invest in a more complex application. However, we have found that ESM+Strategy covers more needs than we at first thought. It is a very smart investment. Pros It is so easy to use and supports an amazingly wide range of strategy needs Cons No complaints about either the software or the service. Review Source JA John A. Senior Strategy Consultant Health, Wellness and Fitness Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Effective tool, simple to use" November 26, 2018 5.0 Pros ESM provides one stop shopping for our balanced scorecard needs for both enterprise strategic plans and cascaded plans. The software is easy to use for objective and measure owners to report results, and to share with leadership. Cons It takes a bit of time for system administrators to become fluent with the software. ESM staff has been very helpful in training our team in the system. Review Source MW Mario W. Project Manager/Process Improvement Specialist Used the software for: ### "EMS is the most intuitive and user-friendly managerial tool for the Balanced Scorecard. " September 2, 2015 5.0 I am one of two the Balanced Scorecard (BSC) representative at the University of Arkansas for Medical Science (UAMS) in which I manage 24 BSCs. When I say I manage 24 BSC, I mean that I am the administrator of 24 BSCs, I taught 24 managers the philosophy and application of the BSC, and I assisted Danny, one of your consultants, in training the usage of ESM. The navigation of EMS is so easy that I was able to learn the ins and outs of the tool within one week before having to train many managers at UAMS. I have actual had more than 15 training session over the usage of ESM, and I have plenty more to come. Today, we have more than 30 users of EMS at UAMS whom I have taught how to use the program. Although our BSC will not be operational till October 2015, we have already experienced the transformational impact of the tool. Review Source FN Fina N. VP of Information Technology Used the software for: ### "Executive Strategy Manager - an easy way to track KPIs and monitor strategic goals" October 7, 2013 4.0 The ESM is a very useful tool for managing our organization's key performance indicator data, so that we can easily monitor how we are progressing towards our strategic goals. The ESM is a "cloud" solution, so there is no IT support required to manage the software. Once the scorecards, KPIs, and dashboards are setup, the system is very intuitive and easy to use for the individuals that enter the data and the analyses. The system does require a dedicated administrator, particularly during the initial setup and training phases, and if "structural" changes need to be made to your scorecards, KPIs and metrics. Overall, the system is easy to use and the customer service that Palladium provides is excellent. The ESM is utilized in our operations and strategy meetings on a routine basis. Review Source JG Javier G. Used the software for: ### "Great solution built by strategy experts" August 7, 2015 4.0 Pros: Eliminates PPT as source of presentation. This tool has saved a ton of paper and headaches caused from version control issues. Allows for easy linking/displaying of elements. Agency solution for cascading throughout the organization. Customizable fields is a plus. Robust charting and data grid is easy to learn since it functions just like Excel. Cons: The amount of time it takes to refresh a screen is inefficient, but part of this issue is due to our internal environment. Review Source Response from ESM Software Group August 7, 2015 Dear Javier, Thanks for the review. Since your environment has ESM locally installed, we can't control the infrastructure but we will continue to work with your internal IT team to speed up page loads. ESM Team GT Gemma T. Director Used the software for: ### "Eight years of Using the ESM " September 10, 2015 4.0 Pros: a defined methodology that allowed consistent reporting across the Enterprise; Ability to track performance in multiple areas of the organization; provides a discipline for staff input to their performance. Cons: The upgrade to 6.0 provided some improvements, but seemed to be more difficult to execute the charts/reports we were accustomed to producing. Needed to devise some workarounds to get the look and feel we wanted. The experience of working with the Palladium staff was excellent. Even at odd hours of the night or a weekend they usually got back to you right away if there was a question or something wasn't working correctly. Review Source Similar Products Featured