For years, planning has operated in silos—sometimes still locked within spreadsheets and often disconnected from broader business processes and treated as an isolated function.

But within the last few years, that’s started to change.

Here at Collectiv, we’ve noticed a significant trend towards a more modernized planning approach. So, we decided to launch a brand new podcast to give us an outlet to dig deeper into these conversations about integrated business planning and share them with our audience.

Welcome to the first episode of Modernized Planning, where we explore how organizations can move beyond outdated planning methods and create a more integrated, data-driven approach. Through conversations with industry experts, we uncover the strategies, tools, and trends that are shaping the future of planning.

Our guest on this inaugural episode is Liran Edelist, PhD, the Chief Product Officer at Lumel. As a veteran in the planning space, with his first planning project dating back over 25 years, he’s witnessed the evolution of the discipline. So we were really excited to get his take on the past, present, and future of planning.

Where Planning Historically Struggled

In the early days of enterprise planning, two major technical hurdles stood in the way of efficient, large-scale collaboration: database locking and data aggregation.

The Locking Problem

Traditionally, planning required multiple users to input data into a centralized system, but databases struggled to handle so many different people in the system at the same time.

If too many users attempted to update data, systems would “lock” records to prevent conflicts, creating bottlenecks and slowing down the entire planning process. Early planning solutions had to develop workarounds to enable multiple users to collaborate without causing these conflicts.

The Aggregation Problem

Planning doesn’t happen at the transactional level—it requires a broader view. To do effective planning, you want to aggregate the data, whether that’s at the department, account, or product level. For example, an organization might want to forecast sales by region rather than looking at every individual order.

Early databases weren’t optimized for real-time slicing and dicing of data, which led to the rise of cube technology. Cubes were like virtual filing cabinets that pre-organized data into different views.

Instead of asking the database to recalculate everything from scratch every time you changed a filter, the cube stored those summaries in memory, making it 20 times faster than reading directly from a hard drive.

Fast forward to today, and these constraints are largely obsolete. Advancements in cloud computing, in-memory processing, and AI-driven analytics mean that massive datasets can be aggregated and queried in real time—no separate cubes or proprietary systems are required.

Instead of exporting data to an external tool for transformation, modern platforms like Microsoft Fabric allow businesses to plan directly within their existing data environment, eliminating unnecessary complexity and inefficiencies.

Modern Planning Is Integrated, Agile, and Embedded in Data

For years, planning was a disconnected process, requiring data exports to Excel or standalone systems. But today, organizations are embedding business planning directly within their existing data platforms. This eliminates silos, reduces inefficiencies, and makes real-time decision-making possible.

The key shift in modern planning is integration. Instead of treating planning as a separate function, businesses are now aligning it with their broader data strategy. This means planning happens where the data already resides, reducing complexity and enabling more agile, responsive decision-making.

The Shift From Standalone Legacy Solutions

The standalone legacy planning solutions were great options at the time. Back in the day, data solutions didn’t support planning, so vendors had to create separate solutions.

Years ago, our guest Liran said that he would actively advocate for keeping Power BI and planning tools separate, because Power BI was read-only, while planning tools required write-back functionality.

Thanks to the advent of Fabric, Power BI can now support write-back functionality, allowing businesses to integrate planning directly within their analytics environment. This means organizations no longer have to choose between robust reporting and flexible planning.

But the issue is deeper than just the addition of write-back functionality. Better planning requires strong business modeling, real-time allocation, and connected forecasting.

Modernized planning isn’t just about inputting data. It’s about ensuring models are dynamic, forecasts are updated continuously, and financial reports reflect real-time changes. This means integrating rolling forecasts, scenario modeling, and multi-layered financial planning—far beyond a simple write-back feature.

Lumel, a leading provider in this space, differentiates itself by offering planning solutions that connect directly to any database—whether it’s a data lake, warehouse, or lakehouse—without the need to migrate or replicate data.

Tools like Lumel are critical to elevating planning from a static, finance-driven process to a dynamic, enterprise-wide strategy since that critical connection piece is there.

AI: Automating the Predictable, Enhancing the Strategic

In 2025, you can’t speak about any data processes without acknowledging the immense impact that Artificial Intelligence has.
AI is transforming planning by automating routine forecasting and anomaly detection. Repetitive, data-driven processes—such as predicting utility costs or standard cash flow transactions—can now be handled much more efficiently by AI.

Rather than relying on separate, siloed AI tools, modern organizations are embedding AI directly within their existing data infrastructure. This ensures that AI models can analyze the most comprehensive dataset available, leading to more accurate forecasts and real-time adjustments.

One key thing here, though, is recognizing where AI struggles when compared with humans. With strategic financial decisions, like acquisitions or decision-making during major market shifts, human judgment is and will continue to be a critical piece of the puzzle.

In short, AI is an incredible tool to augment—not replace—human expertise in planning. AI acts as a valuable tool to help teams be more efficient and accurate.

Reducing Cost and Complexity With No-Code Planning

One of the final topics we touched on in this episode of Modernized Planning was the rise of no-code solutions to help significantly decrease the costs associated with planning.

Traditional planning solutions often require costly data duplication, complex implementations, and extensive technical expertise. Modern no-code planning solutions eliminate these barriers by integrating directly with existing data platforms, reducing both infrastructure costs and implementation time.

With self-service, no-code interfaces, users no longer need to write scripts or learn advanced query languages like DAX. Instead, planning models function similarly to Excel, making it easy for business users to create forecasts, scenarios, and calculations without engineer intervention.

By removing the need for specialized coding and redundant data pipelines, organizations can dramatically reduce costs, accelerate implementation, and empower teams to take ownership of their planning processes.

Modernization Is an Ongoing Journey

As a part of this new series, we’re wrapping up every session by asking everyone what their best advice is for organizations starting their modernized planning journey. Liran’s advice: Modernization isn’t a one-time project—it’s an ongoing journey.

Unlike large-scale digital transformation initiatives, which can be costly and quickly outdated by new technology, integrated business planning is about continuous improvement and adaptation.

Organizations should take an iterative approach, integrating planning into their existing data strategy step by step, rather than overhauling everything at once. This ensures they remain agile and responsive to emerging technologies like AI and automation.

Beyond choosing the right tools, investing in training and user adoption is critical. The most advanced planning system is only as effective as the people using it. Ensuring teams are equipped to leverage new capabilities will drive long-term success and keep planning aligned with business goals.

Looking for a planning partner to create lasting change in your organization? Whether you need hands-on training for your team, wide-scale implementation of new planning solutions, or anything in between, Collectiv is recognized by Microsoft as the best of the best and we have real-world tested planning solutions.

Remember to subscribe to Collectiv’s YouTube channel so you never miss an episode of Modernized Planning.